Reviews from Our Clients
“We used Marks and Harrison after my son’s car accident. They were very hard working and we had a favorable decision on our case. If god forbid it ever happens again we will be sure to use them again. Very satisfied with our service” – Nathan Buttgen (Google)
“Marks and Harrison really cares about their clients! Highly recommend reaching out if you’ve been in an accident! They’ll get the results you want!” – Louisa Mauck (Google)
“I would not have the outcome that I did without all their support and hard work!” – Vickie Thompson (Google)
How Is Fault Determined in a Personal Injury Case?
Determining fault is the first major issue in any personal injury case. Who caused the accident? Was more than one party to blame? Was an injured victim partially at fault? A handful of recurring legal concepts may come into play as these questions are worked out in your injury case.
Some of the most prominent personal injury cases include:
- Negligence – By far, most personal injury cases start off by invoking the concept of negligence, which simply refers to the idea that we all owe each other a duty to use “reasonable care” to avoid causing harm to others. Injuries caused by a breach of this duty may result in liability.
- Negligence per se – In some cases, however, plaintiffs may skip over the elements of traditional negligence by arguing negligence per se. To successfully secure compensation through this route, plaintiffs must prove that the defendant violated a law meant to keep others safe from a dangerous activity (e.g., laws against speeding and intoxicated driving) and that the plaintiff was injured as a result.
- Contributory Negligence – Unfortunately, Washington, D.C., is one of the very few jurisdictions in the country that follows this harsh doctrine, which prohibits injured parties from recovering any compensation if they contributed even slightly to an accident. Though there are a few exceptions to the rule, it is important that injury victims hire an experienced attorney to make a strong case that they did not contribute to the cause of their accident.
- Strict Liability – In some case types, negligence does not come into play at all. Instead, defendants may be held strictly (i.e., automatically) liable for certain kinds of activities that cause harm to others. For example, strict liability is normally applied in cases involving dangerous products.
What Compensation Can Be Recovered in a Personal Injury Claim?
Calculating compensation is the second major issue in any personal injury case. Injuries and losses may range from the inconvenient to the catastrophic. The compensation you may recover through an insurance claim or civil lawsuit against the at-fault party will vary accordingly. In most cases, compensation comes in the form of economic and non-economic damages, collectively known as compensatory damages.
- Economic damages – These damages compensate for losses that can be objectively reduced to fixed dollars and cents. This includes things like medical bills, rehabilitation costs, lost wages, lowered earning capacity, and the cost of fixing or replacing your damaged personal property.
- Non-economic damages – These damages compensate for subjective losses unique to your individual circumstances. This includes things like pain, suffering, permanent disability, and loss of consortium. Unlike many jurisdictions, Washington, D.C., places no cap on the amount of non-economic compensation victims may receive for their personal injuries.
In rare cases, you may also be entitled to punitive damages, sometimes referred to as exemplary damages. Rather than to compensate you, this form of damages is intended to punish the at-fault party in cases involving seriously irresponsible or egregious behavior. Similarly, you may be awarded restitution as part of a criminal conviction if the at-fault party is also prosecuted for a crime leading to injury. A Washington DC personal injury lawyer can help.
What If a Personal Injury Victim Dies?
Of course, no amount of money can ever replace the value of a lost life. Even so, if someone dies as a result of personal injury, Washington, D.C., recognizes two distinct routes to legal compensation.
Types of injury cases involving death in Washington DC:
- Wrongful death – Surviving family members may bring this kind of claim against at-fault parties when someone is killed by their “wrongful act, neglect, or default” and the person killed would have been entitled to pursue a personal injury claim had they survived their injuries. Any monetary award secured through a wrongful death claim compensates the family members for their loss.
- Survival action – This kind of claim “survives” in the sense that it outlives the decedent and is preserved in favor of the personal representative of the decedent’s estate. The personal representative may be appointed in a will or, if one does not exist, by a court. Any compensation is awarded to the estate to be divided according to the decedent’s wishes or laws of intestate succession if they left no instruction.
If you lost a loved one in an accident caused by no fault of their own, do not wait to speak to an experienced attorney today. The compassionate personal injury attorneys at Marks & Harrisons are ready to help you pursue justice and accountability from the at-fault party. Our Washington DC wrongful death lawyer can help.
