Motor Vehicle Litigation

A lawsuit is required when the liability is being contested. The Defendant has the right to respond to the complaint.

New York has a pure comparative negligence rule. This means that, when a jury finds you to be responsible for an accident the damages you incur will be reduced based on your percentage of fault. This rule does not apply to owners of vehicles rented out or leased to minors.

Duty of Care

In a lawsuit for negligence the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant was obligated to act with reasonable care. This duty is due to everyone, but people who drive a vehicle owe an even greater duty to other drivers in their field. This includes ensuring that they do not cause accidents in motor vehicle accident law Firm vehicles.

Courtrooms examine an individual's conduct to what a typical person would do under the same conditions to determine a reasonable standard of care. This is why expert witnesses are frequently required in cases involving medical negligence. People who have superior knowledge in a particular field can be held to an even higher standard of care than other people in similar situations.

A breach of a person's duty of care could cause harm to a victim or their property. The victim has to show that the defendant violated their duty and caused the injury or damage that they suffered. Causation is an essential element of any negligence claim. It involves proving the proximate and actual causes of the injuries and damages.

For instance, if a person is stopped at a red light there is a good chance that they'll be hit by another car. If their car is damaged they will be responsible for repairs. The real cause of an accident could be a fracture in the brick that leads to an infection.

Breach of Duty

The second aspect of negligence is the breach of duty by an individual defendant. This must be proved in order to obtain compensation for personal injury claims. A breach of duty occurs when the at-fault party's actions aren't in line with what a reasonable person would do in similar circumstances.

For example, a doctor is required to perform a number of professional duties for his patients, arising from the law of the state and licensing boards. Motorists owe a duty care to other drivers and pedestrians to drive in a safe manner and adhere to traffic laws. If a driver violates this obligation and causes an accident is responsible for the injuries sustained by the victim.

A lawyer may use the "reasonable person" standard to establish the existence of the duty of care, and then show that the defendant did not satisfy the standard through his actions. It is a matter of fact for the jury to decide whether the defendant met the standard or not.

The plaintiff must also establish that the defendant's breach of duty was the proximate cause of his or motor vehicle accident law firm her injuries. It is more difficult to prove this than a breach of duty. For example an individual defendant could have run a red light but his or her action was not the sole reason for your bicycle crash. Causation is often contested in a crash case by defendants.

Causation

In motor vehicle cases the plaintiff must establish an causal link between defendant's breach and their injuries. If the plaintiff sustained a neck injury in an accident with rear-end damage and his or her attorney will argue that the incident was the reason for the injury. Other elements that could have caused the collision, such as being in a stationary car, are not culpable, and will not impact the jury’s determination of the cause of the accident.

For psychological injuries However, the connection between an act of negligence and an injured plaintiff's symptoms could be more difficult to establish. It may be the case that the plaintiff has a troubled past, a poor relationship with their parents, or has been a user of alcohol or drugs.

It is imperative to consult an experienced lawyer in the event that you've been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident attorney accident. The lawyers at Arnold & Clifford, LLP, have extensive experience in representing clients in personal injury, commercial and business litigation, as well as motor vehicle accident cases. Our lawyers have established relationships with independent physicians across a variety of specialties, expert witnesses in accident reconstruction and computer simulations, and with private investigators.

Damages

In motor vehicle litigation, a person can recover both economic and noneconomic damages. The first category of damages covers the costs of monetary value that can be easily added together and then calculated into the total amount, which includes medical treatment or lost wages, repair to property, and even financial losses, such as loss of earning capacity.

New York law recognizes that non-economic damages, such as suffering and pain, and loss of enjoyment of life are not able to be reduced to cash. However the damages must be established to exist with the help of extensive evidence, such as deposition testimony from plaintiff's family members and close friends medical records, as well as other expert witness testimony.

In cases where there are multiple defendants, Courts will often use comparative negligence rules to determine how much of the total damages awarded should be divided between them. This requires the jury to determine how much fault each defendant was responsible for the accident, Motor Vehicle accident law firm and then divide the total damages award by that percentage of fault. However, New York law 1602 excludes vehicle owners from the comparative negligence rule in cases where injuries are sustained by drivers of cars or trucks. The subsequent analysis of whether the presumption of permissive usage is applicable is a bit nebulous, and typically only a clear proof that the owner has explicitly refused permission to operate the vehicle will overcome it.