Suffering an injury can be a difficult and life altering experience. Sometimes such injuries are caused by the negligence or fault of another person.
In order to successfully maintain a claim for damages, an injured party must prove that the other party was negligent or at fault. It also must be established that the negligence or fault caused the injury. Finally, the amount of damages must be proven.
In civil cases, the burden of proof is by “a preponderance of the evidence.” This means that the evidence is more convincing than opposing evidence. It does not require proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
This does not mean that an injured party can prevail with no evidence at all. For example, simply because a person is injured at a place of business does not mean that the business is automatically responsible for those injuries. Some proof of negligence or fault on the part of the business is required to have a valid claim.
Similarly, a claim that a medical condition which developed after an accident may not meet the burden of proof for causation without evidence from a treating physician that it was related to the accident.
Finally, the amount of damages must be proven. Many elements of damages do not depend on a mathematical formula. An experienced attorney can advise an injured person on the amount of damages which can be proven.
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