Will You Be Prohibited from Recovering Compensation in a Motor Vehicle Accident Claim?
You were injured in a car, truck or motorcycle accident, but you were partially to blame. Maybe you were exceeding the speed limit at the time of the crash, or maybe you came to a rolling stop at a traffic light. The evidence is clear that you were partially responsible for causing the collision. Can you still file a personal injury lawsuit and seek compensation for your losses?
Your Fault May or May Not Prevent You from Recovering Compensation after a Crash
The fact that you had some responsibility for causing a motor vehicle accident will not disqualify you from filing a personal injury lawsuit to recover some level of compensation for injury and loss. In New Jersey, as in states across the country, liability in a personal injury lawsuit is almost always based on a determination of negligence. Negligence requires that you show that another person failed to act as a reasonable person would, thereby causing an accident that resulted in actual losses to you.
Under New Jersey law, when an injured person is found to have contributed to causing an accident, his or her right to recover damages is not necessarily lost, but will typically be reduced by his or her percentage or degree of responsibility, as determined by the jury. New Jersey follows the “modified comparative negligence” approach, which means that an injured person who is found to have been primarily responsible for causing an accident (greater than 50%) will not be able to recover anything for his or her losses.
Contact Howard D. Popper, P.C.
At Howard D. Popper, P.C., we can help protect your rights. For a free initial consultation to discuss your options after a motor vehicle accident injury, contact our office online or call 973-993-8787 to set up an appointment. We have offices in Morristown and Newton.
We handle all personal injury claims on a contingent fee basis. You won’t pay any attorney fees unless we recover damages for your losses.