While pursuing a personal injury lawsuit, you will encounter hundreds of legal terminologies that will be difficult for you to understand. It can be challenging to understand all the terms in one go; therefore, you should know about the legal terms of personal injury lawsuits.
Your personal injury lawyer can explain to you all the details about the legal terminologies, but it is important for you to go through the terms and gain knowledge about them; so, in this article, we will discuss all the legal terminologies you must know before filing a personal injury lawsuit. If you are stuck in an individual injury case, consult a Federal Way personal injury attorney for better guidance.
Top 10 Legal Terminologies of Personal Injury Lawsuits
Burden of Proof: It is one of the terminologies often used in personal injury cases. It states that the burden to present the evidence of the other party’s fault is on the plaintiff. It refers to the evidence the victim has to offer to win the personal injury cases.
Compensation: When the defendant is found with the fault, and it is proven that the defendant was negligent, they have to pay all the expenses that the victim faces, which is considered compensation. It is to make up for the losses the victim faced, including medical expenses, pain and suffering, property loss and many more.
Defendant: The defendant is a person on whom there is an allegation of negligence. The defendant is responsible for the victim’s injury as per the case.
Force Majeure is a French word that states “superior strength.” This means that there were conditions which cannot be controlled. It is mainly claimed by the defendant party that there were uncontrollable situations which led to the accident.
Liability: This term refers to the party’s legal responsibility for their actions. Someone should be held liable for the act or inactions legally. The responsible party must also pay the victim or perform a certain function.
Negligence: Negligence is a party’s failure to meet the standards of their duty. For instance, there are certain standards of responsibility for the doctors, and if they cannot do so, which leads to injury, then it is considered negligence.
Personal Injury: Personal injury is when another party’s involved in injury because of their negligent behaviour. The damage can be physical, emotional or property due to someone else’s fault.
Plaintiff: The plaintiff is the person or individual who is the victim and who has filed the personal injury case.
Settlement: Settlement will be the agreement between the parties to end the lawsuit and agree on paying certain compensation by the defendant to the plaintiff.
Wrongful Death: It is an act in which a person dies due to another party’s negligent behaviour.