Salt Lake City Personal Injury Lawyers

Fighting for Automobile, Wrongful Death, & Premises Liability Victims in Utah

When tragedy strikes your family in the form of an automobile accident or other cause of personal injury or wrongful death, the Salt Lake City personal injury lawyer at Nelson, Taylor & Associates dedicate themselves to getting you the compensation you are owed to cover your expenses and relieve further financial distress.

When one person is injured because of the negligence of another, the law holds that negligent person responsible to the injured person for the damages caused, including: present and future medical expenses, present and future lost wages, and pain & suffering. However, obtaining a fair amount of compensation is never an easy matter. As the plaintiff in a personal injury case, the burden falls on you to prove that the accident was the fault of the other party. The defendant, meanwhile, represented by a team of insurance company lawyers, will argue instead that you were to blame, that your injuries are not as serious as you claim, or that your injuries were not caused by the accident. If the jury believes that you contributed to the accident and are more at fault than the defendant, even just one percent more, then you will not be allowed to recover any compensation for your injuries, despite the other party’s negligence or reckless conduct.

Proving your case requires a thorough knowledge of the law and the ability to communicate effectively with the jury why you are entitled to compensation, all the while answering the claims and defenses thrown up by the defense. Our Salt Lake City personal injury attorneys can help in most cases of personal injury, including the following types of injuries and accidents:

Auto Accidents:According to the most recent data from the Utah Department of Public Safety, there are approximately 54,000 vehicle crashes annually on Utah roads, occurring mostly in Salt Lake and neighboring counties. The minimum amount of liability insurance required by Utah state law covers $25,000 for personal injury caused to each person, up to a total of $65,000 for everyone involved. These amounts are about one-quarter of the amount recommended by the insurance industry. If you or your family members are seriously injured in an auto accident, your damages can easily exceed this minimum amount.

Even with these low limits, many people choose to drive without any insurance and hope they don’t get into an accident. If this happens, your own insurance company may compensate you up to the limits of your uninsured motorist coverage, if you have this type of coverage. Many people make the mistake when dealing with their insurance company that the carrier is on their side and will treat them right. Your carrier is actually in an adverse position to you in this situation, and you should definitely still obtain legal representation from experienced Salt Lake City lawyers to make sure you get the best recovery.

Premises Liability: Property owners owe a duty to maintain their premises in a safe condition free of hazards that might cause someone to slip or trip and fall, be struck by falling merchandise, or otherwise suffer a personal injury. Sometimes a hazardous condition is only temporary, such as a food or drink spill in a grocery store or restaurant, or a wet or icy sidewalk. In these cases, it takes an experienced attorney who knows how to investigate the accident and prove that the property owner knew or should have known about the condition yet failed to take reasonable steps to correct the problem or warn the public about the danger.

Is Premises Liability the Same as General Liability?

General liability overlaps with premises liability. It is a package that includes different types of insurances including:

• Bodily injury to a third party during work
• Damage to someone else's property
• A personal injury such as accidental copyright infringement

Product Liability: When a product is sold to a consumer in a defective condition, and the use of the defective product causes injury, the manufacturer can be held liable under a number of different legal theories, including strict liability, meaning the injured plaintiff is not required to prove negligence or fault on the part of the manufacturer in order to recover compensation for the injuries caused. Products may be defective in many different ways, including defective design, defective manufacture, or failure to provide adequate instructions and warnings about the dangers and safe use of the product.

What is the Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury in Utah?

The time limit to take legal action for an injury you sustained will vary based on the type of offending action in question. Under normal circumstances the clock will start ticking the day the accident occurred. Here are some examples of the statutes of limitations that govern other case types in Utah:

• Assault & Battery - Four Years
• Wrongful Death - Two Years
• Property Management - Three Years
• Medical Malpractice - Four Years

If you happen to learn about the damages or injuries sustanied after the limitations has ended, talk with our attorney about the discovery rule that may apply to your case.

Personal Injury & Pain and Suffering

Upon experiencing a personal injury, many people will file a claim for pain and suffering as well. Pain and suffering is putting a value on the mental and physical anguish that you face while recovering. When filing a lawsuit for personal injury, you may include pain and suffering if it has impacted your life in a negative way. Here are some examples of pain and suffering:

• Mental & physical pain
• Emotional Trauma
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• The accident has resulted in permanent disability or impairment
• The accident has resulted in a loss of companionship or the enjoyment of life
• Your reputation and humiliation has been badly affected

Enlist the Help of a Salt Lake City Injury Lawyer

Although most cases settle without the need for trial, insurance companies hardly ever offer an amount that reflects the true value of the case, particularly to unrepresented persons or attorneys without a reputation for litigating cases and winning at trial. If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident or other occurrence, contact Nelson, Taylor & Associates for a free initial consultation with an experienced Salt Lake City personal injury lawyer.

Call (801) 901-7046 or contact us online to start building your case an injury lawyer.