Phoenix, Arizona Personal Injury Attorneys

What Is a Personal Injury Claim?

Every day, our lives come in contact with the actions of other people – the manufacturer who produced your morning vitamins, the engineers who built your car, other drivers on the road, your coworkers, restaurant staff, the property managers of the buildings you enter.

We all have certain expectations of how we should be treated by others. Drug manufacturers are expected to test their products for safety, as are automobile engineers. Other drivers are expected to follow traffic rules. Your coworkers must follow workplace safety standards and restaurants must follow strict food handling guidelines to avoid illnesses. You don’t expect to find dangerous conditions on the property when you enter a business or another person’s home.

Legally, this is called a standard of care, or the reasonable person standard. Whenever someone fails to take the care that’s expected of them, that negligence could cause serious harm and injury to other people. Unsafe medications could hit the market. You could fall victim to accidents or illnesses that were otherwise avoidable.

When negligence causes real injury and harm, a personal injury lawsuit can hold the negligent person accountable and compensate victims for their losses.

Types of Injuries Covered Under Personal Injury Lawsuits

The most common personal injury claims tend to involve traffic accidents, especially in Arizona where driving is a central part of most people’s day-to-day lives. But personal injuries can happen anytime, in all types of circumstances – at work, walking down the street, on someone’s private property, while you’re shopping, eating, or at the doctor’s office.

• Car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, and other types of traffic accidents make up the most common personal injury lawsuits. High speeds and careless driving make for a dangerous combination. Even minor fender benders can cause serious injuries like whiplash, broken bones, or concussions.
• Trips, slips, and falls can cause severe injuries. Property owners and managers have a duty of care to make sure dangerous conditions on the premises are either fixed, inaccessible to guests and visitors, or surrounded by proper warnings.
• Medical negligence can have serious consequences if doctors, surgeons, nurses, and hospital administrators fail to act according to the proper standard of care. A beneficial medical treatment could end up harming you if performed improperly.
• Nursing home abuse preys on some of the most vulnerable members of the population, patients with significant medical needs who may not have the power to advocate for themselves. This type of abuse can be extremely harmful and even deadly.
• Some workplace injuries are covered under workers’ compensation if they’re caused by the risks of your job. However, if your workplace injury was caused by negligence, you can file a personal injury lawsuit to get full compensation for your losses.
• Every day, we rely on products to function properly, from medications to household appliances, electronics, cars, and heavy machinery. But when a product is defective, the defect could cause serious injuries to unsuspecting users.

Personal injury cases are deeply fact-specific. No two cases are alike because everything depends on the unique circumstances that caused your injury.

A personal injury lawsuit can cover you for both physical and emotional injuries, including broken or fractured bones, whiplash, bruised ribs, cuts, infections, burns, and catastrophic injuries including traumatic brain injuries such as concussions.

Catastrophic and Traumatic Injuries

The worse your injuries, the bigger the impact they’re bound to have on your life and your family – especially if your injuries have permanent, lifelong consequences.

Catastrophic injuries include traumatic brain injuries (TBI), concussions, high-grade burn injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, and amputation. Survivors may be unable to work or care for their basic daily needs. They may need extensive medical care and support for decades or the rest of their lives. Without the right support, recovery may not be possible.

A personal injury claim helps you get justice for the harm that you’ve suffered. For catastrophic injuries, that covers the full effect of your injury. A good lawyer will fight for the maximum possible compensation so that you have the support you need for however long you need it. That may mean taking your case to court or negotiating a better settlement agreement.

If your loved one passes away from their injuries, that could lead to a wrongful death claim.

Types of Damages in Personal Injury Cases

The purpose of a personal injury lawsuit is to “make you whole” according to the law – to offset any expenses and losses related to your injuries. Some losses cannot be replaced or reimbursed – permanent injuries and scarring cannot be undone. Instead, courts use financial compensation, otherwise known as damages, to hold negligent wrongdoers accountable.

You can get three types of damages in an Arizona personal injury case:

• Economic damages, otherwise known as specific compensatory damages, cover actual financial losses you’ve experienced because of your injuries. These types of damages are the easiest to prove and calculate, covering your medical expenses as well as lost wages from any period of time your injury made you unable to work. However, a good lawyer should make sure that you’re covered not just for past losses but also for any potential losses or expenses you can expect in the future.
• Non-economic damages, otherwise known as general compensatory damages, compensate you for the non-financial consequences of your injuries – your pain and suffering, emotional distress, or loss of enjoyment of life. These damages are harder to quantify but an experienced lawyer can help you calculate what you’re owed.
• Punitive damages are different than compensatory damages. Instead of compensating you for your injuries, punitive damages punish the negligent party for their actions. Punitive damages don’t always apply. They’re reserved for cases where a defendant acts beyond mere negligence – maybe they were reckless or even had malicious intent, or they tried to cover up their actions or bully their victims into silence.

Arizona is one of 5 states that specifically forbids putting a limit or cap on the amount you can recover for personal injury damages. However, some limits may still apply – for example, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that punitive damages cannot be more than 9 times greater than the total compensatory damages you receive.

A good personal injury lawyer can not only help you prove negligence, cause, and fault, but they can help you accurately calculate the maximum possible compensation that you deserve.

Do You Need a Personal Injury Attorney for Your Case?

When it comes to personal injury claims, it’s always better to have an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer in your corner. No one else is on your side like your attorney – not even insurance companies, despite what they say in their commercials.

Your attorney can help you prove your case and maximize your recovery. Even fender benders can have much worse consequences than expected, and the last thing you want to do when you’re injured is try to fight your insurance company for compensation. A dedicated legal team can deal with insurance and settlement negotiations on your behalf. Instead of trying to deal with the claims yourself, you can focus on getting better and moving forward.

At AZ Injury, we offer to take personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis – you only pay us if and when you win. We front the cost of your case because we’re invested in your success. Contact us or call us at (480) 272-8700 to schedule your free consultation now.