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Personal Injury Law  - a tort law - is a complex umbrella of interrelating laws designed to prevent harm or compensate for harm to a person or property.  This harm or injury may be a matter of physical injury, mental injury or financial injury.  The most common forms of personal injury law deal with automobile accidents, harm and loss of income due to accidents or product failure or even workplace injuries.  Medical malpractice or negligence and legal malpractice or negligence lawsuits are guided by personal injury law.  Personal injury law also includes reputation safeguards such as slander or libel laws.

A civil wrong, or a tort, is recognized by law as grounds for a lawsuit.  Sometimes these wrongs are considered crimes and are punishable with imprisonment, but the primary aim of tort law is to provide relief through compensation to injured parties for the damages incurred.  Among the types of recoverable damages are: loss of earnings capacity, pain and suffering, and reasonable medical expenses.  They include both present and future expected losses.

Workers Compensation laws are different in that they are designed to compensate employees who are injured or disabled on the job without the need for litigation. Benefits for dependents of those workers who are killed because of work-related accidents or illnesses are also provided under these laws.  

Some laws also eliminate the liability of co-workers in most accidents. State Workers Compensation statutes and Federal statutes address such issues as Black lung, industrial accidents and In Utero Workplace Injuries.

Because of the many chemicals and solvents used in the workplace and in American Industry, we should also refer here to product liability laws.  Product liability laws refer to the liability of anyone with a responsibility for a product - from the supplier or manufacturer to the seller -  if that product causes damage due to defect.  Product liability law has grown to include intangibles (gas), naturals (pets), real estate (house), and writings (navigational charts).  

Liability claims can be based on negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty of fitness.  The United States Department of Commerce has promulgated a Model Uniform Products Liability Act (MUPLA) for voluntary use by the states. There is no federal products liability law.  Examples of product liabilities involve defective products such as gas tanks, tire defects, air bag injuries, toxic chemicals, some environmental pollution.
 

OTHER EXAMPLES OF PERSONAL INJURY OR TORTS:

Aviation Disasters: FAA and NTSB rulings generally take precedent over state laws in personal injury law for these tragic cases.

Automobile Accidents: Auto Wrecks, Car Wrecks, Truck wrecks, Motorcycle Accidents and public transportation such as Bus Accidents.

Major Accidents

Products Liability: Defective products such as gas tanks, tire defects, air bag injuries, toxic chemicals, some environmental pollution as well as products that do not live up to their respective guarantees or warranties.

Professional Malpractice:  Medical Malpractice or Negligence, Legal Malpractice or Negligence, Other Professional Malpractice or Negligence.

Wrongful death: Catastrophic and fatal injuries due to negligence or other liability may bring compensation to heirs or estate.

Damages, in a legal sense, includes two categories of possible compensation. to be imposed by law for a breach of some duty or violation of some right. Compensatory damages, sometimes known as "actual damages", are intended to compensate the injured party for his loss or injury. Punitive damages are awarded as punishment to a wrongdoer. You may hear of "liquidated damages," (contractually established damages) and "nominal damages" (a court awarded  nominal amount such as one dollar).  There are many court guidelines establishing what types of damages may be awarded in a given circumstance.

Workers Compensation must be applied for and documented within timely guidelines.  It is certainly possible to suffer the effects of damage to the body or physical impairment or disability years after initial exposure to the cause.  Preventive legal advice often can save you time, trouble and money by stopping problems from getting started.

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