SO, YOU HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN A CAR ACCIDENT?

YOUR LAWYER'S THREE-PART JOB

Your lawyer's job in all personal injury cases is a three-stage process-whether it is an automobile accident, an attack by a vicious dog, or being injured by falling debris from a building under construction.

There are three elements to consider in determining who is at fault--or to put it another way, where the negligence lies. Step one is to prove that your injury was the fault of the other person. Step two is to determine the cause of the accident. Step three is to determine what the damages were as a result of the accident or event.
These are the three links in the chain, any of which, if broken, would result in the loss of the case, with no damages awarded. As you can see, this is a job for a lawyer well versed in the arts of establishing negligence, determining causation and assessing damages.Now, let's see how this is done.

Negligence:

The Courts in Connecticut have said that in order to be liable there must exist a duty, that is, a duty of care that you owe to another person-- to use care, if there is a foreseeable harm without such care. The Courts have defined "foreseeable harm" this way;"Would the ordinary prudent man [sic woman] in the position of the defendant knowing what he or she should have known anticipated that a harm of the general nature of that suffered was likely to result?
The short form definition for negligence is the duty and care you owe to someone else. It has been said that, "negligence is conduct that creates an undue risk of harm to others." Well, "there is care, and then there is care," as they say. How careful you are may legally depend upon your age. The standard of care that a child under six years of age is required to use is substantially different than that of a 21-year old.

Causation:

Did you cause injury? Connecticut has adopted what is called, "The Substantial Factor Test." To constitute such substantial causal relationship toward the damage the defendant did (as will suffice to maintain an action of tort) the defendant's tort must have been a substantial factor in inducing the damage complained of. Now, remember under causation we have to have some foreseeability. In some states, the law is that the defendant has to foresee the injury that he or she caused. In other states, he or she has to foresee that some injury would be caused by his or her conduct, even if it is not the one that he or she would normally expect.