Justice Demands Diligence

Insightful Answers To Common Questions About Personal Injury

At The Mitchell Law Firm, P.A., answering questions helps clients understand their legal issues and ways to resolve them. I am attorney Joe Mitchell, and I consider curious clients to be engaged clients. Working together, we can bring about customized solutions to legal problems that they face.

Below are some fundamental questions about personal injury that many potential clients ask. For insights on your unique legal challenges and questions associated with them, request a consultation with me at your earliest convenience.

What Is A Personal Injury?

Most people think first of bodily injuries such as traumatic brain injuries as personal injuries. In fact, however, personal injuries may also include harm done, through someone’s neglect or wrongdoing, to another person’s emotions, reputation or well-being. Examples of personal injuries may include:

  • Broken bones resulting from auto accidents
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suffered by someone who has been sexually assaulted
  • The ruination of a doctor’s reputation (with accompanying professional losses) through false harassment accusations by a former patient

Breach of contract is often mentioned along with injuries and losses such as these.

Is Pain And Suffering A Personal Injury?

“Pain and suffering” is a broad term that is not usually limited to just one type of loss. Rather, it refers to the cumulative effects of intangible losses such as emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of the companionship of a loved one and other invisible but real losses. We may consider each to be a personal injury even if it is not usually the type for which people are treated in emergency rooms.

What Are Some Examples Of Negligence?

Negligence is the failure of a person or organization to take reasonable precautions to prevent harm to others, such as the following:

  • An apartment owner’s failure to make timely repairs to keep premises safe and livable for tenants
  • A parking garage management company’s failure to provide adequate security for people who park their vehicles in the garage
  • A nursing home staff’s failure to respond in a timely manner to residents’ calls for help
  • A truck driver’s failure to conduct routine truck maintenance and inspections as required by law
  • A surgeon’s operation on the wrong side of a patient’s body
  • A bank’s failure to keep customers’ personal information confidential

What Is Fair Compensation?

“Fair” means proper and sufficient compensation to cover past, present and future losses caused by someone else’s act of negligence. For example, after a truck accident that results in serious injuries, fair compensation would include the dollar value of all medical treatments, lost wage replacement and all future personal care services that will be necessary over the person’s lifetime.

What Should I Do After An Accident?

Move your vehicle out of traffic, if possible. Then, act promptly as follows:

  • Check to see if anyone has been injured.
  • Call 911.
  • If you can help an injured person while waiting for first responders, do so, but do not move their neck or back (in most cases).
  • Take photos at the scene and/or gather detailed descriptions of hazards, damage to vehicles and injuries.
  • Collect eyewitnesses’ names and contact information.
  • Give basic reports to the police and your insurance company but do not submit to detailed questioning before you get legal advice.
  • Call a personal injury lawyer to schedule a free consultation and learn about your rights.

Let Me Hear From You

Get answers to common questions about personal injury. Contact me, attorney Joe Mitchell III, to get personalized answers regarding your accident, injuries and recovery. I have a strong reputation and track record.