A personal injury case is a tort lawsuit filed when a person gets hurt, harmed, or injured because of another person’s negligence, intentional act, or reckless behavior. You can seek compensation for physical, mental, and psychological harm or injury, as well as pain and suffering.
Michigan courts follow a “comparative negligence” rule in determining negligence and liability. It’s the plaintiff’s responsibility to prove that the defendant was the main reason for the injury. The case may be dismissed, or the compensation may be reduced if the judge finds that the plaintiff is partially to blame.
Personal Injury Types and Specifics
There are several types of personal injury cases, and they differ in detail.
Motor Vehicle Accidents
According to the 2021 Michigan Traffic Crash Facts, a traffic crash occurs every 1 minute and 52 seconds. Motor vehicles accounted for 20% of personal injury cases filed in 2002-2003.
Automobile Accidents
Automobile accidents are among the common types of personal injury cases, accounting for 60% of all tort cases. Additionally, personal injury lawsuits due to motor vehicle accidents have a high chance of winning, at 56.9%.
Bicycle and Motorcycle Accidents
Bicycle and motorcycle accidents are also common types of personal injury cases that are often caused by reckless drivers who refuse to share the road or heed hazardous road conditions. However, the court will also investigate if the bicyclist or motorcyclists followed the rules applicable to them. If the injured bicyclist or motorcyclist was found partially at fault, they might not be able to recover claims or have their compensation reduced.
Truck Driver Negligence
87% of truck accidents are a result of truck driver negligence, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). As a result, the truck driver is frequently named as a defendant in personal injury cases involving truck accidents.
Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional causes harm or injury to a patient due to a negligent act or omission. According to statistics, the odds of a plaintiff winning a medical malpractice lawsuit are lower, with a 36.7% chance.
Read more: Legal Claim: How to Prove a Medical Malpractice
Birth Injuries
This is considered medical malpractice when a mother and baby are harmed during childbirth due to an error that a competent doctor could have avoided. Examples are prolonged labor, brain injury, intra-abdominal wounds, and more.
Misdiagnosis
This type occurs when the physician neglects to timely and accurately diagnose the illness. An example is when a doctor incorrectly diagnoses cancer and delays treatment, putting the patient’s life in danger.
Surgical Errors
Surgical errors occur when doctors make preventable mistakes before, during, or after surgery. Common errors include operating on the wrong site, damaging healthy organs, etc.
Prescription Errors
Aside from doctors, other healthcare professionals like pharmacists can face malpractice lawsuits when they misinterpret prescriptions. Doctors can be sued for giving the wrong dosage, issuing erroneous prescriptions, etc.
Slip and Fall Accidents
The premises liability law makes property owners responsible for keeping their property safe and well-maintained to avoid accidents and injuries. Furthermore, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) of 1970 protects workers and grants them the right to file claims for medical costs, lost wages, and disability benefits.
Property Owner Negligence
If you were injured due to the property’s unsafe conditions, the owner might be liable if proven that there was negligence in preventing the accident.
Inadequate Maintenance
Examples of inadequate maintenance include unrepaired fixtures, loose cabinets, cracked floors, and more that could lead to accidents and injuries. To establish negligence, the owner will be asked how long these dangerous property conditions have existed and why they have been ignored.
Inadequate Lighting
To determine whether inadequate lighting caused your injury, the court will consider the entire circumstances. It includes your activity before the accident, how close you were to the light source, whether or not the property owners ignored lighting hazards, etc.
Inadequate Security
To file a tort claim, the plaintiff must prove that the property owner failed to provide reasonable security measures and warnings to avoid accidents and injury.
Product Liability Cases
You could file a tort claim if you were injured or harmed after using a specific product. Only 33.5% of plaintiffs prevail in product liability cases, making them one of the most difficult to win.
Defective Products
The challenge in product liability cases is proving that the injury resulted from a defective product or a flawed device.
You Are Not Alone
There are many benefits to hiring a local personal injury attorney. Thus, choose a personal injury Muskegon lawyer expert on state laws. Instead of randomly searching for “Personal Injury Lawyer Michigan,” contact Shafer Swartz PLC’s knowledgeable attorneys. In any type of personal injury lawsuit you intend to file, we stand ready to support and help you. Call us at (231) 722-2444 or contact us here to schedule an appointment.