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Motor Vehicle Litigation If the liability is challenged then it is necessary to bring a lawsuit. The Defendant has the right to respond to the Complaint. New York has a pure comparative negligence rule. This means that when a jury finds you to be at fault for an accident and you are found to be at fault, your damages will be reduced according to your percentage of fault. There is one exception to this rule: CPLR SS 1602 excludes owners of vehicles which are rented or leased by minors. Duty of Care In a negligence suit the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant owed them a duty to act with reasonable care. The majority of people owe this obligation to everyone else, but individuals who get behind the car have an even higher duty to the people in their area of operation. This includes ensuring that there are no accidents in motor vehicles. In courtrooms, the standard of care is determined by comparing an individual's behavior with what a typical person would do in similar conditions. Expert witnesses are often required when cases involve medical malpractice. People with superior knowledge in specific fields could be held to a higher standard of treatment. When a person breaches their duty of care, it can cause damage to the victim as well as their property. motor vehicle accident attorneys bethlehem must prove that the defendant acted in breach of their duty and caused the harm or damage that they suffered. Causation is an important part of any negligence claim. It involves proving both the proximate and real causes of the damage and injury. For instance, if someone is stopped at a red light and is stopped, they will be hit by a car. If their vehicle is damaged, they'll be accountable for repairs. The cause of an accident could be a brick cut which develops into an infection. Breach of Duty The second aspect of negligence is the breach of duty committed by the defendant. This must be proved for compensation in a personal injury case. A breach of duty is when the actions of the person who is at fault do not match what an ordinary person would do in similar circumstances. For example, a doctor has several professional obligations to his patients that are governed by the law of the state and licensing boards. Motorists owe a duty of care to other drivers and pedestrians on the road to drive safely and obey traffic laws. Drivers who violate this duty and causes an accident is responsible for the injuries suffered by the victim. Lawyers can rely on the “reasonable person” standard to prove the existence of an obligation of care. The lawyer must then show that the defendant failed to satisfy the standard through his actions. It is a question of fact that the jury has to decide if the defendant complied with the standard or not. The plaintiff must also prove that the defendant's breach of duty was the main cause of his or her injuries. This can be more difficult to prove than the existence of a duty and breach. A defendant could have driven through a red light, but that's not the cause of the bicycle accident. Causation is often contested in cases of crash by defendants. Causation In motor vehicle cases, the plaintiff has to establish a causal connection between the defendant's breach of duty and his or her injuries. If the plaintiff suffered neck injuries in a rear-end accident then his or her attorney would argue that the accident caused the injury. Other factors that are needed for the collision to occur, such as being in a stationary vehicle are not culpable, and do not affect the jury's determination of the liability. For psychological injuries, however, the link between a negligent act and an victim's afflictions may be more difficult to establish. It could be that the plaintiff has a turbulent background, a strained relationship with their parents, or has been a user of alcohol or drugs. It is essential to speak with an experienced lawyer should you be involved in a serious motor vehicle accident. The attorneys at Arnold & Clifford, LLP have years of experience representing clients in personal injury commercial and business litigation and motor vehicle accident cases. Our lawyers have developed working relationships with independent medical professionals across a variety of specialties, expert witnesses in accident reconstruction and computer simulations, as well as with private investigators. Damages In motor vehicle litigation, a person can get both economic and non-economic damages. The first type of damages is any monetary costs that can be easily added to calculate the sum of medical treatment or lost wages, property repairs, and even future financial losses like diminished earning capacity. New York law recognizes that non-economic damages like pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of living cannot be reduced to money. These damages must be established through extensive evidence like depositions of family members and friends of the plaintiff, medical records, or other expert witness testimony. In cases where there are multiple defendants, Courts will often use the rules of comparative negligence to determine how much of the total damages award should be allocated between them. The jury will determine the percentage of blame each defendant has for the accident and then divide the total amount of damages awarded by the same percentage. New York law however, does not allow for this. 1602 exempts owners of vehicles from the comparative negligence rule in the event of injuries sustained by the drivers of cars or trucks. The resulting analysis of whether the presumption of permissive use applies is complex and usually only a clear evidence that the owner has explicitly did not have permission to operate his car will overcome it.