If you’ve been hurt in an accident, you probably have questions about your rights and what to do next. You’re likely facing high medical bills, pain from your injuries, and insurance companies trying to get in touch with you.
On top of those things, navigating the legal side of your accident claim can be confusing if you’re doing it alone.
Below are answers to the most common questions we get from injury victims.
What Is a Personal Injury Case?
A personal injury case arises when another person’s carelessness or wrongdoing hurts someone. The law allows the injured person to file a claim or lawsuit to get money for medical bills, lost wages, and pain.
You don’t need to prove the other person meant to hurt you, just that their actions caused your injury.
What Is Negligence?
Negligence occurs when someone doesn’t act as carefully as they should have, and their actions cause someone else to get hurt. It’s usually the most common reason people file personal injury claims.
Examples of negligence might include a driver texting and causing a crash, or a store owner ignoring a wet floor.
How Do You Prove Negligence?
To win a personal injury case based on negligence, you usually need to prove four things:
- The other person had a legal responsibility to keep you safe (duty of care)
- They didn’t meet that responsibility (breach of duty)
- Their actions caused your injury (causation)
- You suffered losses like medical bills, lost wages, or disfigurement (damages)
A personal injury lawyer gathers evidence like photos, witness statements, and expert reports to prove these elements.
What Are the Most Common Types of Personal Injury Cases?
Personal injury law covers many types of harm. Cases are generally brought based on one of three types of tort, or civil wrong, that causes injury.
Negligence
Negligent torts happen when someone is careless or fails to act with a reasonable level of care.
Examples include:
- Car crashes, pedestrian accidents, and other injuries involving motor vehicles
- Slip and fall accidents
- Medical malpractice
Whether someone was negligent is usually based on the reasonable person standard. This considers the actions and level of care a reasonable person would have displayed in a similar situation.
Intentional Tort
Intentional torts involve someone causing harm on purpose. Examples include assault and battery.
Strict Liability
Someone can be held liable for causing injury even if it wasn’t intentional or negligent under a legal principle called strict liability. Unlike the other two types of tort, strict liability focuses on the activity or product involved, not the person’s actions.
The most common example is a product liability case involving a defective product. The manufacturer can be held responsible for injuries caused by a dangerous product, regardless of their intentions.
Other Types of Cases
Some personal injury cases are unique and may involve two or more types of tort, for instance.
Dog bite cases may involve strict liability or negligence. Louisiana uses a limited strict liability rule in these cases. Dog owners are usually strictly liable if they could have prevented their dog from causing harm and the injured party didn’t provoke the animal. Owners can also be liable if their negligence allowed their dog to bite someone.
Nursing home abuse and neglect can also involve overlapping areas of personal injury law. Residents may be harmed by intentional abuse or through neglect caused by negligence.
Wrongful death cases may involve any type of tort.
What Does Comparative Negligence Mean?
Comparative negligence means more than one person, including the victim, can share blame for an accident.
Under Louisiana law, a “pure comparative negligence” doctrine usually applies. It typically means you can still recover money even if you were mostly at fault. If you share any fault, your damages will likely be reduced according to your share of blame.
For example, if you’re 80% at fault, you can usually still recover 20% of your damages.
What Are Damages in a Personal Injury Case in Louisiana?
Damages are the money you may receive to cover the harm you’ve suffered. In Louisiana, you can recover two main types.
Economic damages, which have a clear financial value. Examples include medical bills or property damage repairs. Non-economic damages refer to losses with no clear monetary value. These subjective losses include pain and suffering or emotional distress.
In rare cases that go to trial, a jury may award exemplary or punitive damages if your case qualifies. These damages punish especially reckless behavior, such as drunk driving or intentional harm.
What Is the Deadline to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Louisiana?
You typically have two years from the date you were hurt to file a lawsuit in Louisiana. Some exceptions can shorten the deadline, so it’s critical to consult a lawyer as soon as possible after an accident.
Will I Need to Go to Court?
Not always. Most personal injury cases settle out of court. However, your attorney may recommend filing a lawsuit if the insurance company doesn’t offer a fair settlement.
An experienced lawyer can help you make informed decisions and determine when to go to court to seek fair compensation.
What Is My Personal Injury Case Worth?
The value of your case depends on several things, including:
- How serious your injury is
- Whether you are left with long-term impairment or disability
- Whether you can go back to work
- How your life has been affected
- Your age, health, and lifestyle before your accident
- Whether you were partly at fault
- Insurance policy limits to cover the damages you suffered
Every case is unique, so it’s best to talk to a lawyer to understand what your case may be worth.
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Personal Injury Attorney?
Most personal injury lawyers accept cases on a contingency fee basis. Under this arrangement, you do not pay any upfront fees or retainers for legal representation, and your attorney only gets paid if they win your case. Their fee is typically a pre-determined percentage of your compensation award.
Contact Our Metairie Personal Injury Lawyers for a Free Case Evaluation
Have you or someone you love been hurt in an accident? You may be entitled to compensation. Santana & Blanchard Personal Injury Lawyers is here to help. Call our Metairie personal injury lawyers today at (504) 323-6000 for a free consultation.