A San Diego Auto Accident Attorney Will Discuss Your Legal Options If You Have Been Injured in an Automotive/Motorcycle Accident

A San Diego auto accident attorney can educate you about the laws that apply to compensate injured parties in an automotive or motorcycle accident. You will learn all of your possible legal options for your fight for compensation.

The Basic Law of Negligence

If you have been seriously injured in an auto or motorcycle accident, your ability to seek compensation from the at-fault driver depends on the law of negligence. As your San Diego auto accident lawyer will explain, negligence requires a showing of four basic elements: duty, breach, cause, and damages

A San Diego Auto Accident Lawyer Explains Duty

In auto or motorcycle accident cases, duty is that of a reasonable person. In other words, your San Diego auto accident lawyer will explain that your legal duty is to take reasonable care not to engage in conduct that might cause injury to another

A San Diego Auto Accident Attorney Discusses Breach

Once duty has been established, the next element in a negligence case is breach. Courts look at whether a defendant’s conduct fell short of their legal duty to refrain from injury-causing conduct.

Causation/Damages Requirement

Causation is the third element in any negligence case. The critical question is, but for the defendant’s breach of duty, would the plaintiff have suffered an injury? Additionally, the injury itself must have been a foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s conduct. For example, if a defendant driver ran a stop light (breach of duty) then struck and injured a pedestrian (cause/damages) in the crosswalk, then the driver was likely negligent. Finally, there must actually be an injury in order for a San Diego auto accident attorney to help seek compensation. In the pedestrian example, if the pedestrian wasn’t injured, there is no legal negligence, even though the driver breached a duty.

Contact Your Local San Diego Accident Lawyer Today

For the best possible chance, make sure to contact an experienced San Diego auto accident attorney to discuss your legal options if you’ve been seriously injured in an accident. Call the law offices of James V. Hairgrove at 619-667-3743 to discuss your case.