Defenses to Premises Liability: Comparative Negligence

Defenses to Premises Liability: Comparative Negligence

Property owners, managers, and tenants can be held accountable when others are injured while on their properties.

When properties aren’t maintained or repaired to eliminate safety risks, plaintiffs may be entitled to receive compensation for their injuries and other damages.

But defendants in a premises liability case may rely on any number of legal defenses. Comparative negligence is a legal concept that plaintiffs and defendants need to understand in order to achieve their goals in a personal injury case.

What is Comparative Negligence?

Comparative negligence is used when defendants argue that plaintiffs are partly responsible for their injuries. This can impact the amount of compensation granted to plaintiffs by the courts.

Comparative negligence doesn’t exclude a plaintiff from getting compensation. The amount of compensation they receive can be reduced according to their share of negligence.

Unlike other states, Georgia applies a modified comparative negligence rule. This means plaintiffs may not receive any compensation at all if their share of negligence is greater than fifty percent.

In other states, a plaintiff may still receive compensation if they’re found to be more than fifty percent responsible for their injuries.

Demonstrating Comparative Negligence in Personal Injury Cases

Defendants must demonstrate to the courts the approximate percentage of liability shared by plaintiffs when protecting their interests in a personal injury case.

In lawsuits based on premises liability, any individual or organization whose negligence directly caused injuries and other damages to another party is legally responsible for compensating the injured party.

The courts may decide that both parties were negligent and that the liability for damages must also be shared. The methods used for assessing each party’s share of negligence can be complicated.

Your personal injury attorney can help you determine how much negligence you share with the other party in a lawsuit. You can gather the evidence you need show who was responsible for any damages so that compensation can be determined by the courts.

Court judges must evaluate the evidence, facts, and other factors related to your case to determine who was liable for damages. The amount of compensation given to a plaintiff will reflect their percentage of shared negligence.

Protecting Your Legal Rights in a Personal Injury Case

Defendants may use comparative negligence as a defense in a personal injury case. Plaintiffs often know that they have shared some responsibility for their injuries.

Working with a skilled personal injury attorney helps you protect your legal rights and financial interests. The right legal professional and strategy help plaintiffs get the most out of their legal claims.

Defendants can minimize the amount of compensation they need to pay an injured party through comparative negligence and other legal defenses.

Testimony from witnesses, photos and video evidence, and police reports can all be used to establish negligence. The use of expert witnesses can support your claims and ensure that you get the legal outcome you want.

Understanding the role of comparative negligence and its impact on the court’s decision will help you protect yourself in a Georgia court of law.

Plaintiffs can receive the compensation they need to recover from their injuries, and defendants can protect their financial interests from legal liability.

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