To be successful in a personal injuries claim in Queensland, you must first prove that your injury was caused by the negligence of someone else.
So what is negligence?
Negligence is the legal term used to describe how careful or diligent someone was when an injury occurred and how careful or diligent they should have been, according to law. There are three elements needed to prove negligence in a personal injury claim.
Duty of Care
We all have a duty of care to take reasonable action not to cause foreseeable harm to another person. It is often unclear as to what constitutes foreseeable harm. Broadly speaking, if someone is so closely and directly affected by your acts or omissions, then you will probably owe that person a duty of care.
Breach
Once you have established that the person at fault owed you a duty of care, you must then prove that there has been a breach of that duty. Obviously if someone knowingly exposes you to a foreseeable risk, then there is a breach of duty of care. A duty of care is also breached if someone simply fails to realise or consider to risk of injury or harm that they are causing.
Loss or Injury or Other Damage
The final step in establishing negligence is to prove that the breach of duty of care owed to you was the cause of your loss or injury. The basic question to be asked in each situation is whether the injury would have occurred with or without the breach of the duty of care.
The law relating to personal injury and negligence is complicated. If you would like some advice on whether or not you might have a personal injuries claim based on the negligence of someone else, you should obtain expert legal advice.
At GC Law we can advise you about all of the above at a free no obligation initial appointment.
Remember, strict time limits do apply to personal injuries claims, so it’s important to get legal advice as soon as you can after being injured in an accident to make sure your rights are protected.
If you, a friend or any member of your family need advice about an personal injury claim you can call us now on 1300302 318 or email us here
We’re here to help.
Article by Alica Bradford, Alica is part of the GC Law team of personal injury lawyers and compensation lawyers.
Alica is a senior Lawyer and will work closely with you on your compensation claim.
