What are the criteria in filing a Personal Injury case?

Before you can file a case against an organization or another person because of Personal Injury, it is essential for you to satisfy many criteria.

The most dominant of these criteria is to prove that the negligence of the other person also referred to legally as the “defender” caused the injury to the “pursuer” – the person or the no win no fee law form filing the claim.  It should be established that the defender made a mistake that should not have been done in order to avoid the injuries and damages.

Similarly, if someone is considering filing a PI claim for a product that has failed to meet its preached functionality, then it must also be confirmed that the negligence of standards leading to a defective product caused the injury of the pursuer.

The second criterion is that it has to be established that the defender owes a duty of care to the Pursuer. Negligence based on law is basically the indication that somebody made a mistake that could have been avoided, and that it has instigated harm to another person.  The challenge is that before a court is convinced that the defender is negligent to the pursuer, it must also be established why the pursuer expects not to suffer from the defender’s mistake.  For example, the court needs to be convinced that the customer who purchased the defective product is assured by the selling organisation that he will not incur any loss or damages upon use of their merchandise.

The third criterion is that it can be proven that the duty of care owed by the defender was breached. Under the United Kingdom’s law, this means that a court will only be convinced of the breach in a “duty of care” if the following determinants are met.

a. The mistake of the defender that caused injury is intentional or voluntary.
b. The mistake of the defender is potentially harmful to the pursuer.
c. The mistake of the defender must be judged as “negligence.”

Below are the considerations of the courts before declaring that someone is negligent.

a. The probability of injury towards the pursuer
b. The severity of the potential injury
c. The cost and the realism of preventing the injury
d. The activities of the defenders in the involved industry or organisation.

Another salient point to consider when filing a personal injury case is the timing of the claim.  In the UK, filing a claim for negligence resulting to Personal Injury must be completed within three years.  This is from the date when the inflicting of injuries happened to the pursuer.  If filing of claim is beyond this allowed duration, the case will be rejected.