Negligence in Indiana

After an accident, the first question is whose fault was it? Was it another driver?  A landlord? An employer?  It is human nature to question harm—and it is the business of personal injury lawyers to protect the rights of those wrongfully injured.

We represent people injured in all types of accidents, but the process common to all injury claims is proving negligence on the part of a person from whom compensation is sought.  As a legal term, negligence means failure to take reasonable care to avoid harming another person and thereby causing injury.

Proving negligence in Indiana requires addressing these elements:

• Duty. A defendant owed a standard duty of care to the plaintiff.
• Breach. The defendant breached that duty.
• Proximate cause. The plaintiff suffered injury as a result.

If you prove these elements, an insurance company—or Indiana court—applies a percentage of fault to each party.  If the defendant was negligent, how negligent were they in causing an accident?  Indiana follows a rule of modified comparative fault.  This means a plaintiff can collect compensation for an injury if his or her negligence does not exceed 50 percent.

Plaintiffs more than 50 percent responsible for an accident cannot collect monetary damages.

Understanding fault and proving negligence is essential for recovering needed compensation after a serious injury, or wrongful death in Indiana.  If you were hurt through the fault of another, contact our firm and let us prove it.