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Top 5 Most Common Personal injury cases

The top 5 most common types of personal injury cases filed each year include car accidents, slip and fall accidents, workplace injuries, medical malpractice cases, and dog bite incidents. Contact an attorney to review your potential personal injury case.

Mark Martinez has worked on personal injury cases ranging from auto accidents to medical malpractice and can advise tenants in Southern California on how to enforce their rights as renters.

Top 5 Most Common Personal injury cases
What are the 5 most common types of personal injury cases?
  • Car accidents: Collisions between vehicles are unfortunately very common. Injuries from auto wrecks range from whiplash to broken bones.
  • Slip and fall accidents: Premise liability makes property owners responsible for maintaining safe conditions to prevent fall injuries visiting their locations.
  • Workplace injuries: On-the-job mishaps like heavy lifting strains and industrial accidents cost lives and livelihoods every year despite safety regulations.
  • Medical malpractice: Mistakes or lapses in care during treatment and surgery can result in patient harm, though not all negative outcomes signify negligence.
  • Dog bites: While most canine encounters are pleasant, irresponsible owners of powerful breeds are sometimes held accountable through litigation when their pets attack and wound individuals.

 

What are the most common personal injury cases?

Personal injury law covers many incidents that unfortunately happen far too often, so here are some common questions:

  • Is car insurance mandatory in my state?
  • How much bodily injury coverage do I need?
  • If I’m injured at work, can I sue my employer?
  • What time limits exist for filing personal injury claims?
  • Are there fines if caught texting while driving?
  • How do I choose a qualified personal injury attorney near me?

 Speaking with an experienced lawyer can help determine the appropriate next steps for seeking settlement to offset losses in common personal injury situations.

 

Top 5 Most Common Personal injury cases

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What are the 5 types of injuries?

When an accident or traumatic event occurs, it can result in physical harm. Common injury categories treated through personal injury claims include:
✅ Soft tissue injuries: Sprains, strains and muscle tears represent the majority of problems involving ligaments, tendons or muscles pulled or ruptured.
✅ Orthopedic injuries: Broken bones, dislocated joints, and fractures frequently sideline victims and require reconstructive treatment or surgery for repair.
✅ Head injuries: Concussions and traumatic brain injuries can cause cognitive, behavioral and emotional impairments depending on severity.
✅ Burns and scarring: Both thermal and chemical burns damage skin and tissue, sometimes leaving disfiguring marks or functional impairments.
✅ Chronic conditions: Whiplash, herniated discs, and neurological impairments may develop over time in more subtle cases but still merit compensation.

What is the largest personal injury?

Personal injury encompasses many life-changing health issues, so attorneys see varied claim types. Here are answers to common related questions:
❓ If injured while on another's property, am I entitled to compensation?
❓ How much can I expect for a herniated disc settlement?
❓ Is there a time limit to file after an accident?
❓ What is the process for lost wages claims?
❓ If injured at work, am I covered by workers' compensation?

While no two personal injury cases are exactly alike, seeking counsel from an experienced lawyer can help evaluate injury extent and options available under the specific circumstances. The goal is always fair resolution allowing victims to focus on recovery without financial distress compounding their medical concerns.

Can you sue for a hit-and-run accident?

Victims of unintentional injury caused by unknown drivers leaving the scene have legal options to seek maximum compensation through:

  • Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage: Having adequate UM/UIM insurance can pay for bills/losses if the at-fault vehicle was unidentifiable.
  • Government Accident Funds: Some states operate funds consumers pay into that reimburse certain losses from hit-and-runs upon application and proof of evidence.
  • Negligence Claims: If surveillance or eyewitness details eventually identify the driver responsible, they may face personal injury claims for one person suffers an injury and affiliated expenses due to their reckless actions.
  • Wrongful Death Suits: In tragic incidents terminating a life, wrongful death cases allow survivors to sue for bereavement damages.

Investigating promptly helps establish facts assisting potential recovery from liable sources for all damages despite the other party absconding criminally.

 

Top 5 Most Common Personal injury cases

What is the biggest personal injury settlement?

