Alabama Negligence Lawyer

What is Considered General Negligence in Dothan and Surrounding Areas?

When an individual or company fails to act reasonably and it results in damage to someone else, they could be accused of general negligence. If the injured person wants to receive compensation for their damages, they can file a claim against the reckless party. General negligence can include a number of experiences such as dog bites, car accidents and slip & fall, just to name a few.

If you are seeking reparation for an injury that someone else caused, then you should hire a Dothan personal injury lawyer from Morris, Andrews, Talmadge & Driggers, LLC (MATD). Our lawyers have been named some of the most successful in the state by Business Alabama magazine, Super Lawyers® magazine, and other prestigious organizations.

Understanding Alabama's Negligence Laws

Negligence in Alabama can be especially tricky because of the state's contributory negligence laws. Contributory negligence occurs when the injured victim was somewhat at fault for their accident. If the plaintiff is proved to be even 1% at fault for the incident, then under a contributory negligence law, the judge or jury would rule that the offending party would pay nothing in damages. Many Alabama juries use a variation of this law in their verdicts, called comparative negligence, which will assign fault to both parties and have them each take financial responsibility in accordance with the amount of blame that they carry.

The contributory negligence law can make it extremely difficult for an injured victim to recover their damages if the defense can prove that they were in any way at fault for the accident. In Alabama, contributory negligence laws can prevent injured persons from receiving any compensation if they were at fault for the accident in any way. To recover any compensation for the harm you've suffered, your lawyer will have to show that your actions in no way contributed to the accident that caused your injuries. If you have been injured in Alabama, it is even more essential that you get a negligence attorney to help you consider all strategies that the other party could implement in their defense. We want to make sure that your claim is rightfully presented and protected from the other side.

Proving General Negligence

When filing a lawsuit against another person for their careless behavior, you must prove four different elements to a judge or jury for them to award you with a favorable verdict. First, you must show that the defendant had a duty to act in a reasonable manner – just as, for example, a landlord would have a duty to make sure that a property is properly maintained and safe. Next, you must prove that they had breached that responsibility in some way. In other words, they didn't fulfill their duty to you.

After proving that they had an obligation to you that wasn't met, you must demonstrate that their action or inaction has caused your injuries. Causation can be things like the owner knowing about the danger and doing nothing about it, being unreasonable by placing an object in an unsafe place or failing to properly alert a person to a certain danger, or acting recklessly. Lastly, you must show that you have quantifiable damage for which the other party can provide compensation. These can be losses such as medical bills, lost earnings and emotional trauma.

Proving all four of these elements can be difficult, but especially when an injured victim is facing a big corporation or insurance company that has a huge amount of resources at their disposal. An Alabama negligence lawyer from our firm in Dothan knows how to thoroughly investigate the evidence and counter arguments that the opposition might make. Our legal team knows the complex, strict negligence laws of Alabama and how your claim will be validated to a jury.

Contact Our Alabama Injury Lawyers, Serving Dothan and Surrounding Areas

Whether you have been injured or you have lost a loved one in an accident, you need to contact an attorney at MATD immediately. Our attorneys have a great record of successful cases that includes winning one of the largest jury verdicts in the history of the Alabama – ultimately resulting in a $21,000,000 settlement for our client. To see all of our verdicts and settlements, take a look at our case results page.

We know that you are going through a painful and emotional time because of your injury, and you may not want to deal with the added burden of a lawsuit, but don't the make the mistake of settling directly with an insurance company. They are notorious for paying victims as little compensation as possible. We, however, fight for full compensation for all of our clients.