Catastrophic Liability Defense
Overview
Catastrophic injuries are those that are suffered suddenly and significantly affect an accident survivor’s life. Losing a body part, suffering a major traumatic brain injury, paralysis, or the loss of sight are just a few examples of catastrophic injuries.
When catastrophic injuries occur, the costs of treating them often continue for life. They also usually exceed insurance limits. If you are accused of causing a catastrophic injury in a car accident or another event, some basic legal defenses could help.
Negligence by Plaintiff
In some situations, the Plaintiff may share some liability for the accident. There are numerous determinants involved. The Plaintiff may not have been acting as a reasonable person would under the circumstances. They may have failed to follow warning labels. They may have failed to use proper safety equipment as necessary for a professional hired to do an unsafe job. We rely on safety experts, professional engineers, human factors experts and accident reconstruction experts to determine what the variables that may have impacted plaintiff’s judgement and if there is comparative liability.
Defective Equipment
If the plaintiff were using defective equipment that created the conditions leading to the accident, that also could be a strong legal defense. If the plaintiff was driving a car that had defective brake lights, turn signals, or other equipment, that might have created the conditions that enabled the accident to occur.
Third-Party Liability
Sometimes, neither the plaintiff nor the defendant actually caused the accident. A third party might have made it happen through negligent driving. A third party might have created a defective condition that caused the accident to occur but made it appear that you caused it. Whenever a third party causes an accident, proving it could be a very effective legal defense.
The experienced accident attorneys at Nelson Griffin LLP could help to build a strong case for a legal defense when falsely accused of causing catastrophic injuries in an accident. A review of the events leading to the injury could help to create an effective legal defense.
