Charlotte Injury Lawyers Blog
Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Matt Arnold answers the question: “What can you sue for in a personal injury case?”
Accidents can happen in an instant. When an accident results in serious injuries, the negligent party should be held responsible for your damages. Some accidents cause severe or long-term injuries with extremely high medical bills. You may also incur other damages such as money you lose because you cannot work, and money for pain and suffering. There are a few basic steps that you should understand about personal injury claims in North Carolina. A knowledgeable attorney will help you through the process so you can get the money you deserve for your injuries.
Common Types of Personal Injury Claims
Personal injuries can happen in a number of circumstances. Some of the most common types of personal injury claims are for:
- Car accidents
- Slip and falls
- Nursing home neglect or abuse
- Truck accidents
- Construction accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Birth injuries
The essential part of any personal injury claim is that it occured due to someone’s negligence. For example, a driver may have been negligently speeding which resulted in a crash. A store owner failed to clean up a water leak and someone fell. A doctor might not have properly monitored a mother during labor and the baby suffered an injury. You must be able to prove negligence in the case.
Elements of Personal Injury Claims
Although an accident may seem serious, it may not warrant a personal injury claim. In order to obtain damages for a personal injury, you must be able to prove the basic elements. These include
- Duty
- Breach of duty
- Cause
- Damages
Duty means that the party had a duty to be careful. You must show that the party failed at their duty, so they were negligent. Then, you must prove their breach of duty caused the accident. Finally, you need to provide evidence that the incident resulted in actual damages. You must prove these elements in a court of law. If you are unable to prove all these elements, your lawsuit will fail. Therefore, it is essential that you are able to gather and produce evidence to prove these elements in court.
Do I Have A Personal Injury Claim?
This is one of the most common questions people ask following an accident with injuries. One reason why a claim may not be appropriate is because there is not enough evidence to prove negligence. If the evidence is lacking, your case will not succeed, you could end up spending time and money on something that will not garner the results you desire. You must be able to prove that the negligent party caused the accident or injury. There are many ways to gather evidence. A skilled personal injury attorney knows how to locate the necessary evidence that will prove your case. If you are uncertain about going forward with a claim, the first step is to consult with an attorney. Your lawyer will review the case to make a determination as to the best way to proceed.
Claim Settlements
Many personal injury cases are resolved through negotiations and settlements before they proceed to court. Do not underestimate the role that skilled negotiations play in personal injury claims. Many times, the evidence is clear and the negligent party is willing to settle the case outside of court. Settlements offer advantages to both parties. Settlements typically take less time than trials. Parties often want to resolve the case more quickly. Additionally, court cases can cause unwanted negative publicity for the negligent party and therefore, they may wish to avoid this option. A settlement can happen at any time in the procedure up until the final court ruling on the case.
If you or a loved one was seriously hurt in an accident, we can help. Call (704) 370-2828 to receive a video, phone or in-person consultation with our lawyers to explore your legal options or fill out our contact form. Now taking cases throughout North Carolina with offices in Uptown Charlotte, Mooresville and Monroe.
The skilled personal injury attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC are dedicated to maximizing the financial recovery and obtaining justice for every personal injury client injured by another party’s negligence. The issues our personal injury clients may be facing include, but are not limited to, slip and fall injuries, wrongful death, product liability, catastrophic injuries, dog bite claims, car and truck accident injuries, motorcycle injuries, traumatic brain injury (TBI), nursing home negligence, spinal cord injury, boating accidents, and defective medical device injury. Our personal injury attorneys understand the devastating impact such an injury can have on a person’s life, and that the effects so often go beyond physical pain and suffering. The personal injury attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC are dedicated to helping clients determine the strength of their claims, and to aggressively pursuing the means necessary to achieve the best possible end result for each client’s particular situation.
Source:
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/negligence
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/settlement
Image Credit:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jochen_Vomhof_im_Mandantengespr%C3%A4ch.jpg
See Our Related Video from our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/ArnoldSmithPLLC/videos
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