Your Rights As An Injured Party
From the San Francisco Bay Area, the Law Offices of Robert G. Schock represents clients throughout California in all types of personal injury cases, including those involving serious and catastrophic injuries and wrongful death caused by accidents, medical malpractice, and defective and dangerous products and pharmaceutical drugs. Over the past 30 years, the firm has earned a reputation for success due to an impressive record of million-dollar verdicts and settlements, and it has an attorney who is AV Preeminent peer-review rated* through Martindale-Hubbell.
The Law Offices of Robert G. Schock provides representation for victims who were injured due to someone else’s negligence, wrongful conduct or breach of duty. Each person owes a duty to act with the reasonable care of an ordinary, prudent person. When a person breaches this duty, the breach gives rise to negligence. Such a breach may occur in many situations, including:
- Auto accidents caused by driver negligence such as texting or using cellphones while driving, speeding or failing to obey traffic signs
- Medical malpractice, including a doctor’s failure to diagnose a disease or illness; surgical mistakes, such as operating on the wrong appendage; or injuries to children during birth
- Premises liability, where a dangerous premises causes injury due to a slip-and-fall or other accident
- Workplace injuries
Standing Up For You And Your Rights
In some situations, a party may be held strictly liable for injuries regardless of negligence. This is called “strict liability,” and it applies most often in product liability cases involving a dangerous or defective product that has been released by a manufacturer for use by consumers who are then injured by the product.
When someone breaches a duty through negligent or reckless conduct, a victim who is injured as a result of that breach may sue to recover monetary compensation. Monetary compensation is awarded in the form of economic and noneconomic damages. In cases in which the negligent party’s actions are found to be particularly egregious, the jury and court may also award punitive damages. For information on the types of economic and noneconomic damages that are available in personal injury and spinal cord injury cases, please see recoverable damages.
In many cases, both parties may be partially at fault for an accident and the resulting injuries. In California, the courts follow a pure comparative negligence theory, which allows a plaintiff who is partially responsible for his or her own injuries to still obtain a recovery. When awarding damages, the jury or other fact-finder will assign a percentage of fault to each party. The plaintiff’s awarded damages are then reduced by his or her percentage of fault in the cause of the accident. Therefore, it may still be possible for a plaintiff who is partly responsible for his or her own injuries to recover some damages.
Learn More About Your Legal Rights And Options
Despite providing substantial rights for negligently injured parties, California law limits the time that an injured party may recover, generally to two years or less from the date of the injury or date the injury should reasonably have been discovered. It is important to contact an experienced personal injury attorney immediately to avoid the risk of losing the right to recover damages.
Contact the Law Offices of Robert G. Schock at 510-922-0887 or contact us online.
*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer-review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.