Personal injury is a very broad area of law, which can include cases such as medical malpractice, wrongful arrest, auto accidents, property damage, and many other types of accidents. The general principles of personal injury law are the same across the country, but important aspects vary from state to state.
Compensation in Georgia
If you are injured in the state of Georgia, you may be entitled to compensation for:
- Past, current, and future medical expenses
- Lost wages, including time missed from work to attend medical appointments
- Lost earning capacity
- Permanent disability
- Permanent disfigurement
- Emotional distress
- Interference with family relationships
- Property damage
- Other costs incurred as a direct result of your injury
Except in product liability cases, punitive damages cannot exceed $250,000. Individual healthcare providers cannot be held liable for more than $350,000 in non-economic damages.
Proving fault
In Georgia, In order to prove fault in most personal injury cases, you must prove negligence, in order to prove fault. Negligence does not mean that the person who caused your injuries did so intentionally, but merely failed to use reasonable care. There are four elements which must exist in order to prove negligence:
- The person who caused your injuries owed you a duty
- The person failed to uphold that duty
- That failure caused your injuries
- You suffered damages
If a defective product caused you injuries, the maker of the product may be held responsible under strict liability rather than negligence. Under strict liability you must prove that:
- The product was not reasonably suited to the use for which it was intended
- The condition of the product caused your injury
- You suffered damages
Statute of limitations
The statute of limitations is your time limit for filing your lawsuit. In Georgia you have two years, for most types of personal injury, but in some cases you have less time, and under certain special circumstances you may have more.
For more in depth information about time limits in Georgia read our Georgia Statute of Limitations page.
Comparative negligence
As long as you are less than half to blame for your injuries, the person who caused your injuries can be held liable for damages proportionate to their share of the blame. This is called “modified comparative negligence.”
Multiple responsible parties
In many personal injury cases, more than one party is at fault. When that happens in Georgia, several liability applies. Each responsible party is held liable for damages equal to their share of the blame, and cannot be held liable for any other party’s share, even if the other parties fail to pay.
Personal injury laws vary from state to state. If you believe you have a personal injury claim and you live in Georgia, please contact one of our Georgia personal injury lawyers for a free claim evaluation.
