Understanding Liability in Illinois Personal Injury Claims

If you suffer an injury caused by someone else in Illinois, you must show that someone else is liable to secure compensation for your accident-related losses. How do you prove their liability? Depending on the circumstances of the incident, there are a few different ways to hold the at-fault party accountable, including negligence, strict liability, and vicarious liability.

Negligence in Personal Injury Claims

When a party acts negligently, it simply means that they acted in a way that the average person wouldn’t and that their actions harmed someone else. Most personal injury cases involve negligence. For example, a driver who crashes into you while texting would be negligent; they should have known that texting while driving is dangerous.

Strict Liability

Strict liability is different than negligence. If a party is strictly liable for your injuries, you don’t need to prove that their actions were negligent to pursue compensation from them. The simple fact that they caused your injuries is enough for them to be liable. Examples of personal injury cases that rely on strict liability include:

• Defective Products – In Illinois, if a design, manufacturing, or warning defect in a product causes your injury, the manufacturer can be strictly liable.
• Dog Bites – Under Illinois law, dog bites also fall under strict liability. If someone’s dog bites and injures you, you can hold them liable even if the dog was correctly leashed or contained when it hurt you.

Vicarious Liability

Vicarious liability is when a party not directly responsible for your injuries can still be liable. The most common examples of vicarious liability involve employers being liable for injuries caused by their employees. For example, if a delivery driver crashes into you, the driver and their employer could be liable for your injuries.

How Liability Affects Compensation

Illinois uses a modified comparative fault rule that allows any liability you share for the accident that harmed you to affect the compensation you are owed. Under this rule, each party is only liable for the harm they caused. If you’re 25 percent at fault for the accident that injured you, the other party is only liable for 75 percent of your losses.

Additionally, if you’re more than 50 percent at fault for the accident that caused your injuries, the law prevents you from being able to seek compensation. For this reason, it’s essential that you work with an experienced attorney who can assess whether you share liability for the accident and use their skills to reduce your share of fault.

Evidence Used to Prove Liability

Types of evidence that can be used to prove the other party’s liability in your personal injury case include:

• Photographs and Videos – Pictures and videos of the accident scene and your visible injuries can help establish how the incident occurred and the injuries you suffered.
• Eyewitness Statements – Eyewitnesses can provide statements that corroborate your version of events.
• Expert Testimony – Lawyers often hire experts, such as medical professionals and crash reconstruction specialists, to testify on specific aspects of a case.
• Medical Records – Your medical records can help establish the severity of your injuries and show that they directly resulted from the other party’s actions.

Contact Our Illinois Personal Injury Lawyers

Contact Goldfine & Bowles online or call us at 309-673-5144 for a free initial consultation with one of our experienced Illinois personal injury lawyers. We’ll review your case, explain your legal options, and answer any questions you have about holding the at-fault party liable for your injuries.