If someone has ever caused you bodily harm, you have experienced a personal injury. Depending on your situation, you can sue the person responsible for your injury and make them pay for your related expenses.
You should file a personal injury lawsuit as soon as possible after being injured. You might need some time to consult with an attorney can gather evidence, but you should make sure to file the case before the statutory deadline. You can claim damages, including medical bills, pain, suffering, and other expenses incurred because of your injuries. To prove your claims and get compensation, you need evidence. The evidence you need varies based on your situation, but common evidence includes medical records, photos, videos, and witness testimony.
Call The Carrion Law Firm’s personal injury attorneys today at (718) 841-0083 for a free case review.
Elements of a Personal Injury Claim in Jackson Heights, NY
Personal injury lawsuits encompass a wide variety of cases and injuries. Essentially, any harm done to you might constitute a personal injury if it stems from another’s negligence. If you believe your injuries are the fault of another, our personal injury attorneys can assess the situation and file a lawsuit.
To prove the defendant was negligent, we must establish the following four legal elements:
Duty of Care
Duty is the defendant’s legal obligation owed to the plaintiff and typically depends on their relationship. They might know each other, or be complete strangers, but duty will vary by accident type.
For example, a driver owes a duty to others on the road to drive with reasonable safety under the circumstances.
Healthcare providers, like doctors, nurses, and hospitals, have a duty to provide a certain level of care to their patients.
Property owners and tenants must make their premises safe for guests and others they reasonable expect to visit.
Product manufacturers owe a duty to consumers to provide goods that are free from defects and to provide reasonable warnings and instructions.
Breach of Duty
A breach is an action or inaction by the defendant that violated their legal duty. If the defendant acted unreasonably under the circumstances, a breach of duty can be established.
Drivers commonly breach their duty when they violate traffic laws, such as speeding, running traffic signals, or texting while driving. If a traffic violation cannot be proven, breach can still be established when they acted in a way a reasonable driver would not have.
Healthcare providers breach if their care deviates from what similarly educated, trained, and experienced professionals would have given. Perhaps your doctor failed to perform common exams, leading to a misdiagnosis. Maybe your condition worsened in the emergency room because a nurse overlooked you.
Slip and falls from uncleaned snow and spills are common examples of a property owner’s breach of duty. Failing to warn visitors of known dangers and making routine inspections for hazards can also constitute a breach in a premises liability claim.
Causation
Causation is the link between the breach and the injuries, and we must show that the breach is the direct and “proximate” cause of the accident.
A defendant directly causes an accident if it would not have happened but for their negligence. Consider a driver who runs a red light and hits someone. The incident would most likely not have occurred if the driver stopped instead.
The defendant is the proximate cause if the plaintiff’s injuries were a foreseeable consequence of their conduct. This typically means showing that no intervening causes were responsible for the victim’s damages.
Damages
Finally, your damages must be real and have actually happened. Hypothetical or possible damages cannot be claimed.
Financial losses are the most common form of legal damages, like medical bills, lost income, and property damage.
Non-economic damages can also be claimed. These damages largely depend on the physical pain and emotional harm that plaintiffs endure but are just as real as economic losses.
Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit for Intentional Conduct in Jackson Heights, NY
Personal injury cases might instead involve intentional conduct by the defendant that caused your injuries. In some cases, this intentional conduct is motivated by a malicious intent to cause harm, and the defendant might also face criminal charges. However, this is not necessary to file in civil court, which refers to intentional harms as “torts.”
The exact elements we must prove an intentional tort case varies based on how the injuries happened, but a key component will likely involve proving the defendant’s intent.
For instance, assault and battery are often used interchangeably, but are two distinct torts in civil law. Civil assault occurs when a person intends to make another apprehensive of imminent contact, such as rearing back to punch them. They are liable for battery if they intend to make contact and actually do.
Sometimes, the victim is not the intended target. Regardless, the defendant’s intent can be transferred to them. They might not have intended to harm the plaintiff, but should be held liable for intending the conduct.
When to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Jackson Heights, NY
In general, it is a good idea to file your personal injury lawsuit as soon as possible. There are various reasons why doing this sooner rather than later is in your best interest. First, filing quickly helps you avoid missing the deadline imposed by the statute of limitations. Second, beginning your lawsuit right away allows time to gather important evidence before it disappears.
Statutes of limitations are laws that place time limits on when potential plaintiffs can file lawsuits for their injuries. Multiple statutes of limitations impose different deadlines on different kinds of cases. Most personal injury cases have a three-year time limit under C.V.P. Law § 214(5). The time begins counting down on the date of your injury. If you miss the deadline, you might lose your right to file the lawsuit.
