Laws and Legal Terms to Understand in a Personal Injury Claim

A personal injury claim is filed when an injured victim is pursuing compensation from the at-fault party for losses suffered in an accident or caused by other negligent actions. Filing a lawsuit is a complicated legal process that requires the expertise of an attorney. Before or after filing a lawsuit there are some terms and laws that could help you understand the process better and answer some of the most common questions accident victims have.

What is the Statute of Limitations?

The statute of limitations is a law that sets a strict time limit on your right to file a civil lawsuit for negligence. Depending on the state you’re filing in and what type of case it is, it has a specified time limit. If you miss your deadline and fail to file the lawsuit within the determined time limit, you could lose your right to recover compensation from the at-fault party. This means that you won’t be able to recover financial compensation to cover for losses incurred in the accident. This settlement could be used to cover medical expenses, lost wages due to time away from work, pain and suffering, property damages, loss of consortium for the death of a loved one, and more. The time starts running on an accident typically the day when the accident that injured you took place. Depending on the case, sometimes the clock will start “running” when the injury was discovered, even if it was discovered years after the accident occurred.

What are Compensation Caps?

Compensation or damage caps are laws that limit the amount of monetary compensation you can be awarded for an injury claim. Each state has its own set of damage caps for different types of cases. For example, Texas law places a cap on the non-economic damages you can receive from a medical malpractice case against a health care provider or physician, the maximum amount for this type of damages is set at $250,000. This cap is set for non-economic damages, these include compensation for psychological trauma, pain and suffering, emotional anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life. The purpose of these damages caps is to manage the high costs of doing business by limiting the liability of service providers. Damage caps don’t mean that you can’t recover anything for your injuries, they only place a limit on the amount of compensation that you can recover.

Fault vs No-Fault Laws

Determining fault is one of the first steps in a personal injury claim. Depending on the state where you are filing the lawsuit, different fault laws apply. Some states don’t allow accident victims to pursue compensation based on fault and liability, this can seriously impact your chances of recovering compensation. Every state follows a fault-based system or no-fault-based system. In a fault state, the injury victim can recover compensation from the party responsible for causing the accident. In a no-fault state, the accident victim is required to seek compensation through their own insurance. However, there are instances when a victim can file a claim against the at-fault party in these no-fault states. Some states set a threshold, once this threshold is met, the victim can file a personal injury lawsuit against the liable party for their accident.

Economic vs. Non-Economic Damages

After an accident caused by negligence, injured victims may have the opportunity of recovering compensation to cover their damages. This compensation is classified into economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages refer to monetary losses suffered by the victim such as medical expenses (past and future), lost wages due to time away from work, loss of future earning capacity, physical therapy, prescription medication, and others. Non-economic damages are less concrete than financial losses, they refer to psychological pain you suffered from the accident. Examples of these types of damages include emotional anguish, psychological trauma, PTSD, loss of enjoyment of life, pain, and suffering. Non-economic damages are subjectively evaluated by the jury and may be harder to prove than economic damages.

Who Can File a Claim?

A person that suffered damages resulting from an accident caused by negligence can file a personal injury claim. For example, if someone suffered a car accident caused by a drunk driver, the accident victim can file a claim against the drunk driver. The intoxicated driver was negligent, and his or her actions caused an accident and resulted in the victim’s injuries and other losses.

If you or a loved one was recently involved in an accident and don’t know if you should file a personal injury lawsuit or are not sure if you have a valid claim, speak to a personal injury attorney near you for advice. Most personal injury lawyers offer free initial consultations and work on a contingency fee basis, this means you do not have to pay any upfront fees for legal representation.