Mintz Law Firm
What This Page Covers:
- Duty of care: This is pivotal in personal injury cases, necessitating that entities act reasonably to prevent harm and establish a legal relationship between involved parties.
- Establishing negligence: This requires proving a breach in duty of care, causation between the breach and injury, and the existence of damages.
- Accurately proving and valuing damages: Proving damages, both tangible and intangible, is crucial, often involving medical evidence and complex calculations for non-quantifiable losses.
- Hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer: Mintz Law Firm ensures thorough case building, accurate damage valuation, and adept navigation through legal processes.
- Contact us today to schedule a consultation through our contact form or by calling (303) 462-2999.
Whether you got into a car accident on your way to work or were bitten by a neighbor's dog, you probably didn’t start your day expecting to be in a situation that results in a trip to the emergency room. Even knowing that accidents happen, you expect to make it to your destination safely. This isn’t an unfair expectation. In fact, Colorado law recognizes that people expect safety. When someone fails to act in a way that a reasonable person would to prevent harming someone, they can be held legally and financially responsible.
Filing a personal injury claim isn’t easy, especially if you’re doing it while healing from some serious and painful injuries. At Mintz Law Firm, we are proud to offer the legal support you need to pursue fair compensation to focus on the most important thing—your health. Contact our Golden personal injury lawyers today to start discussing your claim and get the advantage you need against insurance companies looking to protect their own best interests.
Why Is Duty of Care so Important to Personal Injury Cases?
In most personal injury cases, you’ll hear the term “duty of care” because it’s critical to building a negligence claim against the at-fault party. The first part of nearly every negligence-based case is proving that the at-fault party owed you, the claimant, a duty of care.
Duty of care refers to the appropriate way individuals and entities must act toward others to prevent causing physical, emotional, mental, and financial harm. To abide by the legal duty of care, individuals and entities must exercise a reasonable amount of attention and watchfulness that a reasonable person would under similar circumstances to prevent causing harm.
To pursue a negligence-based personal injury claim proving that a connection exists between the claimant and the at-fault party is key. The connection between the parties is often the relationship formed under the legal theory of duty of care. For instance, duty of care applies in the following situations:
- A driver owes a duty of care to other motorists, their passengers and pedestrians on the road
- Medical professionals owe a duty of care to their patients
- Transportation companies owe the people they’re transporting a duty of care
- Business owners owe a duty of care to their customers
- Landlords and property owners owe a duty of care to visitors on their property
- Dog owners owe a duty of care to prevent their dog from biting or harming another person
A person or entity cannot be held liable for their action if there is no legal connection between them and the person they injured, which is why establishing duty of care is the first and crucial step to a personal injury claim.
How to Prove Negligence in a Golden Personal Injury Case
Once duty of care is established, the next step is proving the at-fault party was negligent. A simple definition of negligence is failing to act reasonably and carefully, and this failure leads to some form of harm to another individual. In a personal injury claim, the claimant bears the burden of proving that the at-fault party was negligent and that negligence led to their injury and other damages. Proving negligence means establishing the following four elements:
Duty of Care
As mentioned above, the first step in almost all personal injury cases is establishing a legal relationship between the claimant and the at-fault party. This relationship is often established by proving that the at-fault party owed the claimant a duty of care.
Breach of Duty of Care
The second component of a negligence claim is proving that the duty of care to the at-fault party owed was violated. The violation of their duty of care is negligent behavior that may consist of:
- Car accidents
- Drunk driving
- Failing to maintain a property up to reasonably safe standards
- Misdiagnosing a patient or giving them the wrong dosage of a prescription
- Not keeping a dog on a leash
- Distributing a product that the company knew or should have known was not safe
Violating a legal duty of care places people at risk of being harmed; therefore, the at-fault party can be held liable for their actions.
Causation
Causation refers to cause and effect. Proving a party was at fault isn’t enough to hold them accountable for their action. Their violation opens up the door for them to be legally held accountable, but for the claim to be successful, there must be a cause-and-effect relationship. This means that their violation must have significantly contributed to or have been the direct cause of the accident and the injury and other damages the claimant suffered.
Generally, this means establishing that if not for the at-fault party’s violation of their duty of care, then the claimant would not have been injured or suffered any of their other damages. Even in cases where this connection seems obvious, for instance, a drunk driving accident, it can still be difficult to prove causation. The best chance claimants have at building a strong claim is by working with an experienced attorney in Golden, CO who understands the nuances of personal injury law. They can use their knowledge and experience to fight for your best interests.
