If you are dealing with a Charlotte personal injury case, chances are you have a lot on your plate. You may be trying to repair the property, recover from injuries, or return to your job. While it may seem too overwhelming to seek compensation, the negligent actions of others should never be left unchecked when those actions cause serious injuries to innocent victims. The Charlotte law offices of Brown Moore & Associates, PLLC provides experienced personal injury assistance to those injured in car crashes, slip and fall victims, parties injured in premises accidents, children injured by defective products, and much more.
How Were You Injured in Your Charlotte Personal Injury Case?
Our attorneys represent clients who were involved in all of the following Charlotte personal injury scenarios:
- Car collisions
- Truck collisions
- Motorcycle collisions
- Government-owned motor vehicle collisions
- Pedestrian and bicyclist injuries
- Airplane and boat accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Premises liability, including negligent security
- Product liability
- Medical malpractice and
- Accidents that involve children and adolescents
North Carolina’s Pure Contributory Negligence
North Carolina is one of four states and the District of Columbia that has adopted laws that follow the principle of pure contributory negligence. According to Cornell Law, contributory negligence occurs when a plaintiff is barred from recovering any compensation in a personal injury case if they can be found to be even one percent responsible for causing the accident.
Pure Contributory Negligence Favors the Guilty Party
Pure contributory negligence laws favor the defendant and their insurance company because if they can prove the victim made any negligent act that could have contributed to the accident, they are completely off the hook for paying compensation. The law makes insurance companies aggressive, even when you are at your lowest and dealing with severe injuries. If you want someone dedicated to your case, contact a Charlotte personal injury lawyer.
Proving Negligence of the Careless or Reckless Party
Find answers to your questions about Charlotte personal injury law with help from Brown Moore & Associates.
In order to prove negligence by the greater weight of the evidence, and collect financial compensation from that party, you and your attorney must be able to establish the five elements of negligence listed below:
- Duty of care – All people and businesses owe one another a duty of reasonable care. For example, this means that drivers must obey traffic laws and operate their vehicles in a safe, prudent fashion
- Duty of care was violated – We must show that the duty of care that was owed to you, such as a manufacturer producing a safe product for use, was somehow violated
- Causation – Your injuries must have been caused by the defendant’s breach of duty. For example, if you were walking down the street and were attacked by two dogs that were on the loose, your injuries were caused by the negligent actions of the dog owner to keep his dogs fenced in
- Injury – You must prove that you did actually suffer injuries as the result of the negligent party’s (the plaintiff’s) breach of duty of care and
- Damages – Your injuries caused by the plaintiff must have incurred medical expenses, lost wages, pain, and suffering, or some other legally recognizable damage
Filing a Charlotte Personal Injury Claim
The first step towards financial compensation is filing a personal injury claim with the negligent party’s insurance company. It may be necessary to enlist the help of an experienced attorney in this matter, as described below. Your attorney will:
- Provide a detailed description of the incident and how it occurred, specifically showing how their insured party was at fault. This includes evidence such as official police traffic accident reports, witness statements, photographs/video/audio, and other evidence
- Provide an accurate description of your damages. Included in this is a list of your injuries, medical treatments, expected medical procedures for the future, lost wages or earnings, pain and suffering damages, and much more. Documenting your medical procedures and injuries along the way will help with this step of the process
- Seek to negotiate or recover an amount that will cover the total costs of your economic and non-economic damages. Coming to this number is not guesswork, and must be done by an experienced attorney, otherwise, you may end up with very little. In North Carolina, non-economic damages (pain and suffering) resulting from medical malpractice are capped at roughly $533,000, which is another reason that you need to work with an attorney to maximize what little there is available if you are a victim of a serious medical error.
You Need a Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney Who is Experienced in Court
While it is crucial that your lawyer has vast experience dealing with insurance companies out of court and settling claims as smoothly and efficiently as possible, their area of skill and knowledge should not stop there. Not all law firms are adept at representing clients in court. Because 95 to 96 percent of all personal injury cases are settled pretrial, according to the Law Dictionary, many attorneys have no real experience in court. They may have skated by accepting low settlement offers throughout their career and shortchanging their clients in the process. Our attorneys have the courtroom experience needed to win your case, and, importantly, the courtroom clout that insurance companies throughout the state respect. We are well known for our prowess in trials, which bolsters our ability to come to substantial and fair terms out of court with insurance companies that are willing to cut their losses and do not wish to lose in the courtroom.
Rely On an Experienced Charlotte Personal Injury Attorney to Protect Your Rights and Financial Future
Victims who are injured by another party’s negligence deserve to be compensated fairly for their medical costs, pain and suffering, and emotional turmoil. The Charlotte law office of Brown Moore & Associates, PLLC offers legal assistance to those in need of an attorney who can provide them the maximum sum that they are entitled to. Call us today to find out about scheduling a consultation with one of our compassionate and skilled Charlotte personal injury attorneys.