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Motor Vehicle Litigation A lawsuit is necessary when liability is in dispute. The defendant will then have the chance to respond to the complaint. New York follows pure comparative fault rules which means that in the event that a jury finds you to be the cause of an accident the damages awarded to you will be reduced by your percentage of negligence. This rule is not applicable to owners of vehicles which are rented out or leased to minors. Duty of Care In a negligence lawsuit the plaintiff must demonstrate that the defendant was obligated to act with reasonable care. This duty is owed to all, but those who drive a vehicle owe an even greater obligation to others in their field. This includes ensuring that they do not cause accidents in motor vehicles. Courtrooms evaluate an individual's behavior with what a normal person would do under similar circumstances to establish what is a reasonable standard of care. In cases of medical malpractice, expert witnesses are usually required. Experts with a higher level of expertise of a specific area may also be held to an higher standard of care than other people in similar situations. When a person breaches their duty of care, it can cause injury to the victim or their property. The victim must show that the defendant's infringement of their duty resulted in the damage and injury they suffered. Proving causation is a critical aspect of any negligence case, and it involves taking into consideration both the real causes of the injury damages as well as the proximate cause of the injury or damage. For example, if someone is stopped at a red light, it's likely that they will be hit by a car. If their car is damaged, they'll have to pay for the repairs. The actual cause of the crash could be a brick cut which develops into an infection. Breach of Duty The second aspect of negligence is the breach of duty by the defendant. This must be proved for compensation in a personal injury case. A breach of duty happens when the actions of the party at fault aren't in line with what a reasonable person would do in similar circumstances. A doctor, for instance, has a variety of professional obligations to his patients based on the law of the state and licensing boards. Drivers are obliged to be considerate of other drivers as well as pedestrians, and to obey traffic laws. If a driver violates this obligation and creates an accident is accountable for the injuries suffered by the victim. A lawyer can use the “reasonable person” standard to establish the existence of the duty of care, and then show that the defendant did not meet that standard in his actions. It is a question of fact that the jury has to decide if the defendant was in compliance with the standard or not. The plaintiff must also prove that the breach of duty by the defendant was the primary cause of the injuries. This is sometimes more difficult to prove than the existence of a duty or breach. For instance, a defendant may have crossed a red line, but the action wasn't the proximate cause of your bike crash. For this reason, causation is often contested by the defendants in case of a crash. Causation In motor vehicle cases, the plaintiff has to establish a causal link between the defendant's breach of duty and their injuries. If a plaintiff suffers neck injuries in an accident that involved rear-end collisions and his or her attorney will argue that the crash was the cause of the injury. Other factors that are essential to produce the collision, such as being in a stationary car, are not culpable and will not affect the jury's determination of liability. For motor vehicle accident lawsuit topeka , the connection between an act of negligence and an injured plaintiff's symptoms could be more difficult to establish. It may be that the plaintiff has a turbulent past, a poor relationship with their parents, or has used alcohol or drugs. If you've been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident it is crucial to consult with an experienced attorney. The attorneys at Arnold & Clifford, LLP, have extensive experience in representing clients in personal injury as well as commercial and business litigation, as well as motor vehicle accident cases. Our lawyers have established working relationships with independent doctors in different specialties, as well expert witnesses in computer simulations and accident reconstruction. Damages The damages that a plaintiff may recover in a motor vehicle case include both economic and non-economic damages. The first type of damages includes all monetary costs which can be easily added together and calculated as a total, such as medical treatments, lost wages, repairs to property, and even future financial loss, like a diminished earning capacity. New York law recognizes that non-economic damages, such as suffering and pain, and loss of enjoyment can't be reduced to cash. These damages must be proved by a wide array of evidence, including depositions of family members and friends of the plaintiff medical records, as well as other expert witness testimony. In the event of multiple defendants, courts will often use comparative fault rules to determine the amount of damages to be split between them. The jury must determine how much fault each defendant was responsible for the accident and to then divide the total amount of damages by that percentage of fault. However, New York law 1602 specifically excludes owners of vehicles from the comparative fault rule in relation to injuries sustained by drivers of these vehicles and trucks. The method of determining if the presumption is permissive or not is complex. In general the only way to prove that the owner denied permission for the driver to operate the vehicle can overcome the presumption.