Personal Injury

If you have been hurt as the result of the fault of someone else, chances are you may have a personal injury claim. Depending on the circumstances, “fault” can mean negligence, intentional act, strict liability, and/or breach of warranty.



One of the most common scenarios resulting in personal injury is a motor vehicle accident, which is discussed separately elsewhere. Another common scenario is often called a slip and fall or trip and fall and can occur anywhere, such as a business, sidewalk, or home. The focus is on the owner of the premises and whether any legal obligation was owed and, if yes, was that legal obligation breached. The underlying facts are critical to any analysis performed.

If you are injured as a result of an intentional act of another (i.e., punched), this is called an intentional tort. The focus is on the intent of the actor as opposed to the failure of the actor to fulfill a duty owed to you. If you can satisfy all the elements associated with the particular intentional tort, then you are entitled to money damages. Note that insurance cover that might be lost to pay any claim or judgment as insurance generally does not cover intentional acts.



Strict liability is a concept popular in many states, but not so much in Virginia. Food poisoning from the service of unadulterated food in Virginia is one example where strict liability exists in Virginia. Manufacturers (i.e., car manufacturers) in other states can be held accountable on strict liability grounds if a design or manufacturing defect can be identified. Thus, the issue of negligence and breach of some particular duty is irrelevant.

Breach of warranty is often associated with manufacturers of goods. If an injury should happen because of some defect with the good, then a breach of warranty may have occurred and entitlement to money damages may exist.

A personal injury can also occur at the workplace and may result in a workers’ compensation claim. Such claims are handled differently from general personal injury claims in that they are governed by the Virginia Workers' Compensation Act and handled with the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission. This law firm does not handle such claims.



With regard to personal injuries, no matter the basis for the claim (with the exception of workers’ compensation, if one’s claim is successful, then one may be awarded money damages for past and future health-care expenses; past and future lost wages; disfigurement or deformity (i.e., scars, loss of limb) and associated humiliation or embarrassment; pain and suffering in the past and may be expected in the future; and inconvenience in the past and reasonably expected in the future. Some of these categories are dependent on the actual figures involved (i.e., health expenses, lost wages), while others are subjective and will turn on the facts and evidence presented (i.e., pain and suffering).