It’s important to know what California Laws are regarding Accident Faults. California jurisdiction differs from many others in the United States. So what does it mean if you have sustained an injury in Los Angeles, or generally within the State of California? You need to understand the Fault Laws here.
- No Fault & Fault States
- How Do You Prove That You Were Not at Fault?
- Accident Fault Laws
- Kirakosian Law & Accident Fault Laws
No Fault & Fault States
A no fault state means that all parties involved in an accident will have coverage from their insurance with regards to injuries or damages – regardless of who was at fault for the accident. However, California is considered a fault state, which means the state puts the blame and financial responsibility on individuals. The person responsible for the accident is also responsible for the resulting losses, including medical bills and property damage, for all parties involved.
The most common types of personal injuries in California are motorcycle and truck accidents, workplace accidents, and/ or medical malpractice. Another common injury would fall under premises liability – where an accident takes place in a place that you are responsible for maintaining. Places like supermarkets, shopping malls, gas stations, and even your neighbor’s home, can be grounds for a premises liability to happen if an accident is sustained there. People have a responsibility to ensure that the places they are responsible for are safe in all circumstances and conditions.
Product liability is when defective and dangerous products cause any kind of serious injury. Many times, the product comes with improper handling instructions, badly written manuals, or unclear warnings which can all lead to various types of injuries sustained by using the product.
How Do You Prove That You Were Not At Fault?
This is why it is imperative to have a lawyer on your side to make sure you do not get stuck with the bill, and to make sure that whoever is responsible for your accident and/or injury holds up their end of their responsibility by paying what is needed.
The first thing you should do is gather evidence. There is no such thing as “too many” pictures or videos. The more visual and obvious the evidence is, the better it will be to fight your case and ensure that you get the compensation you deserve. Make sure you take extreme close-ups of the injury or damage so that a jury or judge can clearly determine what had happened.
Time is of the essence. The quicker you identify the injury, the better. Many times, people tend to brush off incidents as one-offs or “honest mistakes”, but remember that if you sustain any type of injury, there is a good chance that someone else was being negligent, which was what caused the injury to happen in the first place. Always stop to think – could this have been avoided? The answer is almost always YES – especially in cases like Premises Injury or Medical Malpractice.
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Accident Fault Laws
- Medical Malpractice: There are many different types of medical malpractice, including misdiagnosis, improper treatment, surgical errors, medication mistakes, pharmacy errors, birth injury (errors committed during the delivery of a child), and failure to diagnose cancer or other serious health conditions. The lawyer that takes care of medical malpractice cases for you must be an expert in the field themselves.
Many times, the defence will bring in their own expert to discredit medical malpractice claims – which is easy to do because they can get away with confusing the layman with medically complicated terms. A specialized Medical Malpractice lawyer will have experience dealing with and winning these cases, by asking the right questions in court and being sure that the judge and jury understand the injury that you have sustained. Under California Fault Law, if the medical professional or medical establishment is proven negligent or at fault, it can be possible to win a huge monetary sum in return.
Medical Malpractice is normally easier to prove because in most instances, physical evidence is well documented. While many injuries sustained from Medical Malpractice can be seen visually, a lot of injuries take place within the body, especially surgical mishaps. It is important to monitor your recovery for extended periods of time – sometimes even up to a year beyond your treatment, to make sure you do not sustain any long-term effects. Be vigilant with your follow-up appointments and ask for copies of every document, prescription, and scan that the medical professional does for you.
- Workplace Injuries: Another instance where damages can be claimed under California Fault Law is Workplace Injury. Similar to Medical Malpractice, many injuries sustained in this manner may not be visual. They can also include internal mental health related damages as well – for example depression caused by lack of sleep, or anxiety caused by demands from someone superior.
Since the pandemic, many offices have moved their operations remotely. While this is a welcome change for many, a surprisingly high number of employers and managers have found a way to make working from home a lot more stressful for their staff. By installing trackers in computers to monitor things as intricate as finger and eye movements, to demanding extended availability by scheduling meetings too early or too late in the day, working from home under unreasonable micro management can be just as, if not more, stressful than working in an office.
Many workers, especially parents with young children, have fallen into depression by being forced to juggle work and childcare. And unsympathetic managers and employers can cause a lot of mental damage. Again, evidence is key. Be sure to record every correspondence that may help your case against your employer.
On the other hand, many offices have insisted that their employees return to in-person work. This still poses many risks – outside of potential exposure to COVID within the office, the employee can contract the coronavirus by commuting in crowded trains and buses for long periods of time. This can be grounds for a workplace injury settlement based on California Fault Laws, and you can pursue legal action accordingly.
What are California’s Accident Fault Laws? Review
- No Fault & Fault States
Not all states have the same fault laws so, it’s best if you investigate beforehand with an experienced accident fault lawyer.
- How Do You Prove That You Were Not at Fault?
There’s never “too much evidence” so try to gather all the evidence you can as soon as possible! Time is of the essence.
- What is Medical Malpractice?
Medical Malpractice is normally easier to prove because in most instances, physical evidence is well documented. Either way, it’s best to have a great lawyer that will help you prove that you have suffered from Medical Malpractice.
- Workplace Injuries
Did you know that a surprisingly high number of employers and managers have found a way to make working from home a lot more stressful for their staff? Workplace injury can happen everywhere – even working from home!
Kirakosian Law & Accident Fault Laws
If you think you have grounds to claim external fault based on your sustained injury, reach out to an experienced accident and injury fault lawyer in California as soon as you can. While you can’t prevent someone from being negligent, you can have the law on your side.
This is when you’ll be needing personal injury attorneys with a proven track record of handling complex accident cases. Hiring the right Los Angeles accident fault lawyer is essential because they will ensure you get the necessary legal support to overcome the physical and legal challenges you’ll be facing in the coming days.
Looking for help with your personal injury? Visit our website and choose Greg Kirakosian – A leading personal injury attorney in Los Angeles, to help you get the compensation you deserve for your injury.
*These blogs are meant purely for educational purposes. They contain only general information about legal matters. They are not legal advice, and should not be treated as such. If you have any specific questions about any legal matter you should consult with an attorney.