Tort laws are the laws that define what constitutes a legal injury and how much compensation an injured party can sue for. These laws are under constant reform and revision that may positively or negatively affect a personal injury or auto accident case. Tort reform is often complicated and difficult to understand, so to help our clients better understand the effects tort law reform may have on their auto accident case, the Florida law firm of Feingold & Posner has put together a brief primer explaining the tort reforms most likely to have an impact on their case.
Reform of the Statue of Limitations
In many states there are laws, referred to as the statue of limitations, that govern how long an injured party has to file a lawsuit to receive compensation. These laws vary by state, can range from one year up to five years and are designed to encourage an injured party to file a claim while their memory of the accident is still fresh and keep a defendant from having to worry about being sued over an event that occurred years earlier. Certain tort reforms aim to either lengthen or shorten the statue of limitations. Because of these reforms, it is important that you speak with an attorney as soon as possible to ensure that you file your claim for compensation after an auto accident within the time allowed by law.
Damages Reform
One of biggest goals of tort reform is to limit the amount an injured party can seek in damages. These reforms affect non-economic damages, which are damages that you can not fix a specific price on, such as pain and suffering; and punitive damages, which are damages that aim to punish a negligent defendant. These reforms can severely limit the amount you can seek and receive in compensation after an auto accident.
Contingency Fee Reform
After being involved in an auto accident, many people can not afford to hire an attorney on an hourly basis. To ensure that their clients are still able to get the representation they deserve, many attorneys will accept cases on a contingency basis. By doing so, an attorney agrees to pay for all fees and expenses out of pocket and to only collect his fee if the case is successful and compensation is received. Certain tort law reforms would abolish contingency cases, making it impossible for many clients to pay for the legal representation they need.
Tort law reforms can have an effect on many different kinds of personal injury and accident cases.
To learn more about how tort law reform may affect your case, contact the Fort Myers law firm of Feingold & Posner by completing our email form, or 1-888-792-7301.