What If Both Sides Are At Fault In A Personal Injury Case

Personal injury cases can be hard to understand, but understanding the concept of fault is essential. If you're involved in an accident and think you might have a claim for damages, it's important to understand how this concept plays out in your case. In fact, if you want to maximize your chances of success following a personal injury accident and ensure that your injuries are taken care of properly by insurance companies or other third parties (like employers), it's crucial that you understand what constitutes "fault" in a personal injury case.

Meaning of "Fault" in a Personal Injury Case

In the world of personal injury law, fault is a legal term for blame. Personal Injury Lawyer in Springfield MA knows that fault doesn't mean negligence; it's different from it. 

Faults can be shared by more than one party; it may seem like there was just one person causing all this trouble but sometimes things happen in groups so maybe both sides share some blame equally!

When More Than One Person Is at Fault

If you’re injured in an accident and the other party is at fault, the court will determine how much fault each party contributed to the accident. The Personal Injury Lawyer in Springfield MA court will also determine which party or parties are responsible for your injuries and what percentage of that responsibility should be attributed to each party. In some cases, this could mean that one person may receive all of their compensation while another does not receive any money because he or she did not cause any harm or damage during the event.

What is Contributory and Comparative Negligence?

Comparative negligence is a legal defense that allows an injured plaintiff to recover some or all of their damages, even if they were partially at fault. Comparative negligence is often used in personal injury cases, but it can also apply if you're being sued for damage caused by someone else's actions (e.g., your neighbor's dog running into your car).

What is Pure Comparative Fault and Modified Comparative Fault

Pure Comparative Fault: This means that if you are found liable, you can be held responsible for all of the damages caused by your negligence.

Modified Comparative Fault: This means that a percentage of the total damages will be allocated to the plaintiff, with some being awarded as compensation for injuries suffered by another person.

Shared Blame How it Affects Your Case

In and out of court, shared blame can affect your settlement. In some cases, you may have to negotiate with multiple parties at fault in order to get compensation. Springfield MA Personal Injury Lawyer is aware that if your case is not settled after mediation or arbitration and goes to trial, it's likely that both sides will be blamed for the accident.

Even if you're responsible for causing the accident—and there are many situations where one person is solely responsible for causing an injury—you may still have legal claims against another party who shares some responsibility for their role in causing harm. In these cases, it's possible that your settlement could be reduced because of their involvement (or increased).

Conclusion

If you're injured in an accident, it's important to understand the concept of fault and how it applies to your situation. Although absolute liability doesn't apply in every case, there are still other legal theories that may apply to your case if one is found to be at least partially responsible for causing an accident. In order to make sure that you get the compensation that you deserve after being injured by someone else's negligence—or even if they weren't involved at all—you'll need an experienced Springfield MA Personal Injury Lawyer who knows how these different theories work and can help guide you through the process. For more information visit here: Raipher, P.C.

Will Personal Injury Attorney In Springfield MA Prove Liability In Defective Product Claims

The first step in proving a defective product liability claim is identifying the defect. A product has a defect if it was not reasonably safe for its intended use. There are three main types of defects:

•    A manufacturing defect occurs when the product does not conform to the manufacturer’s specifications during production. This may include using substandard materials or failing to follow proper procedures during assembly.
•    A design defect occurs when there is an inherent flaw in the design of the product itself that makes it unsafe for its intended use. For example, if a manufacturer designed a car with faulty brakes that would fail at 50 mph, there would likely be a design defect in the car’s braking system because it was inherently unsafe regardless of how it was manufactured or marketed by the manufacturer or distributor.
•    A Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA knows that marketing defect occurs when there is no defect with the actual product itself but rather with how it was marketed or sold by its distributor or manufacturer such that consumers were misled into purchasing.
In order to prove that a defect caused your injuries, you must provide evidence that:
•    The products were defective at the time of sale
•    The seller knew about these defects
•    The seller failed to warn customers about these defects

When filing a claim against a manufacturer, distributor or retailer of a defective product, it is important to have an experienced Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA on your side who can help you prove that the product was indeed defective and that the defect caused your injuries.

