Friday, December 5, 2008

Different Aspects of Personal Injury Laws

By Markus Skupeika
Personal injury laws are defined at state level. A panel of judges and the members of legislatures sit together to create, modify and amend the laws. Personal injury law of one state may not be the verbatim copy of that of another state; personal injury laws of California may not be same as that of Florida.
However, state laws share a lot of similarities as well. While defining personal injury laws, generally three torts are taken under consideration - international torts, negligence torts and strict liability torts.
Three Torts in Personal Injury Laws:
International torts deal with the cases in which the offenders are aware of the consequences of their actions while committing it. The action is intentional. Assault, household physical and mental abuses and workplace bully fall under international torts.
Negligence torts consume the lion portion of personal injury laws. Most personal injury lawsuits are based on negligence torts. The law makes it compulsory for all the citizens to act responsibly and reasonably that any other person would do if placed in similar situation. Simply put, everybody should behave rationally and sensibly so that others do not get affected for their behavior.
For example, a reasonable person would always take steps to remove traces of oil, water or grease from the floor which accommodates a lot of people everyday. Now, if a restaurant owner fails to do so and anybody slips and falls on the floor, the owner is held responsible for negligent behavior under negligence torts.
Strict liability torts deal with a different type of behavior. Here, if the behavior of one person does any harm to another, the victim can sue the offender under strict liability torts. Because his actions injured someone else, the defendant is held guilty. Points like whether he was aware of the consequences or he was not able to conform with normal standards are not at all considered.
Personal injury laws for malpractice:
Apart from torts, personal injury laws in America protect the citizens against professional malpractice. Medical malpractice and professional malpractice laws have been introduced to stop unethical and wrongful actions of professionals including medical practitioners.
Personal injury laws also deal with product liabilities. This section entitles consumers sue the manufacturer of a defective product which caused damage and injury to the users. When a person buys a chair from a furniture store and falls from it while sitting because the legs of the chair were broken, the consumer can sue the furniture store or the manufacturer for compensation.
And there is a part of personal injury laws that deal with transportation laws. Automobile, rail road, maritime and aviation accidents cases use this part of state personal injury law.
How to make full use of personal injury laws:
To make full use of the personal injury laws, you need to understand the section that best suits your case. You have to decide whether negligent tort or the transportation law is the right ground for your compensation claim case.
Feeling lost? Do not panic. It is quite difficult for general people. So take help from personal injury lawyers of your state. State attorneys know the state personal injury laws better than anyone else.
Generally, personal injury lawyers and law firms do not ask the victims to pay attorney fees while filing compensation claim. They collect their fees from the compensation amount at the end of the case. However, you may need to pay court costs and some other fees. So talk to your attorney about the costs; go ahead and apply your rights.Guaranteed Do Not Pay Until You Win with leading Ft Lauderdale Personal Injury Lawyer Boone and Davis.Find out more top Florida Lawyers and get latest legal advice.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Markus_Skupeika

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Oklahoma Bankruptcy Laws - Personal Property Exemptions

By Apurva shrii
Like most of the other states in America, the Oklahoma bankruptcy law also allows the debtor to use the federal supplement exemptions along with the state specific exemptions. However, it also restricts you from substituting the Florida exemptions completely with the federal exemptions. The complete substitutions of the laws regarding the property exemptions are not allowed.
The personal properties exemptions have been interpreted by the Oklahoma bankruptcy laws in the following manner:
Motor Vehicles
As per the insolvency regulations, the debtor declared as bankrupt is allowed to claim exemptions for any number of motor vehicles. The good thing I that there are no retractions in terms of the number of motor vehicles, but the maximum amount is restricted only up to three thousand dollars.
Clothing
Clothing has also been declared as exempt personal property under the Oklahoma liquidation laws. However, the maximum amount that you can exempt under this category is only four thousand dollars.
Livestock Exemptions
Livestock exemptions have also been included. If you are a permanent resident of Oklahoma and you have been declared as bankrupt, as per the court in Oklahoma, you are allowed to exempt the livestock as much as the following:A maximum of hundred chickens
Twenty sheep
Those five cows who are able to produce milk for human consumption
Ten hogs
And, a maximum of hundred chickens are also exempt under the new bankruptcy laws.
Bridles And Saddles
The Oklahoma bankruptcy laws also allow you to exempt a maximum of two bridles and two saddles.
Claims For Injury
If the debtor declared as bankrupt is eligible for some workers' compensation, such as any Claim for personal bodily injury etc, as per the Oklahoma laws, the debtor can get exemptions up to as much as fifty thousand dollars, but the amount in this category must not exceed this upper limit. What is more, it is also important for you to note here that such exemptions do not include any claim for exemplary or punitive damages.
Other personal property exemptions
The personal property bankruptcy exemptions also include the following, as per the Oklahoma bankruptcy laws:Food materials, furniture, and health aids can also be considered to be exempted, but only up to the amount that should last a maximum of one year. Family portraits and other such pictures are also allowed to be exempted under the personal property exemptions in the state of Oklahoma. Other than that, you can also exempt books of up to any amount. Interestingly, the state liquidation rules also allow you to exempt gun under the personal property exemptions.
As per the Oklahoma bankruptcy laws, you cannot substitute the Oklahoma specific filing bankruptcy exemptions with the federal exemptions completely. However, the bankruptcy court allows you to use the both, in order to claim your exemptions. For example, you may use the personal property exemptions, as specified by the new bankruptcy laws of Oklahoma and other exemptions, as specified under the federal law.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Apurva_Shree

Monday, December 1, 2008

Florida Personal Injury Laws

By Josh Riverside
Personal injury law is about torts - civil wrongs recognized by law as grounds for a lawsuit. These wrongs result in an injury and are the basis for a claim by the injured party. The basic principle of tort law is to provide relief for the damages incurred by the injured person and deter others from committing the similar harms. The injured person may sue for damages he or she has endured.
Florida personal injury law: Some general provisions
Personal injury law is a state law created through judges and by legislatures. The law recognizes three general types of torts: intentional torts, negligent torts, and torts based on strict liability.
Intentional torts are those torts for which the defendant intends the consequences of an act. Assault is an example of intentional tort.
Negligence torts, on the other hand, comprise most of the cases under this law. In general, the law imposes a duty on every citizen to behave at least as carefully as a reasonable, ordinary, prudent person in a similar situation. This is known as the reasonable person standard. If the defendant's actions fall short of the reasonable person standard, then the defendant can be found negligent.
If a plaintiff sues under the theory of strict liability, he or she contends that the defendant is liable regardless of fault. The issue of the defendant's negligence is irrelevant. The defendant is liable if the defendant's activity in any way caused the plaintiff's injury.
Florida personal injury law: Other provisions
There are three other personal injury laws. One of them is medical and professional malpractice law, which deals with unprofessional or unethical conduct by professionals. In the United States, medical malpractice lawsuits comprise the majority of the malpractice lawsuits.
The other type of personal injury law is the "product liability law," which gives the right to a person injured by a defective product to sue the manufacturer of the product. The third type is the "transportation law," which deals with automobile, maritime, railroad, and aviation accidents.
Some people believe that personal injury law has increased the amount of frivolous lawsuits. The main aim of these lawsuits is to get fast money. Whatever may be the case, the law gives an injured person his or her day in court.Florida Personal Injury Attorneys provides detailed information on Florida Personal Injury Attorneys, Florida Personal Injury Claims, Florida Personal Injury Lawsuits, Florida Personal Injury Laws and more. Florida Personal Injury Attorneys is affiliated with Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Info.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Josh_Riverside

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