Damages
After successfully proving that the at-fault party should be held financially responsible for the injuries and losses you’ve suffered, you (or your lawyer) must prove the existence and monetary value of your claim. You know that your injuries are the result of the accident. However, personal injury law requires that you prove not only that you sustained an injury but that it was because of the accident. This is usually done with medical evidence, which is why people are always advised to seek medical attention immediately after an accident and attend all their follow-up visits.
Once it’s proven that you sustained damages from the accident, the next step is to give them a monetary value. This is money that you’ll be asking the at-fault party to cover. Some damages are easy to calculate (car repairs, medical bills), but others are more difficult because they’re not easily quantifiable (pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life.) This is where you really benefit from the knowledge and resources of a seasoned attorney.
What Personal Injury Cases Do We Handle at Mintz Law Firm?
Personal injury cases include many different claims and injury types, so you may not know if you can receive quality assistance from certain attorneys. However, the team at Mintz Law Firm can support you in many different areas, and the following are some of the most common personal injury cases we can handle:
- Slip, trip, and fall accidents
- Car accidents
- Burn injuries
- Motorcycle accidents
- Dog bites
- Truck accidents
- Wrongful death
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Distracted driving accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Premises liability claims
- Construction accidents
- Nursing home abuse
Depending on the circumstances, we may also be able to assist you with another type of personal injury claim. If you have any questions about your case and how we can help you, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Mintz Law Firm is prepared to answer any questions, provide helpful resources, and point you in the right direction for your legal journey.
What Damages Qualify for Compensation in a Golden, CO Personal Injury Claim?
Personal injury claims are most well-known for helping victims cover costs related to their medical bills, but you can also receive compensation for any other related losses. Depending on the specific factors of your claim, you can receive complete financial recovery for many damages. The following losses are commonly eligible for compensation to personal injury victims:
- Pain and suffering
- Reduced earning capacity
- Property damage and loss
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost wages, including future lost income and benefits
- Household out-of-pocket expenses
- Physical therapy
- Funeral costs
- Reconstructive surgery
- In-home rehabilitation
- Alternative shelter during repair
- Motor vehicle repairs
- Ambulance ride
- Emergency medical treatment
- Change in lifestyle
- Loss of consortium
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Punitive damages
In some cases, additional losses may also qualify for compensation. However, because determining the value of a case can be difficult, we encourage you to work with an attorney. A lawyer from Mintz Law Firm can help you identify all qualifying losses, estimate the value of your claim, maximize the compensation you can take home, and hold the liable parties accountable for their actions.
The Importance Of Hiring A Personal Injury Lawyer In Golden, Co
When you’ve been injured due to someone else’s negligence, hiring an experienced personal injury cannot be overstated. It’s not just about seeking compensation; it’s about securing your future and ensuring you get the justice you deserve. Mintz Law Firm understands this, and our dedication to fighting for victims of personal injuries sets us apart. With our team of passionate attorneys, we provide not only legal guidance but also a compassionate touch.
Our commitment to transparent communication, in-depth knowledge of personal injury law, and decades of experience make us the trusted choice for those seeking rightful compensation. We can also support you in several significant ways, including but not limited to the following:
- Conducting an independent investigation into the accident
- Working with medical professionals
- Negotiating with every party to recover a satisfactory settlement
- Preparing your case for court
- Collecting evidence to prove liability
- Consulting with experts to determine the full scope of your damages
- Assuring that all documents are filed correctly and on time
- Reviewing your damages to determine the total value of your claim
- Communicating with the other parties on your behalf
- Organizing and presenting the evidence in order to prove liability and damages
- Reducing time spent in litigation
- Maximizing the compensation you can obtain for your losses
- Lowering stress related to your case
We strongly urge you to refrain from representing yourself during this difficult time. Whenever you are involved in legal proceedings, especially those where you have been seriously hurt, working alone can result in less-than-ideal outcomes and compensation. However, when you work with Mintz Law Firm, you are more likely to receive outstanding and complete compensation for your losses.
Contact Our Experienced Golden Personal Injury Attorneys Today
Being injured in an accident can significantly impact your life. Between the medical bills and potentially being unable to work, sustaining a serious injury can derail your life. As dedicated Golden, CO personal injury lawyers, our goal is to help our clients recover the compensation they deserve to get their lives back on track.
Mintz Law Firm is dedicated to helping injured individuals recover as quickly as possible from the debilitating, frustrating, and possibly life-changing effects of a personal injury sustained at the hands of someone else’s negligence. Fight for your right to compensation by contacting us today at (303) 462-2999 or filling out our contact form.
Helpful Links
What to Know About Sharing Medical Records with Insurance Companies in Colorado
Understanding "Loss of Enjoyment" in a Colorado Personal Injury Case
4 Basic Facts You Need to Know About a Personal Injury Settlement
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