Common Defenses Against Plaintiff In Personal Injury Cases

After suffering a serious injury due to someone else’s negligence, it is important to contact an experienced lawyer to defend you and build a solid case. Our personal injury lawyers in Boca Raton are experienced in settling cases outside of court. Even if you were not at fault and are entitled to damages, understand that cases aren’t always cut and dry. If you are attempting to seek damages from an insurance company, they may not negotiate with you. They may do everything in their power to lower your settlement. In some instances, they may try to get the case dismissed in court.

These tactics are often deployed when the insurance company knows they cannot win but will still attempt to lower the amount they owe you. When you have an experienced attorney by your side, you can prevent your case from being unnecessarily drawn out. The following are tactics that will most likely be used against you with or without attorney representation. However, you stand a better chance of outwitting the insurance company by contacting Bernstein|Polsky.

Statute Of Limitations

You have a timeframe in which you must file your claim. In most states, this time frame is 2 to 3 years for civil claims, but it can vary by case and jurisdiction. If you pass this deadline, you cannot file a claim or seek damages, unless your case is an exception. Even if it is an exception, the defendant will use this delay against you. As a result, it is important that you act quickly after a personal injury. Exceptions are rare, so if you don’t meet the deadline, you will not be heard by the court.

Fault Defenses

A common fault defense that is used against personal injury claims is contributory negligence. If it can be proved that you contributed to the incident that caused your injury in any way, then you will not be entitled to damages. Only DC, Maryland, and Virginia follow this rule, meaning if the accident did not occur within these states, contributory negligence will not be considered.

Another fault defense that will most likely be used against you is comparative negligence. If it can be proved that you were 20 percent at fault for the accident, you are only entitled to 80 percent of the damages. If you were at fault by any percentage, you will only be entitled to a portion of the damages. However, if you were 50 percent or more at fault, you are not entitled to recover damages.

The Assumption Of Risk

If you were injured while performing a dangerous activity, the other party can claim that you should have known the risks associated with the act and therefore, are not entitled to recover damages.

Preexisting Injuries

Another tactic the other party may use is to use an injury you sustained in the past against you. If the recent accident aggravated a past injury, they can say that your claim is not based on current injuries. The team at Bernstein|Polsky will devote their full resources to investigate your case and prove that the new injuries are not related to your old injury, or that the recent accident aggravated the old injury.

Release Of Liability Waiver

If you have signed a waiver, you agree that you will assume the risk of any injuries you sustain during a dangerous activity, such as jet-skiing, or sky diving. This is put in place to protect a company or organization from being sued in case of an accident or injury. However, signing a liability waiver does not always prevent the victim (you) from seeking compensation. If the other party was grossly negligent or if they purposely caused the accident, the court will most likely ignore the waiver.

Final Thoughts

A personal injury claim is complicated and depends on strong evidence to build a winning case. This will be difficult to do on your own, especially after an injury. Because of this, we always recommend that victims reach out to a skilled attorney. Contact Bernstein|Polsky and let our team of experienced litigators do the work at building your case and protect you against ruthless insurance companies and their unethical strategies. For the best personal injury lawyers in Boca Raton, call Bernstein|Polsky at 954-997-9947 for a free consultation.