Negligence & Personal Injury

Proving Liability in Coral Gables Injury Claims

In personal injury law and cases, the term "negligence" frequently comes up. The law of negligence simply means that there are certain standards in place and the responsible individual strayed from these standards. This could be in a variety of different cases, from medical malpractice to car accidents to premises liability, but one thing remains the same: the person breached their duty of care.

There are usually five different aspects that must be proven in a case of negligence. First is that the person owed the victim a duty of care. Second is that they breached that duty and third is that the breach was directly related to the victim's injury. The fourth aspect that must be proven is the proximate cause and whether they should have foreseen the harm. Lastly, the property damage or injuries were shown to result from the negligent individual.

So who can be found to be at fault regarding negligence? This will differ depending on the case, but an example includes all drivers. Drivers are responsible for driving safely so as not to place those around them in unnecessary danger. Another example would be a property owner who failed to warn of dangerous conditions on their property.

Whatever the case, you should not have to pay because of their negligence.

Elements of a Negligence Case: Proving Fault

The basis behind a number of the personal injury claims that are made is negligence. The premise behind claims of negligence rests on the theory that a person or company was legally responsible for providing a duty of care that was ultimately not met, thus leading to an accident and subsequent injury. As we discussed earlier, there are five crucial aspects to any case of negligence. In order for a claim or lawsuit of this nature to be successful, all five of these elements must be proven by the attorney who is chosen to represent you. When you work with the Mesa Law Firm, we will do everything possible to ensure that the following are detailed to their fullest, thus ensuring that you are provided with a favorable result to your case.

• Duty: Depending on the nature of your accident, the duty owed will vary. For example, claiming negligence in a medical malpractice case might entail proving the surgeon who operated on you owed a level of medical care that was not provided, thus jeopardizing your health. If the law recognizes a relationship between defendant and plaintiff, a duty is also recognized, and the defendant will be expected to meet this duty.

• Breach of Duty: Once a relationship between the defendant and plaintiff has been established, so too can a duty be established. From there, a breach of duty can occur. A defendant can be held liable for negligence if he or she breaches the duty that is owed to the plaintiff. A breach of this nature most typically results from the defendant's failure to exercise a reasonable level of care. Again, the level of care that is owed will depend on the situation at hand.

• Cause in Fact: Also referred to as "but-for" causation, cause in fact is a traditional rule of negligence in which the plaintiff must prove that the defendant's actions are truly the cause of the injury that was sustained. Under this theory, if it weren't for the defendant's actions, the plaintiff would not have suffered injury. In essence, "but for the defendant's actions, the plaintiff would not have been injured."

• Proximate Cause: The defendant of a negligence case is only responsible for harm that he or she could have reasonably foreseen through his or her actions. Any harm caused to a plaintiff that is determined to be outside the scope of risks which a defendant could have known about cannot be used to hold the defendant liable.

• Damages: The plaintiff in a negligence case must be able to prove that he or she was harmed in a legally recognizable manner, i.e. physical injury or property damage. If the defendant's failure to exercise reasonable care did not ultimately result in any harm, then negligence cannot be claimed.

Hold the negligent party accountable!

If you believe that you are entitled to file a personal injury lawsuit, you should contact Mesa Law Firm. We have 15 years of experience which we could put to use in helping you recover compensation for your injuries. By holding the negligent party accountable, you can have peace of mind knowing that the same situation might not affect another family.

Contact a Coral Gables personal injury lawyer from the Mesa Law Firm today for a free case evaluation or to learn more about our firm!