How Negligence Gets Linked To Fault

In a personal injury case, the party that was negligent becomes responsible for causing the accident. He or she is the person blamed for any injuries. That same person gets named as the one at-fault for that damaging accident.

Elements required in a proof of negligence

A statement that focuses on the defendant’s duty of care. To whom was the defendant responsible for a demonstration of careful behavior? A driver must show care and consideration towards other drivers. A host must show care and consideration towards each and every guest. A manufacturer must consider the needs of the consumers that will be buying a manufactured product.

A statement that reveals the manner in which the defendant managed to breach his or her duty of care. A breach can take the form of a careless act. By the same token, it can result from the omission of a reasonable and anticipated action. In either case, the performance or lack of performance of reasonable behavior qualifies as a breach of duty.

If a defendant carries out a breach of duty, but no one gets injured and nothing gets damaged, then the same defendant cannot be charged with negligence. The defendant’s behavior must cause the occurrence of an accident. That is why a consumer cannot file a personal injury claim against a manufacturer, after almost getting injured, while using one of the manufacturer’s products.

Suppose that a consumer sustains a tiny cut, after touching one sharp edge of a manufactured product. Does that consumer have grounds for filing a personal injury claim? The accident caused by the defendant’s actions as set the stage for the wounding of a consumer. Yes, that consumer would have grounds for filing a personal injury claim, but the consumer’s award, if any, would be rather small.

The final required element in a proof of negligence is evidence that the accident caused by the defendant’s breach resulted in a loss of some kind on the part of the victim. In the case described above, the consumer suffered only a small loss, a minor injury. The size of the claimant’s awarded compensation depends on the size of the same person’s loss.

Personal Injury Lawyer in Orillia know that if a personal injury case gets taken to court, a judge makes note of how much the plaintiff lost, as the result of the accident. A judge also studies the evidence, in order to find proof that the defendant’s behavior was not the result of an intentional act. Judges do not look kindly on defendants that have harmed a victim on purpose. Such defendants can be asked to pay both the plaintiff’s compensation, along with other court-ordered financial obligations, in order to pay for the accident-caused damages.