Personal Injury
Personal Injury
When you, a family member, or someone you love has been injured, there are so many things to consider – paying medical bills, repairing damaged vehicles, or finding long-term or short-term medical care- and it can feel overwhelming. If this has happened to you, know that you potentially have a civil remedy.
Personal Injury Cases
Personal injury refers to any injury from an accident caused by a person who fails to use “reasonable care” to prevent the accident. What “reasonable care” is varies on a case-by-case basis. A personal injury is a civil wrong, as opposed to a criminal act, which gives you the right to sue the wrongdoer for damages. A wrongful act can cause either physical or psychological injuries.
The primary aim of tort law is to provide relief for the damages incurred and to deter others from committing the same kind of harms to others.
Liability is based upon the offender’s failure to exercise reasonable care, where such failure could foreseeably result in the kind of injuries you may have actually suffered. A person may be liable for your injuries if caused through negligent or reckless actions. Some of the defenses to liability for personal injury include pre-existing condition(s), assumption of the risk, or comparative negligence, which simply means that if you contributed in any way to your own injury, you may be held to be responsible for causing a portion of your injuries, and your recovery may be reduced by an amount equal to your percentage of fault.
In California, there are various types of damages you may be allowed to recover include:
- Loss of past earnings or diminishment in your future earnings capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Loss of consortium (which is damage to your spouse’s relationship with you)
- Property damage
- Medical expenses
- Other out-of-pocket costs and expenses related to the injury
- Attorney fees
- Present and future expected losses
Contact me to discuss your case. Call me at (951) 719-1412 or email me today.
Types of Personal Injuries
This is a complex and controversial area of law, and many critics are pushing for “tort reform” to limit such cases and the amount of money you can recover if you are injured by another’s negligence. The reformers would also like to limit the contingency fees a lawyer can charge for his or her representation of a client, and they also try in many cases to shorten the amount of time after being injured that you may file your lawsuit.
You need to contact a lawyer as quickly as possible after an accident where you or someone you love, has been seriously injured in order to preserve your rights.
Personal injuries can result from a variety of incidents, including:
- Sexual Assault
- Slip, Trip, and Fall accidents
- Defective or Dangerous Products
- Wrongful Death
- Brain Injury
- Dog Bites
- Bicycle, Motorcycle, Car, Train, Airplane, etc., Accidents
Contact me to discuss your case. Call me at (951) 719-1412 or email me today.
I only get paid if you win
As your personal injury lawyer, I represent you on a contingency fee basis, which means that you do not have to pay me any legal fees unless and until you win your case. If we win, I am paid a percentage of your recovery as my fee. If you don’t win, you owe me no fees. Unless we agree otherwise, if you don’t win, you owe me no costs either
Going to Trial
Most cases settle out-of-court; however, if the parties in a personal injury case cannot agree to an out-of-court settlement, the case will proceed to trial in a court. This can be a lengthy process. This can be in a state or federal trial court, although most personal injury lawsuits are heard in state court, and the decision is subject to review by an appeals court. I will be with you the entire way through this process.
