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Motor Vehicle Litigation When liability is contested in court it becomes necessary to file a lawsuit The defendant will then be given the opportunity to respond to the complaint New York follows pure comparative fault rules which means that should a jury find you to be the cause of a crash the damages awarded will be reduced by the percentage of negligence There is one exception to this rule CPLR SS 1602 excludes owners of vehicles hired or leased by minors Duty of Care In a lawsuit for negligence the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant was obligated to exercise reasonable care The majority of people owe this obligation to everyone else however those who take the steering wheel of a motor vehicle are obligated to others in their area of activity This includes ensuring that they dont cause accidents in motor vehicles Courtrooms compare an individuals actions with what a normal person would do in similar circumstances to determine an acceptable standard of care In the case of medical malpractice experts are often required Experts with a superior understanding of a certain field may be held to a higher standard of treatment A persons breach of their obligation of care can cause harm to a victim or their property The victim has to demonstrate that the defendant did not fulfill their duty and caused the harm or damage they sustained The proof of causation is an essential aspect of any negligence case and it involves looking at both the actual basis of the injury or damages as well as the reason for the injury or damage If a person is stopped at an intersection then they are more likely to be struck by a vehicle If their car is damaged they will be responsible for the repairs But the actual cause of the crash might be a cut in bricks that later develop into a potentially dangerous infection Breach of Duty A breach of duty by a defendant is the second factor of negligence that must be proved in order to secure compensation in a personal injury case A breach of duty occurs when the actions of the party at fault do not match what a reasonable person would do in similar circumstances For instance a physician has a variety of professional obligations to his patients arising from state law and licensing boards Drivers are bound to take care of other drivers and pedestrians as well as to adhere to traffic laws If a motorist violates this obligation of care and creates an accident he is responsible for the victims injuries A lawyer may use the reasonable person standard to prove the existence of the duty of care and then show that the defendant failed to meet the 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 of the defendant was the primary cause for the injuries motor vehicle accident lawsuit skokie can be more difficult to prove than the existence of a duty or breach A defendant could have driven through a red light but that wasnt what caused your bicycle accident Causation is often contested in case of a crash by the defendants Causation In motor vehicle cases the plaintiff has to establish a causal connection between the defendants breach of duty and his or her injuries For example if the plaintiff suffered neck injuries as a result of a rearend collision and their lawyer would argue that the collision was the cause of the injury Other factors that are necessary to cause the collision such as being in a stationary vehicle are not culpable and will not affect the jurys decision of the liability For psychological injuries however the link between negligence and the affected plaintiffs symptoms can be more difficult to establish The fact that the plaintiff has a troubles in his or her childhood had a difficult relationship with his or her parents was a user of drugs and alcohol or experienced previous unemployment may have some bearing on the severity of the psychological problems he or suffers following an accident however the courts typically look at these factors as an element of the background conditions that caused the accident resulted rather than an independent reason for the injuries It is important to consult an experienced attorney in the event that youve been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident The attorneys at Arnold Clifford LLP have years of experience representing clients in personal injury cases business and commercial litigation and motor vehicle accident cases Our lawyers have developed working relationships with independent physicians with a variety of specialties including expert witnesses in accident reconstruction and computer simulations as well as with private investigators Damages In motor vehicle litigation a plaintiff can get both economic and noneconomic damages The first type of damages encompasses all financial costs that can be easily added together and summed up into an overall amount including medical treatments or lost wages repair to property and even future financial losses such as diminished earning capacity New York law also recognizes the right to seek noneconomic damages such as suffering and pain as well as loss of enjoyment of life which cannot be reduced to a dollar amount These damages must be proved through extensive evidence like depositions of family members and friends of the plaintiff medical records depositions or other expert witness testimony In cases where there are multiple defendants courts will typically apply the rules of comparative fault to determine the amount of total damages to be divided between them The jury will determine the percentage of fault each defendant is accountable for the accident and divide the total damages awarded by the percentage However New York law 1602 specifically excludes owners of vehicles from the comparative fault rule with respect to injuries suffered by driver of those cars and trucks The subsequent analysis of whether the presumption of permissiveness applies is complex and usually only a convincing evidence that the owner has explicitly refused permission to operate the vehicle will overcome it