When facing extensive harm from accidents and negligence, the potential damages claimed can be substantial. Some of the largest personal injury settlements on record include:
✅ Burn injuries: An award of $57 million was granted to a man who suffered full thickness burns over 75% of his body from an explosion.
✅ Traumatic brain injuries: $55 million settlement for a worker who fell and suffered a severe TBI leading to permanent disability.
✅ Defective products: A $51 million settlement was reached against a car manufacturer whose failed airbags caused extensive internal injuries in a crash.
✅ Loss of limb: $50 million was awarded following the amputation of a man's leg below the knee due to a faulty commercial machine.
✅ Medical malpractice: A $48 million settlement involved a baby deprived of oxygen during birth resulting in cerebral palsy.

What is an example of personal injury?

Personal injury law offers recourse for varied harmful incidents. Here are answers to some common questions people have:
❓ If injured by someone else's negligence, what actions can be taken?
❓ How much can I expect in damages for a broken arm?
❓ What qualifies as "pain and suffering" in a claim?
❓ What is the statute of limitations for car accident cases in my state?
❓ If on medication, how might that impact a settlement?
Consulting with a knowledgeable attorney can shed light on options available to address medical costs and losses arising from specific personal injuries through no fault of one's own.

What are serious personal injuries?

Serious injuries can significantly impact quality of life. The top 10 injury types addressed through personal injury claims include:
✅ Traumatic brain injuries: TBIs from assaults, crashes or falls often involve long term care.
✅ Spinal cord injuries: Anything compromising the spinal column like broken necks may result in paralysis.
✅ Burns: Both thermal and chemical burns require extensive grafts and therapy.
✅ Amputations: The loss of limbs radically changes mobility and daily activities.
✅ Paralysis: Whether quadriplegia or paraplegia, loss of muscle function is life-altering.
✅ Scarred disfigurement: Severe scarring over large areas causes permanent self-consciousness.
✅ Loss of reproductive organs: Miscarriages or losses of testes/ovaries due to negligence.
✅ Loss of senses: Vision, hearing or smell cannot be regained once nerves are severed.
✅ Chronic pain conditions: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome causes persistent agony.
✅ Internal organ failure: Ruptured organs may require transplants if repairs fail.

What are the 4 kinds of physical injuries?

1- What's the difference between civil and criminal court for injuries?
2- How much can I expect for whiplash from a rear impact collision?
3- When should an injury lawyer be consulted after an incident occurs?
4- If disabled, how does that impact a claim's value?
The human body can be fragile. Seeking guidance from an injury attorney well-versed in your state's laws can begin mapping a path to coverage given your individual circumstances.

What are the 5 most common injuries in the workplace?

👉 Work injury settlements versus auto accidents: Workers' comp is no-fault, covering lost wages and medical bills automatically up to state limits. Car accidents require proving fault, but allow suing for non-economic damages like pain and suffering.
👉 Firing for a workers' comp claim: In most states it is illegal for employers to terminate, threaten, or discriminate against employees for filing a valid workers' comp claim. However, they can fire for other valid reasons.
👉 Lost wage claim expenses: These types of claims aim to reimburse income an injured worker loses out on while unable to perform regular duties, possibly including commission/tips/overtime in some states.
👉 Injury leads to arthritis: If a workplace accident or repetitive motion directly causes arthritis or an aggravation of a pre-existing joint condition, some states do allow additional compensation through workers' comp.
👉 Reporting deadline: Most states require reporting the accident to the employer within 1-3 business days and filing a claim within 1-2 years to maintain medical and lost wage coverage. But exceptions may apply for latent injuries.

Top 5 Most Common Personal injury cases

Do I Have a Valid Medical Malpractice Claim?

