Negligence

What is Negligence in Nevada Car Accident Cases?

Many accidents of all different types occur as a result of negligence. Negligence has a specific legal meaning and when a person, company, or government entity is negligent, that carelessness can have far-reaching consequences.

Victims of the negligence can pursue a claim for monetary compensation in any circumstances where that negligence has caused injury to occur.

And, when negligence has fatal consequences, surviving family members of those killed by carelessness can pursue a wrongful death claim.

Understanding what a Las Vegas resident must do to be considered negligent can be complicated, and it can also be difficult to prove negligence in order to obtain compensation for losses. When someone is negligent, a Nevada personal injury lawyer can provide invaluable help to victims or to family members of those who were killed in accidents. An attorney can help victims and their families to identify all parties who were unreasonably careless in violation of their legal obligations and can assist in gathering the necessary proof that negligence was the cause of harm.

What is Negligence?

Negligence, in legal terms, is a breach of a duty to exercise reasonable care. There are different standards for negligence, depending upon the situation.

When a car accident happens, for example, a driver can be held liable if his negligence caused a crash to occur. Negligence in car accident cases is determined based on whether the driver broke a safety rule — which creates a presumption of negligence — or whether a driver was unreasonably careless compared with how a Nevada motorist would have behaved.

In product liability claims, on the other hand, a victim doesn’t have to prove negligence to get compensation. A victim can be compensated under strict liability rules whenever a product caused harm, regardless of negligence. However, victims do have the option of pursuing a claim based on negligence. In these circumstances, they’d argue that the manufacturer was unreasonably careless in the design or manufacturing process.

When an injury happens on someone’s property anywhere across Las Vegas, such as if a slip and fall happens, then a determination must be made as to whether the property owner was negligent. In these circumstances, premises liability laws apply to determine if a property owner failed to fulfill a duty to exercise reasonable care.

Under premises liability laws, property owners who invite customers in for commercial purposes have a stronger duty and more obligations. They’re considered negligent if they fail to inspect the property regularly and to either correct hazards or issued a warning about them. But, for property owners who invite guests over for their mutual benefit, they’d be considered negligent only if they failed to correct or warn about hazards they knew about or that a reasonable property owner would’ve been aware of.

Finally, in cases of malpractice, a professional is considered negligent if a reasonable professional with a similar background would’ve made the same mistake.

For example, to determine if a cardiologist was negligent in failing to diagnose a heart attack, his conduct would be compared with a reasonably competent cardiologist with similar medical experience — his conduct wouldn’t be compared to what a general practitioner would’ve done under the circumstances.

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Who is Responsible When an Accident Occurs Due to Negligence?

If a person, company, or government entity is negligent, that individual or entity can be held legally liable for any accident that occurs as a direct result of negligence. To obtain compensation, a victim would need to show that the negligence was the direct or proximate cause of the accident. In other words, a victim needs to show the accident would not have happened if the negligence hadn’t happened.

Compensation for Accidents Caused by Negligence

When a person, company, or entity causes an accident by being negligent, victims of the accident are entitled to full and fair compensation for all losses that occur due to negligence.

Victims often experience actual financial loss because of injuries resulting from negligence. An injured person might have to miss work or take vacation days or sick days, thus losing out on funds. Injured victims might also have to pay for medical care, adaptive medical devices, or pain management. Their future earning power might be reduced, too, and they may have ongoing medical needs. They deserve to be compensated for all of these past and future financial losses.

Victims could also experience physical pain and emotional damages. They may endure PTSD or have anxiety or depression. They should be compensated by the negligent party if this is the case. They’ll need to prove the extent of these emotional and physical damages to get compensation. LV Personal Injury Lawyers can help.

In some cases, when an accident is fatal, the surviving family members of the deceased can pursue a wrongful death claim against a negligent party.

Wrongful death damages typically include payment for loss of income the deceased would’ve earned, as well as compensation for loss of companionship.

Getting Help From Vegas Accident Law Firm

Zachary D. Clayton, Esq. and his team at LV Personal Injury Lawyers have extensive experience helping those harmed by negligence to pursue a claim to recover monetary damages for their losses.

We will fight hard to help you hold a careless person, company, or entity responsible and to obtain the funds you need from the irresponsible party to help you move forward.