Car accidents can have catastrophic consequences. If you have been involved in a car accident, you may be suffering from significant injuries. You may be enduring chronic pain. You may be unable to work. You may be worried about your legal rights and interests.
If you were injured in a car accident at a Los Angeles area airport, your legal situation can be complicated. With that in mind, there are some basic facts you need to understand about being involved in a car accident at a Los Angeles area airport.
Identifying Responsible Parties in a Car Accident at a Los Angeles Airport
A key element in making a claim or case for injuries after an accident at a Los Angeles airport is identifying all parties potentially legally responsible for the accident and your injuries. The most obvious responsible party would be the driver of another vehicle that you believe bore responsibility for causing the accident in the first instance. The possibility exists that this very well may not be the only responsible party when an accident occurs at airport.
For example, if the accident occurred in an airport parking garage, and some sort of design defect associated with the structure contributed to the accident, the airport authority or an independent contractor that manages the parking structure might be deemed responsible for causing or contributing to the accident. The firm that constructed and the one that designed the parking structure might also be considered potentially responsible parties for causing the accident.
Due to the complexities of identifying responsible parties when an accident occurs on the premises of an airport, you are wise in taking a proactive approach to retaining legal counsel sooner rather than later. You run the risk of properly identifying potentially responsible parties, and making claims against them in a timely manner, if you do not have the assistance of a skilled, experienced car accident lawyer.
Compensation in a Car Accident Case at a Los Angeles Area Airport
The nature and extent of compensation awarded in a car accident case that occurs on the premises of an airport depends on a number of factors. The facts and circumstances surrounding the accident itself comes into play. This includes the party or parties that ultimately are considered to have contributed to causing the accident in the first instance. In addition, the specific injuries, damages, and losses you sustained because of the accident also play a key role in determining compensation to which you may be entitled.
There are types of injuries, damages, and losses that an airport car accident lawyer commonly seeks compensation on behalf of a client. These include:
- medical bills and expenses
- pain and suffering
- mental anguish and emotional distress
- permanent physical disability
- property damage or loss
- lost wages or salary
In addition to compensation for injuries and damages suffered to date, you may also be entitled to compensation that you reasonable can anticipate facing in the future because of the accident. You are likely to need ongoing medical care and treatment, including physical therapy.
You may endure pain for an extended period of time. You may not be able to return to work anytime soon. All of these represent the types of injuries, damages, and losses for which you reasonably can be expected to face in the future and for which you may be entitled to compensation.
In some cases, a car accident lawyer may be able to seek what are known as punitive damages in car accident law suit. Punitive damages are awarded in a select number of personal injury cases, including car accident cases that occur at an airport.
Punitive damages represent additional financial recovery ordered in a personal injury or car accident lawsuit when the conduct of the party or parties that caused accident is considered particularly egregious or reckless. Punitive damages are designed no only to provide you additional compensation, but to serve as a means of punishing the party that caused the accident for particularly reckless or egregious conduct.
You can find out more about your rights by scheduling an initial consultation with a car accident lawyer. No fee typically is charged for an initial consultation.