Try as hard as you might, sometimes you cannot avoid getting injured. If another person’s negligence is the cause, our lawyers can help you get compensation for your damages in a lawsuit.
Our firm has seen negligence take countless forms and can bring that experience to your case. Whether a negligent driver hits you, you are injured on another’s property, or you are injured by a defective product, we can help by identifying each party to sue and gathering evidence against them. Our team has the resources to handle cases involving several defendants, as well as defendants with resources of their own. If multiple defendants caused your injuries or the government bears some responsibility, we can help you get the justice you deserve.
Call the Rhatigan Law Offices at (312) 578-8502 for a free and confidential case review with our Naperville, IL personal injury lawyers today.
Parties that Can Be Held Liable for Causing a Personal Injury in Lombard, IL
To recover the compensation you deserve, you must identify the right parties to sue in your personal injury lawsuit. Naming each person who even slightly contributed to your injuries as a defendant is important since you will usually not get another opportunity to pursue damages. Our personal injury lawyers can help you gather evidence that shows why each party should be held liable. There are a few scenarios where people commonly act negligently. Individuals can also be held liable in civil court for intentional conduct. The following are the most common defendants in Lombard personal injury claims:
Negligent Drivers
Many claims are against negligent drivers after a car accident. When you file a car accident claim, you will almost always sue the other driver since their acts are the most likely to have directly caused the accident. Many drivers commute from Lombard to nearby Chicago, so speeding, illegal lane changes, and other dangerous driving behaviors are seen here daily. Negligent drivers can, even if they did not break a traffic law but still act unreasonably behind the wheel.
Your case will be more complex with more cars involved in the crash. When several drivers are implicated in causing an accident, it is usually best to sue all of them in a single claim. Once the lawsuit is filed, we can gather evidence to determine the extent of each driver’s role in causing your injuries.
Negligent Property Owners and Managers
Our team handles many other claims against negligent property owners for dangerous conditions on their premises. Businesses and their employees often fail to clean or inspect for and warn of a danger on the property, causing visitors to injure themselves. For instance, you might slip and fall in a spill that has been left on the ground or fall because of poor lighting on the stairs. Property managers can also be sued in these cases if they are also responsible for the property’s safe upkeep.
The challenge in these claims is who the defendant property owner is. If it is a private business, like a store or restaurant, we must identify each party in the business that can be individually named in the claim. If you were injured in a friend’s home, filing a claim will be a more sensitive issue. Many individuals are injured on public property, like CTA train stations and parks. In these situations, we can sue the government agency responsible for the property, but we will usually have less time to file the claim, and damages might be limited since the defendant is the government. Starting your claim as quickly as you can is essential in these cases since we will need time to investigate each defendant.
Negligent Employers
When a negligent employee causes an accident while on the clock, their employer can typically be held liable for their employee’s carelessness. Under the principle of “vicarious liability,” also known as respondeat superior, most employers will be legally responsible for the negligent acts of their employees if they cause the incident while affecting their job duties. For instance, if a pizza delivery driver hits you, we can usually sue the driver and the company in the same claim. This principle holds true even if the company did not actually do anything negligent themselves.
However, vicarious liability will not apply to “independent contractors,” like Uber and Lyft drivers or Amazon truck drivers. In these cases, we can sue the drivers and anyone else who contributed to the accident, but we typically cannot sue the company since independent contractors do not technically work for the company.
Your case will be even more complex if a government employee injures you. In general, you cannot sue a government employee for negligence because of “sovereign immunity.” Fortunately, we can file a claim against the government agency that employs them so you can still recover damages.
Negligent Product Manufacturers and Designers
In some cases, you are not injured by someone directly in your presence but by their products. Many products are made dangerous because they are negligently designed or manufactured. For instance, a new coffee maker you bought might short-circuit, cause a fire and injure you. Or, a pharmaceutical company could negligently manufacture a prescription medication that harms those it is prescribed to. Our team can gather the complex evidence often necessary to win these claims and determine where the negligent flaw occurred.
Intentional Offenders
Personal injury lawsuits are not just for negligent conduct but can also be filed when someone intends to harm you. For instance, assault and battery are typically thought of as crimes, which they are, but they are also civil violations. If a person intends to harm you and does cause damages, you can hold them liable in civil court. However, you might need to wait to file your claim until after the criminal prosecution.
Our Lombard, IL Personal Injury Attorneys Are Standing by to Discuss Your Claim and How to Recover the Compensation You Deserve
Our personal injury lawyers at Rhatigan Law Offices can provide a free case review when you call us at (312) 578-8502.
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