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Personal injury law is a broad term used in cases involving any number of unrelated actions such as car accidents, dog bites, wrongful death, or slip and fall (premises liability), which result in physical and/or psychological harm to an individual. When such incidents occur, the victim seeking justice and compensation should seek out the representation of a personal injury attorney. Personal injury law is principally based upon tort law. A basic definition of a tort is a “civil wrong”. The law of torts is very basic and predicated upon the idea that an injured party should be compensated in some way for the harm that was caused to them by the “tortfeasor” (the person responsible for the act) or the “tort” act. Ideally, the injured party should be compensated for any losses they have suffered whether they are physical, emotional or economic in nature. The word tort comes from the Latin “tortus”, meaning “twisted” or “crooked”. As the word was adopted into the English language, it was used to describe an act that was twisted, or not straight and became synonymous with the word “wrong”. As the word fell out of use by the general public, it was retained in the legal arena to describe the types of cases taken up by personal injury attorneys. All personal injury matters boil down to the concept of negligence. The elements of proving negligence are (1) duty – each of us, no matter our role in society, owe a duty to one another, whether we are operating a motor vehicle, walking a dog or managing a property. If that duty is not upheld or is (2) breached, and that breach (3) causes (4) damages to another person, the person who committed the wrongful act (the tortfeasor) is negligent. R. Klettke is a freelance writer. He writes about personal injury and medical malpractice law and other matters of jurisprudence. Important Advisory: This article is not intended to provide legal advice upon which you or anyone else should rely in making any decisions regarding the instituting or prosecuting of a legal claim. Laws and rules relating to the bringing of a claim vary widely from state to state. You should always contact a personal injury attorney to obtain information as to the rules and the laws pertaining to any claim you might have.
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