Queen Creek Personal Injury Lawyers

Liability in personal injury cases is usually determined by two standards of legal culpability: negligence and strict liability.

Most personal injury claims are negligence claims and concern injuries due to careless actions or omissions. In order to bring a negligence claim, you must demonstrate that the at-fault party violated some standard of reasonable behavior and caused you harm. For example, drivers have a responsibility to obey traffic rules and minimize risk to others. If a driver was texting and caused an accident, you could file a negligence claim against them. 

The other standard is strict liability. Under strict liability claims, injury victims do not have to demonstrate negligence to recover financial compensation. As long as the victim sustained injuries, the opposing party is automatically liable for the injuries. The most obvious example of strict liability is dog bite cases. In Arizona, individual dog owners are automatically liable if their dog bites someone, regardless of whether they were negligent. 

Broadly speaking, claims are filed in the jurisdiction where the accident occurred.

Damage Tiers in Personal Injury Claims in Arizona

Arizona is somewhat unique in that you cannot name the exact amount of compensation you are seeking. Instead, personal injury claims fall into damage tiers based on ranges:

• Tier 1 – $50,000 or less
• Tier 2 – Between $50,000 and $300,000
• Tier 3 – Over $300,000

Depending on your circumstances and the nature of your injuries, you can seek financial compensation for the following types of injury-related losses:

• Medical bills and continuing medical expenses
• Lost work income and other forms of employment compensation
• Diminished lifetime earning capacity due to permanent disability
• Other injury-related expenses (e.g., childcare, alternate transportation, etc.)
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish and emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment
• Quality of life reductions