3 Things You Must Have Before You Can File A Personal Injury Lawsuit

Personal lawsuits are quite common. You might have seen people that you know file a personal injury lawsuit and have a favorable outcome. This might lead you to think if an accident, or dispute you have been involved in should merit a lawsuit. Unfortunately, just because you have been harmed or wronged it doesn't mean that you have a legitimate lawsuit against the person. Here are a couple things you need to have to make a legitimate lawsuit.

1. The Other Party Had To Have A Duty Toward You

One important aspect of a lawsuit is that you have to prove that the guilty party had some sort of duty to protect you. For example, if you were walking on the road and there was large construction hole that wasn't labeled and you fell in, you might have a lawsuit. This is because the construction crew is supposed to label dangerous areas to protect the public. That is their duty.

Conversely, if you were jumping on a neighbor's trampoline uninvited and broke your arm, then you probably wouldn't have reason to sue. Your neighbor didn't invite you on their property and isn't responsible for your safety, should you assume the risk of jumping on their tramp.

2. There Had To Be Fault From The Guilty Party

Second, there had to be some sort of fault from the guilty party. Using the earlier example of the construction hole, there had to be a fault from the construction crew. For instance, if you were texting on your cell phone and fell right in, you weren't even looking, and there might be a case that you were the one at fault. In addition, the guilty party had to be negligent. If they failed to do anything to protect you, then you might be able to sue. Just because you got hurt doesn't mean that the other party is at fault.

3. There Had To Be Sustainable Injuries

Lastly, there has to be sustainable injuries that you can prove came from the accident. If you fell into a construction hole and didn't have any injuries, but instead was just embarrassed, you wouldn't be able to sue. You would need to prove that you were harmed in some way and that the guilty party cost you money in medical bills, lost wages, damages and so forth.

These are just a couple things that you need to have to be able to file a legitimate personal injury lawsuit.  For more information, contact a practice like Kiernan Personal Injury Attorneys PA. 

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