Franklin Personal Injury Lawyer

Recovering from a personal injury takes time and patience. If you were in an accident that caused you severe or catastrophic injuries, you may be unable to work for an extended period of time. This will only worsen your financial situation.

At Raybin & Weissman, P.C., our Franklin personal injury lawyers understand the amount of stress that you are under following an injury. We will work on your behalf to make sure that your physical, emotional, and financial needs are met during this time.

Proving Liability in a Personal Injury Lawsuit

A personal injury is the result of another individual taking less care than a reasonable person would have in the same situation. To establish negligence, the following elements must be proven:

Duty of Care

To find the party responsible for your injuries, you must establish that the person or entity owed you a duty of care. Examples of duty of care include:

• Motor vehicle accidents: Drivers have a responsibility to follow traffic regulations to keep road users safe
• Slip-and-fall accidents: Property owners have a responsibility to warn guests about any hazards on their property

Breach of Duty

If you are able to show that a party failed to meet their duty of care, the second element of negligence is established. A motorist may breach his or her duty through any of the following:

• Speeding
• Running red lights
• Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol
• Tailgating
• Texting, applying make-up, or any distracted behavior

In a slip-and-fall accident, a breach of duty could occur if:

• The property owner failed to repair a broken sidewalk
• The property owner failed to warn you about the broken sidewalk
• The property owner failed to clean up a spill
• The property owner failed to place a “Wet Floor” sign to warn you about a slippery surface
• The area was poorly lit

Causation

Causation in negligence cases can be broken down into two types:

• Actual cause or “cause-in-fact”: The other party’s breach of duty must have been the direct result of your injuries
• Proximate or legal cause: The injuries you sustained are a foreseeable consequence of your accident

Establishing liability may be difficult if there is an intervening cause. An intervening cause is the action of another person that occurs between the original act and before the victim suffers harm.

For example, if you were hit by a drunk driver and suffered a brain bleed, this is clearly the fault of the other driver. However, when emergency personnel arrive on the scene, a paramedic inadvertently administers the wrong medication. As a result, the bleeding in your brain worsens, and you suffer long-term damage, impairing your ability to speak and think clearly.

If the paramedics administered the proper medication, you likely could have avoided long-term brain damage. Any complications you suffer could be the result of the paramedic’s error, making it more challenging to determine liability. In these situations, the drunk driver and the paramedic will likely share liability.

Damages

Damages are any measurable losses that you sustained as a result of your accident. These may include any of the following:

• Lost wages
• Lost earning potential
• Medical expenses
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering

In pursuing a personal injury suit, you are requesting the court to compensate you for these legal losses. It is up to the jury to evaluate the available evidence to determine who is telling the truth.

To have the jury find in your favor, you must demonstrate that the facts you have presented are “more likely than not” true. This is known as the preponderance of the evidence standard, and it is the burden of proof that must be met in most civil cases.

Suffered Harm? Reach Out to a Franklin Personal Injury Lawyer

Injuries following an accident can inhibit your ability to live a normal life. You may be unable to work and care for your family, and the joys you once felt may be gone. If you are the victim of another person’s negligence, our Franklin personal injury lawyers are here to assist you. Contact us online or by phone to schedule your free case review.