6 Critical Tips About Louisiana Personal Injury Cases

6 Critical Tips About Louisiana Personal Injury Cases

In a recent blog post, we discussed if you Can You File A Personal Injury Lawsuit 12 Years Later. In this week’s post, we will cover some tips about Louisiana Personal Injury cases that might affect your own personal injury lawsuit. 1) Does Louisiana Have Specific Deadlines For Personal Injury Lawsuits? Many people may not consider the amount of time you have to file a lawsuit if you are injured by another person. However, Louisiana laws do set a specific deadline, or "statute of limitations," for the amount of time you have to file a personal injury lawsuit after your injury. This deadline falls one year after the date of your accident in most instances. In most cases, if you miss the one-year window, you lose the right to file a lawsuit over your injury. There are limited exceptions to this rule, but they can be complicated, so it is best to seek the advice of an attorney as soon as possible to avoid missing your deadline for filing your lawsuit. 2) What Is Comparative Fault And Will It Apply To My Case? When it comes to determining how your case will be affected if injured person is found to be partly at fault for their injuries, you should be aware that each state follows different shared fault rules. If you are injured in Louisiana, this state has a "comparative fault" rule which reduces the amount of an injured person's damages by a dollar amount equal to the share of fault that may be assigned to that person. One example of this is if you are driving your car over the posted speed limit and you get into an accident. If someone else hit you and caused injury, you could be responsible for part of your own damaged because you were violating the posted speed limit when you got into the accident. This means that if your damages for the accident were $10,000, and it was determined that you were 10 percent at fault for the accident, your damages would be reduced by 10 percent. So you would only be allowed to collect $9,000 from the party that caused the accident. These numbers can change, but the basic calculation will stay the same. 3) Does Louisiana Have Auto Insurance Laws? Like many other states, Louisiana requires drivers to carry a minimum amount of auto insurance. Part of this coverage must include damages for injuries. According to regulations, your coverage should be enough to pay your bills from the accident, but if it is not, going to court is an option. Moreover, Louisiana is considered an "fault" state for auto accident injuries and insurance purposes. This means that if you are involved in an accident and you have injuries, you have a choice to file a claim with the appropriate insurance carrier or file a lawsuit to recover damages in court. 4) What Is The Rule For Dog Bite Cases? In a majority of states, dog owners have some protection from injury liability the first time their dog injures someone. This only applies if they had no reason to believe their dog was dangerous. This is referred to as the "one-bite" rule. This is not the case in Louisiana. Here, La. Civ. Code, art. 2321 makes the owner of a dog "strictly liable” for any personal injury caused by their dog. This means that regardless of the animal's past behavior, the dog owner is responsible for any and all damage done by their dog. 5) Are There Limits To Personal Injury Damages In Louisiana? In most personal injury cases, courts can award damages in a dollar amount to compensate injured parties for medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, or other losses directly related to the accident. Some states limit the amount and type of damages a person can receive from their injuries. In some instances, parties cannot recover from non-economic injuries like "pain and suffering". There are not typically limits on damages for cases that do not involve medical malpractice. 6) What Are The Limits For Damages On Medical Malpractice? Louisiana laws limit all damages in medical malpractice cases to $500,000 or below. Additionally, medical providers that are found liable for medical malpractice only have to pay $100,000 if they are covered by the Patient Compensation Fund. This means that the injured patient receives $100,000 from the provider and the rest of the money up to $500,0000 directly from the specified fund. It is worth noting that this limit does not apply to future medical expenses.

Let J. Price McNamara Help You With Your Personal Injury Case

J. Price McNamara has been practicing law in Louisiana for many years and has handled many personal injury cases just like yours. With a wealth of knowledge and respect from both the legal and surrounding community, J. Price McNamara can provide the legal representation that you need. The legal team at J. Price McNamara ERISA Insurance Claim Attorney is waiting to help you with your case. Call us today to schedule your free case review and get an experienced legal team on your side.