Personal Injury Overview
St. Louis Personal Injury Lawyer
What is a "personal injury"? Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to a person, rather than to property. This may be a physical or emotional injury to the victim, most often caused as a result of negligence. However, personal injury claims may also be filed for malpractice and even intentional wrongdoing. The most common cause of personal injury lawsuits is auto accidents, including car accidents, truck accidents and motorcycle accidents. Additional common causes of personal injury claims include: dog bites, defective products, dangerous or defective drugs, asbestos exposure, nursing home abuse, and slip and fall accidents.
After one has sustained a personal injury, he or she has the right to file a lawsuit against the responsible party in civil court. This person, the plaintiff, will allege that the defendant (the person who caused the accident/injury) acted in some way to cause injury to the plaintiff. The burden of proof will be on the plaintiff to prove that it is more than likely true that the defendant failed to provide a reasonable level of care and that this failure was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injury. The plaintiff will also need to prove the monetary value of his or her case, based on medical care, emotional trauma, any lost wages, and possibly more.
Missouri Time Limits for Filing Personal Injury Claims
In Missouri, an accident victim has only a limited time to file a personal injury lawsuit. The length of time may vary depending on the nature of the claim, as well as whether a governmental agency is the defendant in the case. Following are the Missouri statutes of limitations on these claims:
Find out whether you have grounds for a Missouri personal injury lawsuit. Contact a St. Louis personal injury attorney at Page Cagle today! |