In the first two parts of this series, we looked at the initial requirements in a personal injury claim based on negligence—you must show that the defendant failed to meet (or breached) the standard of care that a reasonable person would in similar circumstances, and you must show that the breach of care caused an accident that involved you. However, you may be able to prove both of those elements, but still fail in an attempt to recover damages, because you must also show that you suffered some actual loss.
To understand actual loss, it’s necessary to examine the purpose of a personal injury lawsuit—essentially, to put the injured person in the same position they were in before the accident. The “damage” award, then, is designed to compensate the injured party for past, present, and future losses. If you can’t show any such loss—you were in a car accident caused by someone else’s negligence, but you didn’t miss any work, didn’t incur any medical expenses, did not experience any pain or suffering, and had no damage to your vehicle (you were a passenger in another vehicle, perhaps)—you don’t have anything for which you need to be compensated.
In addition, if you had losses, but they were all covered by insurance, you won’t have a claim, though the insurance company may.
Columbia, MD Personal Injury Lawyer
Maryland Super Lawyer Jonathan Scott Smith has aggressively represented personal injury victims throughout Maryland for more than three decades. He understands the impact a personal injury can have on every aspect of your life, so he’ll work hard to get full and fair compensation for all your losses.
Attorney Smith has been honored as a Top-Rated Lawyer by The American Lawyer Magazine. He’s multiple recipients of the Client’s Choice Award from AVVO, based on an average client review of 5 stars (the highest rating possible), has a perfect 10.0 Superb rating as a litigation attorney from AVVO, and has been named a Maryland Super Lawyer. He’s also AV-rated by his colleagues in the legal profession under Martindale-Hubbell’s Peer Review Rating System.
Top-Rated Baltimore County Accident Injury Lawyer
We offer full-service legal counsel to anyone who has suffered a needless injury because of the careless or negligent acts of others. Contact us by e-mail or call us at (410) 441-5054 to schedule an appointment. We represent personal injury victims in Howard County, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Frederick County, Prince George's County, and Montgomery County in Maryland.