The basic personal injury lawsuit in Illinois usually revolves around negligence on the part of an individual, establishment or business. However, some cases may be a bit more complicated when the other party is suspected of willfully contributing to the factors of the injury. Either way, the best course of action for ensuring you obtain a fair settlement is by hiring an Illinois personal injury attorney.
Negligence and Personal Injury Lawsuits
In almost all personal injury lawsuits, your injury was caused by the negligence of another party. It may be a drunk driver who crashed into your car or a construction site accident due to unsafe or unsecured equipment. Unfortunately there are almost limitless examples of severe accidents and injuries caused by the negligent acts of others.
The backbone of your Illinois personal injury lawsuit is being able to prove your injury was sustained because of the negligence of another party. The more clearly you can demonstrate that the other party had ample opportunity to detect and correct any dangerous situation that caused your injury, the more solid your Illinois personal injury claim becomes.
Negligence can also be classified as doing something a reasonable person would not do. For example, a reasonable person would not leave a young child alone in a house with boiling water on the stove. If that child was injured by touching the boiling water while their babysitter was outside talking on the phone, that babysitter could be held negligent for those actions.
Comparative Negligence in Illinois
In Illinois, the state operates under a modified comparative negligence model. That means that even if your actions contributed to your accident in some way, as long as the other party was 51% or more responsible for the accident, you can still seek compensation for your injuries and expenses.
An Illinois personal injury attorney can help you to determine issues of negligence and liability when looking at your injury case, and will gather evidence to help you seek as much compensation as possible to help with your accident-related expenses.
Comparative Negligence When Several Parties are At-Fault
There are some instances where multiple parties (including you) may be found partially to blame for your accident injuries and this will impact the amount of your Illinois personal injury settlement. The Illinois comparative negligence model uses what’s known as the “degree of fault.” This is basically a percentage that measures each party’s contribution to the accident.
As long as your degree of fault is found to be below 50% in an Illinois personal injury case, you are entitled to a favorable verdict and compensation for your injuries.
Your contributing percentage of fault to your accident however, will lower your compensation according. For example, if you are found to be 20% at fault for your injuries, you would only receive 80% of the total compensation award.
Hiring an Illinois Personal Injury Attorney
Even the most straight-forward personal injury cases involving negligence can become overly complicated in court. Having the expertise of an experienced Illinois personal injury attorney on your side is critical in ensuring your best interests are looked after throughout your personal injury claim.
The Chicago personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Barry G. Doyle, P.C. will fight for a settlement this is fair and will help you to move on from your injuries and regain control of your life. Contact us today for a free case evaluation – (312) 263-1080
