PERSONAL INJURY SPECIALTY AREAS
For a lawyer to be able to represent their client in court, they must be licensed in the jurisdiction where the case will be tried. While there are personal injury lawyers that cover a wide range of different kinds of personal injury claims, the majority of personal injury lawyers specialize in one or a few specific areas of personal injury law. Almost any kind of injury or illness that is the result of one or more parties’ negligence, may be considered a personal injury that qualifies for seeking monetary compensation through a personal injury claim and subsequent lawsuit. The following are some of the common, broad specialty areas that many lawyers focus on one or more niche areas of them.
Accidents
Any time an accident causes an injury that could have been prevented had it not been for the negligence of the party that caused it, the victim and/or their family may be entitled to compensation for expenses that are the result of the accident, as well as for things such as pain, suffering, grief and loss. Lawyers may specialize in a particular kind of accident or even a specific niche of a particular kind of accident. The following are common kinds of accidents that a lawyer may specialize in:
- Automobile
- Airplane
- Boat
- Bus
- Drunk and intoxicated driving
- Faulty and dangerous products
- Gym
- Jacuzzi
- Large truck (semi, tractor trailer, 18 wheeler, etc.)
- Motorcycle
- Off-road vehicle
- Pedestrian
- Pool and lake
- Recreational vehicle
- Slip and fall
- Swimming
- Train
- Trip and fall
- Workplace
Medical Malpractice
When a patient is injured or becomes ill because of a doctor, hospital or other health care professional’s negligent act or omission, or when a patient dies because of this, it may be considered medical malpractice. Errors in diagnosis, treatment, aftercare and health management may be seen as medical malpractice.Products Liability
When a consumer is injured because of a dangerous or faulty product, they may have grounds for a personal injury claim. Before products are made available to consumers, they are supposed to be tested for safety. If a product that turns out to be faulty and/or dangerous makes it to market, one or more of the parties that is responsible for its availability, may be liable for the injuries a victim incurred after using it.Defamation
Defamation is when someone’s character is injured or damaged by a false statement presented as a fact. When someone is a victim of this, they may sue the party who caused their character to be harmed.Wrongful Death
Some lawyers specialize in cases where someone dies as the result of a personal injury. Any of the aforementioned specialty areas of personal injury law, have and can involve wrongful death claims. Lawyers who specialize in wrongful death cases, typically work for the deceased’s estate and/or their surviving family members.