General Negligence

Most personal injury lawsuits in Pennsylvania and throughout the United States involve proving negligence. Negligence is a common law term, which means that its definition is based more on legal principles and court precedents than specific laws or statutes. This makes negligence difficult to establish without the help of an experienced negligence attorney.

The Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys of Saidis, Sullivan & Rogers have over fifty years of legal experience that we are ready to put to work for you. Schedule a free case evaluation with one of our knowledgeable personal injury lawyers to find out if negligence can be proved in your case.

Elements of General Negligence

For the vast majority of negligence cases like personal injury lawsuits and wrongful death claims, there are four essential elements of negligence that must be proved in order to receive compensation:

• Duty of Care– the responsibility of the defendant to prevent foreseeable harm.
• Breach of Duty– the defendant’s failure to do what a reasonable person would do in the same situation to prevent your loss or injury.
• Causation– the defendant’s Breach of Duty directly or indirectly caused you harm, and her negligence is greater than yours.
• Monetary Damages– quantification of the harm, injury, financial loss, or pain and suffering you endured because of the defendant’s negligence.

Each of the Pennsylvania car accident and personal injury attorneys at Saidis, Sullivan & Rogers thoroughly understands each of these facets of proving negligence, and we have the experience to prove these elements in a court of law.

Negligence Law in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania operates under a system of comparative negligence. This means that in order to be compensated for your injuries or losses, you must prove that your own negligence was less responsible than the defendant’s. If you are injured in a car accident in Harrisburg, for instance, you must demonstrate that the other driver(s) bear more blame than you for causing the accident.

If you are found to be partially negligent, your compensation will be reduced by the percent of fault the court ascribes to your negligence. For example, if you suffer a slip and fall injury in Camp Hill and the court decides that your negligence is 40% responsible for your slip and fall accident and the landowner’s negligence is 60% responsible, your damages will be reduced by 40%. If you are awarded $10,000, you will only be entitled to $6,000.

To learn more about general negligence in Pennsylvania or if you have been injured by someone else’s negligence near Harrisburg, please contact the experienced negligence attorneys at Saidis, Sullivan & Rogers and schedule a consultation in Carlisle, Camp Hill, or Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.