Motor Vehicle Litigation

A lawsuit is required in cases where liability is challenged. The defendant then has the opportunity to respond to the complaint.

New York has a pure comparative negligence rule. This means that should a jury find you to be responsible for an accident, your damages will be reduced according to your percentage of fault. There is one exception to this rule: CPLR SS 1602 excludes the owners of vehicles that are hired or leased by minors.

Duty of Care

In a negligence case the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant was obligated to exercise reasonable care. This duty is due to all people, however those who drive a vehicle owe an even greater obligation to others in their field. This includes ensuring that they don't cause accidents in motor vehicle accident attorneys vehicles.

Courtrooms compare an individual's actions with what a normal person would do in the same conditions to determine reasonable standards of care. Expert witnesses are frequently required in cases involving medical malpractice. Experts who have a superior understanding of a specific area may be held to a higher standard of care than other people in similar situations.

A person's breach of their obligation of care can cause harm to a victim, or their property. The victim must prove that the defendant's breach of their duty resulted in the damage and injury they sustained. Causation is an important part of any negligence claim. It requires proof of both the proximate and real causes of the injury and damages.

For instance, if a driver runs a red stop sign and is stopped, they'll be hit by a vehicle. If their car is damaged, they'll need to pay for repairs. The actual cause of a crash could be a brick cut that causes an infection.

Breach of Duty

The second element of negligence is the breach of duty committed by a defendant. The breach of duty must be proved in order to receive compensation for a personal injury claim. A breach of duty happens when the actions of a party who is at fault do not match what reasonable people would do in similar circumstances.

For instance, a doctor is a professional with a range of professional obligations to his patients that are derived from the law of the state and licensing bodies. Drivers are bound to protect other motorists and pedestrians, and respect traffic laws. Drivers who violate this obligation and results in an accident is responsible for the victim's injuries.

A lawyer may use the "reasonable people" standard to prove that there is a duty to be cautious and then demonstrate that defendant did not adhere to this standard in his actions. The jury will decide if the defendant fulfilled or did not meet the standards.

The plaintiff must also prove that the breach of duty by the defendant was the primary cause for his or her injuries. This can be more difficult to prove than the existence of a duty or breach. A defendant might have walked through a red light but that's not what caused the crash on your bicycle. Because of this, causation is frequently disputed by the defendants in case of a crash.

Causation

In motor vehicle cases, the plaintiff must establish a causal link between the defendant's breach of duty and the injuries. For instance, if the plaintiff suffered an injury to the neck as a result of a rear-end collision and their lawyer could claim that the collision caused the injury. Other factors necessary to cause the collision, such as being in a stationary vehicle, are not culpable, and will not influence the jury’s determination of the degree of fault.

It can be difficult to establish a causal connection between a negligent act and the psychological issues of the plaintiff. It could be that the plaintiff has a troubled past, has a bad relationship with their parents, or has used alcohol or drugs.

If you have been in an accident that is serious to your vehicle it is crucial to speak with a seasoned attorney. Arnold & Clifford LLP attorneys have years of experience in representing clients in motor vehicle accident lawyer vehicle accident cases, business and commercial litigation, and personal injury cases. Our lawyers have developed working relationships with independent doctors in many specialties as well as expert witnesses in computer simulations and reconstruction of accidents.

Damages

The damages plaintiffs can claim in a motor vehicle lawsuit include both economic and non-economic damages. The first category of damages encompasses the costs of monetary value that can be easily added together and then calculated into a total, such as medical treatments and lost wages, repairs to property, and even the possibility of future financial loss, like the loss of earning capacity.

New York law recognizes that non-economic damages, such as suffering and pain, and loss of enjoyment of living are not able to be reduced to money. These damages must be proved with a large amount of evidence, such as depositions of family members and friends of the plaintiff or medical records, or other expert witness testimony.

In the event of multiple defendants, courts typically use the comparative fault rule to determine the amount of damages that must be divided between them. The jury must determine the degree of fault each defendant incurred in the accident and to then divide the total amount of damages by the percentage of the fault. New York law however, doesn't allow this. 1602 specifically excludes owners of vehicles from the comparative fault rule with respect to injuries suffered by driver of those cars and trucks. The resulting analysis of whether the presumption of permissive usage applies is not straightforward and usually only a clear showing that the owner explicitly was not granted permission to operate the vehicle will be able to overcome it.