Car crashes can be devastating for all of those involved. Collisions on the road can result in bodily injuries and in some cases, they can cause death. Unfortunately for one family of a 35-year-old woman in Omaha, this was the case following a recent car crash resulting in her suffering critical injuries. She is currently on life-support to allow for her organs to be donated.
The incident happened in the morning while the woman was on the road heading to work. Apparently, an SUV being operated by another driver hit a deer which caused the animal to go airborne, crashing into the woman’s vehicle. The deer ended up hitting the woman in her head and then exited out the vehicle’s rear window. Tragically, the victim was pregnant at the time with a baby who has died as a result of the incident.
Liability and Car Accidents
Although this may be the last thing a grieving family wants to think about, it is important to consider the legal situation created in the aftermath of a fatal automobile crash. Nothing can bring back the loss of life however filing a lawsuit to recover damages can help the family with funeral expenses and other financial hardships caused by the incident. Therefore, understanding how liability for car crashes applies in a particular situation can be quite useful.
Applying Common Law to a Car Crash
To legally define “fault” in a vehicle crash one will have to either apply legal statutes or common law. Common law will recognize four levels of liability: negligence, recklessness, intentional misconduct and strict liability. Negligence is when the wrongful conduct resulting in harm is done inadvertently via carelessness. Reckless or wanton conduct is when the party at fault willfully disregarded the safety and well-being of others. Intentional misconduct is when a driver’s wrongful conduct was done knowingly and on purpose, such as during a drunk driving incident.
Traffic Law Violations in Car Accidents
Many times the law allows more liability to be assigned to somebody causing an accident if the person has violated any traffic laws during the incident. However, during litigation this will require knowledge of the applicable traffic statutes and how to apply these laws to the specific situation in question. Each state has their own set of rules and regulations for drivers on the road which means it will be necessary to hire a car accident attorney omaha ne who understands the rules of the road as specified in Nebraska state laws. Sometimes liability in a car crash can be established by simply citing a statute which had been violated during the incident.
Filing a lawsuit can help this grieving family or anybody else who has lost a loved one in a fatal car accident. A professional and licensed attorney can help guide the family through the oftentimes complex litigation process. This can be quite helpful for a family that is already going through significant emotional hardship and is just looking to obtain justice and move on.