It’s important to document all of the times you see the doctor, go to get labwork done, results from the doctor, and rehab appointments. These can be used as admissible evidence either in or out of court.  You must tell the treating doctor about any previous injuries and illnesses. Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA will ask you to disclose if your accident made your pre-existing conditions worse. Insist that your doctor document that information in your medical records. Once again, it can help you get a bigger settlement.

The insurance adjusters try to indiscreetly snoop on you so that they can get lots of information that they’ll use against you as evidence to justify paying you as little money as possible. Insurance adjusters have even been known to stoop so low as to use that evidence to force you to admit guilt. That person is interested in saving as much money as possible for the employer - that often means paying you little or no settlement money. You must stay at the accident scene until the police or a law enforcement officer arrives. Most states require it. Failure to do so can result in legal sanctions, including having your driver’s license suspended for up to a year. For more information visit here: Raipher, P.C.

Different Types of Vehicular Accidents Represented By Personal Injury Attorney In Springfield MA

If you've spent any time on a street, whether driving or walking, you know that an accident can happen in the blink of an eye. These can occur in many different ways, and each type of accident has different causes and consequences. Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA can help minimize the stress associated with a car accident and help you file a claim with your insurance company.

The most common types of vehicular accidents are:

•    Single-vehicle accidents. These involve a driver who loses control of their vehicle and crashes into an object or another car without another driver involved. Single-vehicle accidents are often caused by driver error, such as distracted driving or speeding, but they can also be caused by other factors like weather conditions, road conditions and mechanical problems.
•    Rollover Accidents. A rollover occurs when one or more wheels leave contact with the ground, causing the vehicle to flip over onto its roof or side. This type of accident typically occurs when driving too fast for conditions such as icy roads, poorly maintained roads, or even faulty brakes or tires. Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA can help determine what type of damages are recoverable from the other driver's insurance company based on applicable laws and court precedents.
•    Multi-car collisions. These involve two or more vehicles colliding with each other at the same time. These collisions often result when one car runs into the back of another vehicle that is stopped or slowing down at an intersection or other location where traffic control devices are not present or not functioning properly. Multi-car collisions may also occur when one vehicle collides with another car making a left turn onto another road (or merging onto another road from an onramp).
•    Rear-end accidents. This is the most common type of motor vehicle accident, and unfortunately, it's also the most common type of car accident. In rear-end collisions, one car hits another from behind. These are generally caused by inattentive or distracted drivers who fail to see what is ahead of them on the road. Drivers who drive too close to other vehicles or tailgate are at a higher risk for rear-end collisions.
•    T-bone collisions. In this type of accident, one car slams into another from the side while both vehicles are moving forward. T-bone collisions can be caused by reckless driving, drunken driving and distracted driving. If you have been injured in a car accident, you must know that you have the right to seek compensation for your injuries. Personal Injury Attorney in Springfield MA can help you understand how to proceed with this process and explain how much compensation you may be owed if another party is at fault for causing your accident. To read more Click Here

Unspoken Rules That Dictate Your Relationship With Your Springfield Car Accident Lawyer

Car accidents are tough. Unfortunately, for many car accident victims, the legal procedures that follow are even more challenging to overcome. Insurance agents, at-fault parties, and their attorneys do their best to deny car accident victims fair compensation. That’s where the services of a Springfield car accident lawyer can be invaluable. These professionals help injury victims pursue compensations for their damages in a legal and timely manner. In addition to their legal responsibilities, car accident lawyers also handle certain ethical responsibilities. These ethics are rooted in the attorney-client relationships. Here are the ethical rules that dictate these relationships.