When one of the many types of personal injury arises from supposed clinical malpractice, it's crucial for injured parties to consult an attorney experienced in personal injury case types like medical malpractice to properly vet the merits.
Questions answered include whether evidence supports doctrinal breaches or lapses proximately causing new, prolonged or worsened harms versus inherent risks of medical care reasonably foreseeable despite due precautions. Seeking counsel ensures eligible claims receive their maximum compensation under law due to someone else's negligence.
What are some common types of personal injury cases that can result in wrongful death suits?
Some common types of personal injury cases that can potentially result in wrongful death lawsuits include:
✅ Car accidents - Whether caused by drunk/distracted driving, reckless behavior, or defective vehicles/parts, fatal crashes can lead to wrongful death claims.
✅ Workplace accidents - On-the-job injuries or exposure to hazardous materials/machinery that causes a loss of life may enable survivors to sue negligent employers.
✅ Medical malpractice - Mistakes or lapses in care during treatment, surgery, childbirth, etc. that are the proximate cause of a patient's death warrant malpractice wrongful death lawsuits.
✅ Premises liability - Deaths stemming from unaddressed dangerous conditions on someone's property like unmarked hazards, defective equipment, or violent crimes permitted to occur could be litigated.
✅ Product defects - Faulty products that directly cause fatalities may generate wrongful death suits aimed at the responsible manufacturers.
✅ Nursing home negligence - Lax safety practices, medication errors, falls, infections in long-term care that shorten a life violate standard of care duties.
✅ Toxic exposure - Chemical spills, mold outbreaks or other environmental contaminations traced as a primary cause of demise can lead to compensation claims.

Can Your Airbags Cause Injuries in a Car Accident?

While airbags save thousands of lives each year, the explosion of their deployment in a crash can sometimes cause unintended harm also worth exploring legally if a claim involves.
Some injury risks include:
✔ Airbag Burns: The hot gases and debris ejected upon inflation means burns to passengers' faces, arms or legs in immediate proximity.
✔ Eye/Vision Injuries: Anything from lacerations or blindness may result from objects striking eyes on impact without protective eyewear worn.
✔ Fractures: Especially among younger, older or smaller framed occupants, the forceful airbag contact has potential to break bones in rare cases.
✔ Whiplash/Neck Strains: Abrupt catching and whipping of the head and neck areas can inducesoft tissue stresses beyond just impact tremors.
✔ Respiratory/Asthma Problems: Airbag chemicals inhaled during or after deployment pose risks exacerbating sensitivities in susceptible peoples.


What is the most serious type of injury?

When it comes to severity, traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) routinely top lists of life-changing medical conditions.
Some reasons TBIs warrant classification as serious injuries include:
✅ Cognitive impairments: Even mild TBIs can cause issues with memory, attention, reasoning, and problem-solving on a permanent basis.
✅ Motor impairments: Movement, dexterity, balance and coordination may face permanent deficits impacting daily living.
✅ Speech/swallowing difficulties: Significant brain injuries can affect essential functions like communication, eating and breathing.
✅ Sensory changes: Vision, hearing, taste and touch sensory processing may fail to operate normally post-TBI.
✅ Emotional/behavioral issues: Conditions like depression, anxiety, aggression and personality alterations are prevalent after brain traumas.

What are the 5 classifications of injuries?

Beyond overall severity, here are the 5 categories medical experts commonly use when discussing injury types:

✔ Minor - No days lost from work/play and minimal treatment needed.
✔ Moderate - Requires professional medical attention but causes missed work/school of 1-6 days.
✔ Serious - Leads to 6+ missed work/school days or extensive treatment and recovery over weeks.
✔ Severe - Life-threatening injuries like skull fractures requiring acute hospitalization.
✔ Fatal - Injuries that unfortunately claim human lives.

Understanding injury classifications helps victims and families gauge treatment paths and long-term effects to fully address needs after life-altering health events.

What are the 4 main types of injuries?

When harm is done to someone through no fault of their own, personal injury law provides potential avenues to remedy costs. The top 4 injury types addressed are:
✅ Traumatic injuries: Accidents causing fractures, dislocations, concussions or lacerations may involve an experienced personal injury lawyer for negligent or slip and fall accident claims.
✅ Chronic pain conditions: Injuries triggering lifelong headaches, chronic regional pain syndrome or fibromyalgia damage quality of life long-term.
✅ Neurological injuries: Traumatic brain or spinal cord injuriesruin mobility but also cognitive and emotional functioning, warranting substantial settlements or awards.
✅ Wrongful death: The outright loss of life sadly occurs too, obligating others through wrongful death claims if deaths could have been prevented through due care.

What is the largest punitive damages ever awarded?

