‘I have a car accident personal injury claim against me!’ Relax, there is no need to panic. When a car accident personal injury claim is filed against you, it is a good idea to know what you can do. Contacting a Los Angeles Car Accident Attorney is the first step that you should take. However, you should familiarize yourself with car accident personal injury claim defenses and law so that you can know if a claim is fraudulent and if so, how to go about defending yourself.
The following are some defenses you can use for vehicle accident personal injury claims against you:
Defenses
Defenses for personal injury claims resulting from car accidents typically involve two types: legal defenses and factual defenses.
Legal defenses involve defending a claim based on a pre existing law. Factual defenses depend on the nature of the car accident and include negligence and failure to mitigate damages.
Legal Defenses
The most ubiquitous defense pertaining to car accident personal injury claims against me involve the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations places a time limit on how long it takes to file a civil lawsuit.
The length of the statute will be determined by the type of case and its jurisdiction. Two or three years are the typical statutes regarding suits involving car accident personal injury lawsuits.
If you file the suit too late, it will not be heard by the court. However, exemptions can be made depending on the case.
Factual Defenses
Typical factual defense against car accident personal injury claims involve fault. A factual defense seeks to show that the plaintiff was at fault for the accident either in part or wholly. It is used by defendants to limit their liability for damages.
In California, personal injury law will usually allow two defenses regarding car accident personal injury claims: contributory negligence or comparative negligence.
Comparative Negligence
When using comparative negligence as a factual defense in a personal injury case, you seek to show that each party involved in the accident is partly at fault. Comparative negligence can be further categorized into pure and modified comparative negligence and states often choose one.
In pure comparative negligence, the injured party can sue and recover damages against anyone who caused the accident irrespective of the injured party’s share of fault in the accident. Modified comparative negligence is whereby the injured claimant is more than 50% of the damage. In this case, the recovered damages will be reduced by the percentage by which the claimant is at fault for the accident.
Contributory Negligence
Contributory negligence is the strongest defense in a car accident personal injury claims against me. In this case, any person that contributed to the incident that caused the injury is forbidden from acquiring compensation of any kind.
Failure to Mitigate Damages
If you are injured in a car accident, you have a duty to mitigate any further damages. To put it simply, you have a legal duty not to exacerbate your injuries after a car accident. If you fail to do so, your compensation may be reduced. It is an excellent defense if you can prove it.
You can defend yourself against a car accident personal injury claim made against you in two ways: legally or factually. However, there is no substitute for a Los Angeles Car Accident Attorney so call us today and get a free consultation.