Buffalo Personal Injury Lawyer NewsWhat Is A Summons?
After being injured in an accident, knowing what to expect when pursuing your claim brings you peace of mind. Some of our most frequently asked questions are about the summons. At the beginning of a lawsuit, a summons and complaint are two legal documents served to all defendants. The summons informs the defendant of the plaintiff’s commencement of the legal action and demands that they answer the complaint. The complaint is a written document detailing the plaintiff’s reasons for pursuing the lawsuit. It states the plaintiff’s claims against the defendant and the damages they seek compensation for.
Serving A Summons
New York State law forbids any party to the legal action from serving the summons. The person who serves the summons must be at least 18 years old. Process servers are typically used to serve these legal documents. The three methods of delivering a summons are:
Suppose that you, or a family member, have been injured in an accident caused by another person’s negligence or recklessness. You may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit. Pursuing a case against the responsible party could be your only means to recover compensation. However, you only have a limited time to file your claim. The deadline is known as the statute of limitations (SOL). The statute of limitations, like a countdown, can significantly impact when or even if you can pursue your case. Regardless of the strength of your claim, when the statute of limitations runs out, your case will be considered time-barred. Meaning the defendant can assert that the statute of limitations has run out and ask the court to dismiss the lawsuit on that basis alone.
Liability in personal injury cases is often unclear and ambiguous. This is because a defendant may not be entirely responsible for the accident. It is not uncommon for plaintiffs to be partially at-fault too. Fortunately, victims may still be eligible to recover compensation for their damages even if they were partly to blame. When applying the legal doctrine of comparative negligence, also known as comparative fault, a plaintiff that contributed to their accident would still be awarded compensation for their damages. However, the total amount would be reduced based on their share of fault. Whether you have been hurt in a car crash, construction accident, slip and fall, or any other mishap, comparative negligence can significantly impact the compensation you obtain. 
Falls are one of the leading causes of personal injury accidents throughout the United States. While falls can happen anywhere, these accidents are especially common on stairs. Each year, more than 1 million victims injure themselves on stairways. All property owners and managers are legally obligated to keep their properties safe for tenants, visitors, and workers alike. This obligation includes inspecting and maintaining stairways and making timely repairs to potentially dangerous conditions. When a staircase accident occurs because of hazardous or improperly maintained stairs, the responsible property owner, landlord, or management company can be held liable for the victim’s damages. 
To prove fault in most personal injury lawsuits, a plaintiff must show that the defendant was negligent. Victims have the burden of demonstrating four legal elements to prove negligence. The first element of negligence is the at-fault party’s duty of care. Typically, this is one of the easiest elements to prove because everyone has a basic obligation to avoid unnecessarily injuring others. The duty to act appropriately is relevant in almost every situation and is often assumed by being in another’s vicinity. In other words, you must implement the same degree of caution and consideration that a reasonable person would exercise given the same situation. Someone does not need to assume the duty of care to another party voluntarily. It can be imposed just by being in a specific place at a specific time. 
Victims often turn to personal injury claims to recoup their losses after being injured in accidents. If the verdict is in the plaintiff’s favor, they can obtain a monetary award for their losses. One type of damage awarded to victims is called compensatory damages. Compensatory damages are designed to pay victims money to cover the costs related to their injuries and other losses. In other words, this type of damage is awarded to compensate plaintiffs for the actual losses they have suffered. For instance, if a careless motorist smashed into your car and totaled it, the compensatory damages would equal the fair market value of your vehicle when it was demolished, minus the salvage value or any usable parts. The two types of compensatory damages that courts can award to plaintiffs are special damages and general damages.
Victims suffer injuries in tens of millions of severe accidents every year, such as slips and falls, collisions, and dog bites. Most of these injuries are caused by someone else’s negligence or even recklessness. The consequences of being involved in an accident can range from serious personal injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder to the destruction of property and costly hospital bills. Over 40 million accident victims require medical care due to various personal injuries each year. If you or a loved one have been injured due to someone else’s negligence, you may be wondering what type of lawyer to call.
Loss of consortium is a term used in personal injury law that refers to the deprivation of the benefits of a family relationship because of injuries suffered in an accident. Under New York law, injured victims may be eligible to obtain monetary compensation for the loss of consortium and companionship. These claims are intended to remedy marital damages that the victim and their spouse have suffered. Loss of consortium claims are generally made when the injuries suffered are long-lasting, devastating, or debilitating. 
Unfortunately, even after an accident victim’s initial pain subsides, they could be left with permanent scarring and other disfigurements. Most scarring is caused by damage to the skin, such as scratches, abrasions, and puncture wounds. Depending upon the severity and location of the scar, it can significantly impact a victim’s ability to work and even perform routine tasks. Besides being a constant reminder of the traumatic injury, even the slightest alterations in a victim’s appearance can bring about overwhelming depression and emotional pain. Victims with scars in prominent places, such as the head, face, neck, or hands often struggle with terrible self-esteem and anxiety. 
In the wake of an accident, it can take victims who have suffered from herniated or bulging discs weeks or even months before these injuries become problematic. Consequently, back and spinal cord injuries are regularly overlooked and undiagnosed. Unfortunately, failure to detect bulging discs can result in long-lasting pain and suffering. A herniated or bulging disc occurs when one of the rubbery cushions positioned in-between the bones that make up the spinal cord is shifted out of alignment. While any region of the spine can endure a herniated disc, this type of injury tends to arise in the lower back.