Punitive awards aim to deter reckless conduct, ideally preventing future loss of life. Some record personal injury law judgments include:
👉 A $4.7 billion punitive fine was levied against Johnson & Johnson for their role in Oklahoma's opioid crisis.
👉 Ford Motor Co. was required to pay $295 million after a negligent gas tank defect caused a fatal motor vehicle accident and fire.
👉 A California jury ordered Pacific Gas & Electric to pay $1.5 billion in damages for their responsibility in wildfires sparked by downed powerlines.

What is the largest personal injury law firm in the United States?

Representing victims in hundreds of thousands of Injury cases in the United States each year, a few law groups stand out for their scale:
✅ Morgan & Morgan has over 700 attorneys across 20 states, known for auto accident, medical malpractice, and worker injury representation.
✅ Levin Papantonio focuses solely on personal injury/wrongful death suits with over 350 attorneys in offices nationwide.
✅ Allums Law Firm based in Indiana has grown to over 150 experienced personal injury attorneys practicing in several Midwestern states.
✅ Geragos & Geragos, founded in Los Angeles, has become one of the largest plaintiff's medical malpractice firms in the country with a few hundred staff.

What Is a Personal Injury Case?

A personal injury case arises any time injuries are caused to an individual through the negligence or fault of another party. Here are some basic answers:
Personal injury law covers Five common types of cases including auto accidents, work injuries, premises liability, medical malpractice and product defects.
The goal is to hold negligent parties responsible for expenses like medical bills and lost income resulting from their actions.
An experienced personal injury Law Office can advise regarding statute of limitations, evidence preservation, and settlement potential given injury specifics.
While no one wants to suffer harm, seeking counsel promptly allows the legal system to fairly address losses from Injuries caused through others' mistakes or misconduct when liable relationships exist.

The 7 Most Common Types of Personal Injury Claims

Knowing common causes of harm leads to compensation you deserve if injured due to someone else. Here are the most regular personal injury lawsuit categories:
✔ Car Accidents: Collisions are a leading cause of disability and make up most personal injury lawsuits.
✔ Workplace Injuries: On-the-job accidents should be reported, as compensation for injuries may be eligible.
✔ Premises Liability: Slips, trips or falls on another's property often result from negligence that merits claims.
✔ Medical Malpractice: Mistakes or lapses in appropriate care may be eligible for compensation.
✔ Product Liability: Defective products responsible for injuries allow claims against manufacturers.
✔ Intentional Torts: Assaults, batteries or false imprisonment intentionally harming others.
✔ Dog Bites: Attacks by dogs whose owners knew of past aggression potential.

Do I Have a Valid Medical Malpractice Claim?

Diagnosing a Medical Malpractice case's merits requires consulting an attorney experienced in these complex cases. Some questions include:
❓ Did an error below normal standards of care during treatment cause new, worsened or prolonged injuries?
❓ Is there documentation like medical records supporting a link between breach of duty and resultant harm?
❓ Was the harm one a reasonable healthcare provider should have foreseen as possible from their actions?
Properly evaluating eligibility for compensation due to someone else's alleged negligence is important before pursuing recovery through the legal system.

Can An Injury Lawsuit Be Reopened After Settlement?

In some situations, new evidence could allow victims who already settled personal injury cases to re-open their lawsuits. Some scenarios:
✅ Undisclosed Injuries: It's common than others for long-term ramifications of traumas like traumatic brain injuries to surface later.
✅ Fraud or Concealment: If pertinent medical records or liability facts were deliberately hidden during a case, this could potentially void settlement terms.
✅ Worsening Conditions: Deceptive prognostic opinions that caused suffer an injury to settle for less than a condition truly warranted given its future deterioration could permit a retrial.
✅ Damage Caps Exceeded: If injury severities exceed State-imposed legal payout limits that pushed settlement below fair value, extensions may sometimes be granted.
✅ Product Recalls: Recall of a defective product can re-trigger product liability claims dismissed earlier due to untruthful assurances of safety.

Can I Sue A Mechanic For Negligence?

When vehicle repairs create dangerous condition leading to accidents and harm, victims may be entitled to compensation for injuries due to someone else's negligence through their mechanic's legal responsibility depending on scenario specifics.
It's always best to call a personal injuries attorney to review the details.
Mistakes causing losses deserve consideration under the law. Knowledgeable counsel evaluate liability risks to advise pursuing amends or dropping matters unable to surmount legal hurdles.