What are the Basic Elements for a Personal Injury Claim?

When you see a personal injury firm’s commercial on television, you might be left with the impression that personal injury cases are exclusively auto accident injuries. While many personal injury claims are from auto accidents, personal injury cases are varied and include medical malpractice (negligence by doctor or inaccurate treatment), product liability (injury from defective products), slip and fall accidents on public or private property), and even wrongful death claims. 

Personal injury claims compensate economic losses non-economic losses known as “general damages.” General damages from a personal injury claim can include mental and emotional anguish, which can also include loss of enjoyment of activities one used to participate in but can no longer due to the injury suffered. 

Personal injury claims and compensation vary based upon your geographical location, meaning the elements needed to prove a claim may be different for someone who lives in Jacksonville and someone who leaves in Seattle. However, there are basic elements to a personal injury claim.

In this article, we will discuss those basic elements. If you have additional questions pertaining to your own personal circumstances, then we invite you to contact the personal injury claims lawyers in Jacksonville, FL – RITE Law. Our number is (904) 500-RITE or you can fill out our contact form online. We provide a free case evaluation , so call today.

COMMON ELEMENTS OF A PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM

1. Duty to Exercise Reasonable Care

Reasonable care means exercising a degree of caution and care an ordinarily rational person would exercise in the situation. For example, a driver of an automobile has a duty to exercise reasonable care and caution on the road (stopping at stop signs, not texting while driving, etc.). This duty is owed to other drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. A duty to exercise reasonable car must exist for a successful claim.

2. Failure to Exercise Reasonable Care

The second basic element in a personal injury claim is establishing the party who caused the injury has failed to meet the duty of reasonable care. The party who caused the injury did not have to intend to cause the injury. The negligence of the party to exercise reasonable care is what needs to be established after proving the party had a duty to act as an ordinary, rational person would (texting while driving is an example of not exercising reasonable care).

3. Causation

After the duty and negligence to exercise reasonable care is established, the injured party must prove the party who failed in their duty to act with reasonable care caused the actual injury. A driver who is texting next to a car that is hit by another car cannot have a successful claim if his actions did not contribute to the injury in any way. Note that the injured party may have been negligent in some way as well. This is called contributory negligence.

4. Actual Damages Suffered

The last element in an injury claim is damages or loss was suffered due to the injuring party’s negligence. The purpose of the claim is to compensate for damages, including but not limited to, lost income, medical bills, damage to property, and pain and suffering. 

At RITE Law, we started the firm for one reason – to help those in Florida and elsewhere have the resources of a firm that was “big enough to fight but small enough to care.” At Rudolph, Israel, Tucker & Ellis (RITE law), we have the resources and experience to go to trial when it is necessary, and we have the wisdom to advise you appropriately. 

Expect lots of attention, passionate representation, and a healthy disdain for big insurance companies. We believe that leads to the best result possible. Unlike larger firms, your case isn’t handed to a paralegal or assistant to do the heavy lifting. The attorney you meet initially is the one who will be by your side every step of the way. 

We also take pride in creating an atmosphere where every client is treated like family. Family members stick up for one another no matter what. You should expect nothing less from the RITE Law workers’ compensation attorneys in Jacksonville.

Without help from personal injury claims lawyers in Jacksonville at the RITE team, making your own personal injury claims can be very difficult. When you turn to our firm, we spring into action, making sure that every detail of your claim is addressed. Call us for help. Our number is (904) 500-RITE or you can fill out our contact form online. We provide a free case evaluation , so feel free to call us today.

The information in this blog post is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to be legal advice. You should not decide whether or not to contact an attorney based upon the information in this blog post. No attorney-client relationship is formed, nor should any such relationship be implied. If you require legal advice, please consult with an attorney licensed to practice in your jurisdiction.