If you have been hurt in an accident, you may be entitled to compensation for your financial losses as well as your pain and suffering. However, getting that compensation will require proving someone else’s liability.
Two of the most common legal concepts associated with personal injury liability are negligence and strict liability. Continue reading below to learn all the details about both of these terms.
What Is Negligence?
Negligence forms the basis for most personal injury claims. Negligence occurs when someone else’s careless or reckless behavior causes your injury. To prove negligence, accident victims must prove four legal elements:
- Duty of care: You must show that the defendant had some legal duty or obligation to act in a certain manner. A duty of care is typically established through law, morals, or custom. In most cases, the duty of care owed to others is that of a reasonable person in a similar situation.
- Breach of duty: Next, you must show that the defendant failed to uphold the required standard of care. If they acted in an unreasonable manner under the circumstances, then they have breached their duty of care.
- Causation: The defendant’s actions must have caused your injuries. Proving causation requires proving both direct and proximate cause. This means that your injuries must have been both a direct and foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s conduct.
- Damages: You must have suffered some actual damages as a result. Damages may be financial in nature, or they could be intangible, such as pain and suffering or emotional distress.
Proving negligence requires proving all four of these legal elements. If you are unable to prove even one of these elements, you likely will not win your case.
Common Examples of Negligence
There are many types of personal injury claims that involve the legal theory of negligence. Some common examples of these include:
- Car accident cases: Suppose you were stopped at a red light and another driver slammed into the back of your vehicle. It is discovered that the other driver was texting and failed to see your stopped vehicle. It is likely that their actions would be considered negligent.
- Slip and fall cases: Imagine that you go into a grocery store to shop, and you slip in a spill as you round the corner of an aisle. If management failed to clean the spill in a reasonable timeframe, their actions would likely be considered negligent.
- Bicycle accident cases: Imagine you are riding your bike in a designated lane when a driver veers into it without checking their mirrors. If the driver hits you and causes serious injuries, their failure to follow traffic laws and exercise reasonable care would likely be considered negligence.
There are many more examples of careless behavior that could be used here. Negligence accounts for a large number of injuries every year.
What Is Strict Liability?
Strict liability occurs when someone faces responsibility for the outcome of their actions. They are held responsible even if there is no carelessness or negligence involved. The intent of the defendant does not come into play at all in these situations.
To hold a defendant liable in strict liability cases, you only need to show two things. First, you must show that the defendant engaged in a specific behavior. Next, you must prove that you were injured as a result.
Common Situations Involving Strict Liability
There are some situations in which the law assigns strict liability to anyone engaging in a particular type of conduct or activity. Some of the most common situations involving strict liability include:
- Defective products: Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers may be held liable for injuries resulting from defective products. There is no need to show negligence in most product liability claims.
- Ultrahazardous activities: Certain activities are considered to be inherently dangerous. No amount of care can completely eliminate the risk associated with them. For instance, construction companies engaging in blasting activities may face strict liability. Additionally, trucking companies transporting ultrahazardous materials could be held strictly liable for damages. Even if the defendant took all necessary precautions, they can still be held liable.
- Dog bites: Although Alaska does not have a strict liability rule for dog bites, many states do. In those states, a dog’s owner can be held liable for bite injuries even if the dog had no prior history of biting or aggression.
Remember that strict liability claims focus on the activity itself and the resulting damages. The defendant’s lack of reasonable care is not a consideration.
A Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
If you have been injured in any type of accident, you should always seek help from an experienced personal injury lawyer. Your lawyer can help you pursue compensation under the proper legal theory.
To learn more and schedule a free consultation, contact Farnsworth & Vance Personal Injury Lawyers today.
For more information, please contact Farnsworth & Vance Personal Injury Lawyers to schedule a free consultation. We have two locations in Alaska, including Anchorage and Eagle River.
Farnsworth & Vance Personal Injury Lawyers – Anchorage
2525 Gambell St #410,
Anchorage, AK 99503
(907) 999-999
Farnsworth & Vance Personal Injury Lawyers – Eagle River
13135 Old Glenn Hwy, Suite 101
Eagle River, AK 99577
(907) 802-4097
