If you have been injured because of negligence or carelessness on the part of someone else, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit.

Filing a personal injury lawsuit can help those who have been injured due to someone else’s negligence with compensation for losses like medical expenses, lost wages, and more. Often, a personal injury lawsuit will end in a settlement amount before the lawsuit goes to trial.

Who is Able to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

The following basic questions can help you determine whether or not you have a good claim for a personal injury lawsuit:

• Did you suffer a physical or psychological injury?
• Were your injuries the result of negligence of another person or entity?
• Do you have recoverable damages?

The two most significant factors in determining the strength of a personal injury claim is the liability of the defendant and the extent of the damages. Proving that there was damage caused is only half the battle—a successful personal injury claim must also prove that the other person or entity is responsible for these damages. If both of these things can be proven, the justice system should award compensation.

Personal injury claims rest on the concept of negligence—that is, the idea that another party’s negligence or carelessness led directly to your injuries.

Negligence is legally defined as “the failure to do an act which a reasonably careful person would do, or the doing of an act which a reasonably careful person would not do, under the same or similar circumstances to protect oneself or others from bodily injury, death, property damage.”

It’s not only individual people that can be held liable in a personal injury lawsuit. Sometimes, a company may be deemed at fault—for instance, a slip and fall claim could be filed against a grocery store for failing to maintain safety standards, leading the plaintiff to injure themselves.

The majority of personal injury lawsuits are filed over car accidents. If you were injured because another driver was negligent in their driving, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the at fault party.

Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit

A personal injury lawsuit can help compensate for medical bills, lost income, physical pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, disability or disfigurement, property damage, emotional distress, and/or wrongful death.

It is common for a personal injury lawsuit to be filed over injuries like car accidents, slip and falls, dog bites, medical malpractice, and work injuries, among many others.

If you have a personal injury claim and want to seek compensation, you may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit. Filing a personal injury lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by the incident, but it can help to alleviate the financial burden caused by medical expenses and lost wages.