The longer you wait to begin your case, the more you risk losing evidence. A lot of important evidence can be found where you were injured. Typically, these scenes are not preserved for very long, and important physical evidence might be lost if you do not act fast.
Damages You Can Claim in a Jackson Heights, NY Personal Injury Lawsuit
As mentioned, your damages are the losses, injuries, and expenses you experienced because of your personal injuries. While many injures are economic and associated with a monetary cost, other damages are non-economic, and their value is more subjective. Courts can also award punitive damages to punish defendants.
Economic Damages
Economic damages related to personal injuries almost always include medical bills. After being injured, you might have sought treatment from a doctor. In many cases, the injuries are urgent, and victims are rushed to the emergency room. Costly treatments might include surgery, medication, x-rays, stitches, and additional follow-up doctor visits.
Many plaintiffs also claim damages for losses like damaged property and lost income. You can even recover compensation for out-of-pocket expenses related to your case, like childcare and transportation costs for appointments.
Future economic losses should also be claimed. Serious injury victims often have long-term treatment costs after a case ends. If they are prevented from working or performing the same job, their earning potential will also suffer. Expert witnesses can help assess any potential future financial losses you should recover.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are more challenging to handle because they do not come with a precise value or price. In fact, these damages often come at no financial cost to the plaintiff but take deep physical or emotional tolls.
Some victims live with pain long after their injuries “heal,” while many others develop conditions like depression and anxiety. Others suffer humiliation from visible scarring and disfigurement. We can calculate these damages by assessing how much your injuries impact your everyday life.
Non-economic damages will also be influenced by the extent of your economic damages, making it crucial to calculate your total financial losses.
Punitive Damages
Rarely, courts will award punitive damages to punish defendants who acted with wanton and willful negligence or a high degree of moral turpitude. However, there must be clear and convincing evidence of their misconduct.
For instance, a person convicted of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol will likely have to pay punitive damages, especially if they seriously injure or kill the victim.
Punitive damages are also more common in medical malpractice claims, such as those involving a foreign object left in a patient’s body.
Fortunately, New York does not cap the amount of punitive damages courts can award. Still, an award that is around 10 times the victim’s compensatory losses would likely be considered excessive.
Evidence You Might Need in a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Jackson Heights, NY
Just like your damages, the evidence you need for your personal injury lawsuit will vary based on your individual situation. The following are the most common types used:
Medical Records
You will need medical records to link your injuries and treatment to the accident. They will document your diagnosis, treatment plan, test results, and prognosis. Records from specialists, like physical therapists and neurologists, should also be included.
Your medical records will also help prove the financial losses you are claiming in your lawsuit. Be sure to attend every appointment, as gaps in your treatment can cost you compensation.
Therapy and psychiatry records can also be used as evidence to support your claims for pain and emotional suffering.
Physical Evidence
Physical evidence might include any weapons or objects used to cause the injuries, items dropped by the defendant at the scene, and any other real objects that connect the defendant to the injuries.
For instance, a defective appliance that injured you should be submitted as evidence. Our expert witnesses can explain to the insurance company or court its specific faults and how it injured you.
Photos
Oftentimes, the only way to preserve physical evidence is to take pictures of it. You cannot bring a damaged car or icy sidewalk to court, but you can submit photos to back up your claims.
Be sure to take photos of the scene, your injuries, and anything else you think will help.
Accident Reports
You should report your accident to the proper authorities if you can, like the police after a car crash or the manager of a business you slipped and fell in. Written reports might have details you forgot or were not aware of, like witness information.
Witness Testimony
Witnesses are crucial because they cannot only back up your claims, but multiple witnesses can provide testimony from multiple vantage points and perspectives.
Even if they did not witness your injuries first-hand, witnesses can testify about other information pertinent to your case, like statements the defendant made after the accident and the pain you were in.
Expert Testimony
Certain experts can also testify even though they did not witness the accident. Qualified experts instead provide insights into elements of the case and explain complex concepts to the court.
For instance, an accident reconstruction expert can use scientific methods to help determine how fast a defendant was likely driving.
In a product liability claim, we might have a manufacturing expert or engineer explain how a product was negligently made and how the defect injured you.
Your doctors can also testify about your injuries and treatment. They can explain the pain you have endured, justify the need for future treatments, and the pain you might live with after healing.
Contact Our Jackson Heights, NY Personal Injury Lawyers
For a free case assessment with our personal injury lawyers, call The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.