Personal Injury Law on Liability Issues

By: MesrianiLaw | Posted: 01st December 2010

Any injury suffered by anyone can affect not just a single aspect of his life. When a person is injured, his bodily function is not only limited, but his mental and emotional condition also suffers as well.

Often, the family of the injured also feels the effects of the injury. Other portions of everyday living like work, social gatherings, even financial situation may also be affected.

Unwanted sufferings may compel victims of various personal injury cases to file a claim. But in order to have a valid personal injury claim, the responsibility of the liable person should be proven. More importantly, the victim should first know who really is responsible.

Reading through the personal injury law overview will help an injured victim determine the person’s liability in the accident. The principle of negligence is the most basic rule in determining liability. This means that if one person involved in an accident is more negligent to the other people/person, the more negligent one is the person responsible and therefore has to pay compensation to the injured.

However, there are accidents wherein the liable parties can be two or more people. In most states, the party with the greatest share of liability must pay the victim compensation for the injury. The rest will account for each of their share of the responsibility. This is called as comparative liability.
Also, if one of the liable people is insured, the victim can make a claim against the insured for the full amount. Even if there is more than one person insured among the legally responsible, the victim can settle a claim with only one insurance company.

The victim also has an option to consider everyone believed to be responsible in filing a claim for damages. Then, he can decide to pursue the claim against just one depending on the other details of the case.

It is possible that the victim himself may have contributed to instigate the accident. In most states, the victim would still be permissible to receive compensation from the other negligent party, although only a percentage of the full compensation can be given. Under comparative negligence, the plaintiff and the defendant’s carelessness will be weighed, and the percentage of liability will determine the percentage of damages.

States also differ in the application of comparative negligence. There are states that will allow recovery based on the other person’s fault, regardless of the victim’s own fault. But most states apply that if the victim is 50 percent or more responsible, he would not be allowed to recover any damages.

To learn more about California personal injury law and comparative negligence, consult with our skilled Los Angeles personal injury attorneys. Visit our website and avail of our free case analysis.
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Tags: principle, damages, financial situation, insurance company, insurance, accidents, personal injury cases, personal injury claim, personal injury law, negligence, social gatherings, everyday living, sufferings