What is Negligence? Negligence is a legal term that refers to the failure to exercise appropriate care under the circumstances, which results in injury or damage. Someone is negligent when they do something careless or unsafe, and this action results in injury or damage. The second type of negligence occurs when a person fails to do something they should have done, again leading to an injury or damage.
Negligence is a failure to exercise appropriate care in a situation that results in injury or damage to others. This definition links Negligence to the concept of "duty of care," a legal principle that requires people to take reasonable steps not to harm others through unreasonable actions, words, or omissions. There are four elements of negligence, so let's review those.
To prove negligence, you must prove that the defendant has a standard, or duty, of care to you. A duty of care is an obligation to keep you and other patrons safe by acting in a reasonable manner. For example, a concert venue has the duty of care to its concertgoers. The concert-goers should be safe from harm while at the venue. Other examples of duty of care are:
Upon proving the defendant had a duty of care, you now must show that they breached that duty of care. A breach of duty of care will look different in every case, but a few examples are:
In the next step, after you prove the defendant had breached their duty of care, you need to prove that the breach caused harm, injury, or even death. Again, this will look different for every case, but a few examples are:
Now that your lawyer has proven their case, it's time to discuss the damages and compensation. Damages you can go after are:
A personal injury attorney in a negligence case will prove that there was negligence, and this negligence caused you great harm. Negligence cases can come from:
A negligence lawyer may investigate the facts of the case, interview witnesses and clients, collect evidence, and negotiate with the other side to settle the point out of court. If the case goes to trial, the negligence lawyer may present evidence, call witnesses, and make an argument to the jury.
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