For Free Consultation
Personal Injury
When any person suffers a serious injury, it can result in multiple challenges for that individual. In addition to the costs of obtaining medical care for treatment of injuries and replacing or repairing damaged property such as motor vehicles, people can also experience financial hardships if they are unable to return to work because of the nature of the injuries.
If a person’s injuries are the result of another party’s negligence, the accident victim can be entitled to compensation to cover the many damages that resulted from the injuries. Insurers for negligent parties will typically attempt to get accident victims to accept settlements that do not account for the full lifetime costs of treating injuries, which is why it is critical for anybody who was harmed as the result of another party’s negligence to immediately retain legal counsel.
Personal Injury Lawyer in Atlanta, GA
Did you sustain a catastrophic injury or was your loved one killed in Georgia as the result of another party’s negligence? You will want to contact Marcus A. Roberts & Associates for help obtaining the compensation you need and deserve.
Marcus A. Roberts is an experienced personal injury attorney in Atlanta who represents clients injured in auto accidents and many other kinds of incidents all over Fulton County, Clayton County, DeKalb County, Cobb County, and Gwinnett County. He can provide a complete evaluation of your case as soon as you call 404-577-4444 to take advantage of a free initial consultation.
Overview of Personal Injuries in Fulton County
- What do victims need to prove in personal injury lawsuits?
- Which kinds of accidents does your firm handle?
- Where can I learn more about personal injury in Atlanta?
Elements of Georgia Personal Injury Claims
Personal injury cases are matters of civil law, which is much different from criminal law. Where defendants in criminal cases are subject to punishments that can include fines and prison, defendants in civil cases can be ordered to pay monetary awards to victims.
Furthermore, civil courts also use a lower standard of proof than criminal courts. In a civil case, a plaintiff must prove his or her case by a preponderance of the evidence—meaning “more likely than not” caused the victim’s injuries. In criminal cases, a defendant’s guilt needs to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, which effectively translates to mean that if there is any doubt in a juror’s mind whether the defendant committed the crime, he or she should not find that individual guilty.
Personal injury lawsuits generally involve the same four basic elements of proving negligence:
- Duty of Care — A victim must establish that the negligent party owed him or her a duty of care. For example, a driver has a duty to his or her passengers and to other motorists to operate a motor vehicle in a safe manner; a retail store has a duty to ensure that its premises are free from hazards for patrons, and doctors have a higher standard of care owed to their patients.
- Breach of Duty — After establishing that a negligent party owed a duty of care to the victim, it will need to be demonstrated that the other party was negligent by somehow breaching his or her or its duty of care to the victim. A possible breach of duty may be a motorist who was driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs or alcohol, a retail store that did not clean up a spill, or a doctor who failed to conduct certain standard tests.
- Causation — An accident victim will have to prove a connection between the other party’s negligence and his or her resulting injuries. In other words, the negligent party’s actions must have been the direct cause or a significant contributing factor to the victim’s injuries.
- Damages — The final element of a personal injury case is evidence of the harm caused because of the injuries a victim suffered. In addition to medical expenses, victims will often need experts and estimates that demonstrate not only the past financial impact of the injuries, but also the expected future impact.
In most personal injury cases in Georgia, victims have a two-year statute of limitations to file a lawsuit. Georgia is also a comparative fault state, which means that if fault for his or her injuries, the percentage of fault assigned to the victim can impact his or her award.
For example, a person who is deemed to be 10 percent at fault for a personal injury case involving $50,000 in damages would receive an award of $45,000 because the victim would be responsible for 10 percent (or, in this case, $5,000) of the damages. If a victim is deemed to be more than 50 percent responsible for his or her injuries, he or she will not receive any compensation.
Types of Personal Injury Claims in Atlanta
Marcus A. Roberts & Associates handles a wide variety of personal injury cases. Some of the most common kinds of injury victims we represent include, but are not limited to:
- Catastrophic Injuries;
- Dog Bites;
- Wrongful Death;
- Medical Malpractice;
- Nursing Home Negligence;
- Child Care Accidents;
- General Negligence;
- Intentional Torts;
- Class Action Lawsuits; and
- Title VII Discrimination.
Georgia Personal Injury Resources
Title 51 | Georgia Code — Title 51 of the Georgia Code is dedicated to torts. View the full text of the state laws governing imputable negligence, liability of owners and occupiers of land, and wrongful death. You can also learn more about injuries to real estate, injuries to personalIty, and defenses to tort actions.
FastStats | Accidents or Unintentional Injuries | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — On this section of the CDC website, you can view various injury statistics. In addition to the number of emergency department visits for unintentional injuries, you can also find information about unintentional injury deaths such as falls, motor vehicle accidents, and poisoning. You can also find several different related stat sheets.
Marcus A. Roberts & Associates | Atlanta Personal Injury Attorney
If you suffered severe injuries or your loved one was killed as the result of another party’s negligence in Georgia, it is in your best interest to quickly seek legal representation. Marcus A. Roberts & Associates represents residents of and visitors to communities throughout Fulton County, Gwinnett County, DeKalb County, Clayton County, and Cobb County.
Atlanta personal injury lawyer Marcus A. Roberts knows how to hold negligent parties accountable and get accident victims the compensation they need for all of their needs. He can review your case and answer all of your legal questions when you call 404-577-4444 or submit an online contact form to receive a free, no obligation consultation.