The Victim’s Best Interests Come First

A Springfield car accident lawyer will never steer clients towards accepting unsatisfactory or unfair settlement offers. Yes, these lawyers benefit when their clients receive quick settlements. But, that’s not their main goal. Their main goal is to fight as efficiently as possible to secure maximum compensation for their clients. What if that means risking a negative injury verdict? That’s where the experience of the attorneys helps. Attorneys have a clear idea of acceptable and good settlement offers. They review every specific detail of the case. If they believe proving liability in trial would be harder for the plaintiff, they steer the case towards a settlement.

Confidentiality and Privacy

Confidentiality and privacy are the foundations of all attorney-client relationships. A Springfield car accident lawyer will always make clients feel comfortable about disclosing critical information about the case. For attorneys, knowing the true details of the accident/situation is the best way to build a strong case. That’s why it’s vital for car accident victims to trust their attorneys to keep their information private. Attorneys will never share these case-related details with anyone – even the fellow members of their law firms. Breaking this attorney-client privilege isn’t just unethical, but it’s also illegal. Injury victims can sue car accident lawyers who break this privilege.

Truth, Truth, and More Truth

A Springfield car accident lawyer will always be truthful to clients. That’s because being truthful is the best way to set realistic expectations for the relationship at the start. If a case doesn’t have strong potential, attorneys straight up tell the injury victims about it. They don’t dilly-dally or lie to their clients. They don’t take on cases that don’t have strong settlement potential. Similarly, when they accept car accident cases, they use truthfulness and honesty while sharing legal counsel. Bear in mind being truthful doesn’t mean telling the injury victims whatever they want to hear. It means being upfront about every major detail of the case.

Free Consultation

Many attorneys offer free consultations. Some even accept cases for zero upfront fees. They only receive payments if/when the case reaches settlement. Car accident victims must use this feature of professional attorneys to their benefit. They should use the free consultation sessions as tools for interviewing the attorneys. Is the attorney competent enough to take on the case in hand? Has the attorney handled similar car accident cases before? Injury victims can address these questions during their free consultation. From there, they can build strong attorney-client relationships. For more information visit here: Raipher, P.C.

Will Personal Injury Lawyer In Springfield MA Discuss Damages That Are Available In Wrongful Death Cases?

It doesn’t need to be told that the death of a loved one takes a huge toll on the wellbeing and life of the family members of the deceased. However, if an earning member of a family dies, the family also has to bear financial stress due to the demise. This is the reason when someone dies due to the negligence of someone else, the surviving family members of the victim usually file a wrongful death claim with the help of a personal injury lawyer in Springfield MA who would help them get compensated for their loss.

For those who do not know much about the same, a wrongful death case can be defined as the civil action that is brought by the surviving family members of the person who died due to the negligence of someone else. The states have defined the requirements of such cases quite explicitly and your personal injury attorney in Springfield MA would be able to explain all of those to you before you go ahead with the filing of the claim. The states have defined quite clearly as to who all can file a wrongful death case, by when the case needs to be filed and also what kind of damages are available in such claims.

There are different categories of damages available in a wrongful death claim. Your personal injury lawyer in Springfield MA would be able to explain in detail that the first category of damages available in such cases permits the plaintiff to recover the losses incurred from the time of the accident to the time of the death of the victim. It does not matter if the time between the accident and the death is just a few hours, days, weeks or even months. If the injuries caused in the accident led to the death of the victim, the court would allow the plaintiff to file the damages in the first category. The damages covered in this category include the cost of medical treatment, loss of income, the pain and suffering of the deceased person, and funeral and burial expenses that the family had to bear.

The second category which is quite broad takes care of the losses that the family of the victim has to undertake after the demise of the victim. This category is specifically designed to help the surviving family get compensated for their financial losses. Your personal injury attorney in Springfield MA would tell you that this category has been put in place to compensate the family members for the money that the victim would have earned, had he or she been alive. In most cases this includes the average wages of the victim till the time of retirement. In some cases, the states also allow for the claims of loss of consortium where the family members are deprived of the affection of the deceased. For more information visit here: Raipher, P.C.