Suffering an injury in an accident or in any other circumstance in Santa Fe can be disorienting and devastating, especially when the injury is serious. When injuries happen, the injured person can require extensive medical care and may be unable to work due to the severity of the injury. Given the immense physical and economic losses associated with an injury, it will be important to determine whether you could be able to file a personal injury claim in order to seek compensation. What determines whether you have a valid personal injury claim? In short, if you were injured, in order to have a legitimate lawsuit, you will need to be able to prove that another party is liable for your injuries, that your injury resulted in damages, and that there is still time left based on the statute of limitations.
Another Party is Liable for Your Injury
The first issue in determining whether you have a valid personal injury claim is whether another party could be liable for your injury. How can you determine liability? It will depend upon whether you plan to file a claim based on negligence, strict liability, or another theory of liability.
In general, most personal injury lawsuits are based on a theory of negligence, which means that the injured person must be able to prove that the defendant owed a duty of care, that the defendant breached the duty of care by behaving negligently, and that the defendant’s negligence caused the injury.
Product defect, or product liability, lawsuits may be brought based on a theory of strict liability. With strict liability, to prove that the defendant is liable, there is no need to prove negligence. Rather, in a strict liability case, merely designing or manufacturing a product that has a defect and causes an injury is sufficient for liability.
Your Injury Resulted in Damages
In order to have a personal injury claim, you must be able to show that your injuries resulted in damages. If you did not experience any losses, then you will not be able to file a lawsuit. You must be able to show that you have damages to seek compensation for them.
Statute of Limitations Has Not Run Out On Your Case
Finally, you will need to confirm that the statute of limitations has not run out. Under New Mexico law, most personal injury lawsuits have a three-year statute of limitations. As such, you will need to be sure that you file your personal injury lawsuit within three years, and you should assume that the clock starts on the accident date. To be certain about the timeline, you should seek advice from a personal injury attorney in New Mexico as soon as possible.
Contact a Santa Fe Personal Injury Attorney
If you were injured and you believe that another party may be liable for your injuries, it is important to seek advice from an experienced Santa Fe personal injury lawyer who can help you. Do not hesitate to contact our firm to learn more about filing a personal injury lawsuit and seeking financial compensation for your losses. Contact Slate Stern Law today to have one of our attorneys assess your case.