What is Tort Law, and How Can Tort Lawyers in Greensburg, PA, Help You?

Are you dealing with an accident that caused significant property damage or physical injury, leaving you feeling too drained and helpless to understand what your insurance companies mean by “tort law”? Have you heard this terminology regarding a wrongful death claim but are unsure what that means? If you have these or any other tort law questions, you need help from the expert tort lawyers in Greensburg, PA, at Westmoreland Injury Lawyers. Our injury attorneys are well-versed in handling cases in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and offer you the legal support you need. Whether you’re dealing with an injury case or seeking a personal injury lawyer, our injury lawyers provide a free consultation to guide you through the complexities of the legal system in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

What is Tort Law?

Tort law is a branch of civil law that addresses acts or omissions violating general social duties and causing harm. Such acts or omissions are referred to as “torts,” originating from French and Latin words meaning “wrong” or something “twisted” and unjust. In simpler terms, if someone has wronged you, tort law may be the means to rectify that wrong in Greensburg, Pennsylvania.

However, that complex definition can be broken down to be more easily digestible. You likely know you have been wronged if you have experienced some form of harm. While you might initially think of physical injuries, harm can also include property damage or loss.

If someone wrongs you by failing to honor an agreement, that typically falls under contract law, not tort law. Tort law deals with wrongful actions or omissions because society generally agrees each person has certain duties to treat each other properly, even without a specific contract. For instance, society instills in everyone the duties not to punch people, steal, or drive recklessly and cause accidents. Of course, sometimes people do things they shouldn’t, and at other times they fail to do things they should.

Thus, tort law differs from contract law and also from criminal law. If someone punches you, steals your property, or drives recklessly, they may be committing both a tort and a crime. However, criminal law involves the government holding individuals accountable for offenses against public order, which harm society as a whole.

Tort law seeks to resolve wrongs between private parties, primarily by requiring the wrongdoer to compensate the tort victim for their injuries and other harm. Because it involves disputes between private parties (individuals, businesses, organizations, or even the government in cases like poor road design), it is part of “civil law.” If you’ve suffered harm and need legal counsel, consulting with tort lawyers in Greensburg, PA, can help you understand your rights and options for compensation in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

What Are the 3 Types of Torts?

Three general categories of tort law include intentional torts, negligence, and strict liability torts.

1. Intentional torts

The definition of an intentional tort is apparent: it’s a deliberate act that causes someone harm. Someone could commit an intentional tort even if they didn’t necessarily intend to cause harm—if they took action on purpose, they might be liable. This area is where the overlap between tort law and criminal law is most obvious. For instance, physical contact that causes harm, like punching, is the tort of “battery,” while “conversion” is a term for the private tort version of theft. If you have suffered from an intentional tort, consult with tort lawyers in Greensburg, PA.

2. Negligence

Negligence occurs when someone fails to live up to a social duty to act with reasonable care toward other people. Their action was not intentional—just careless—but it still caused harm. Tort law generally says someone is negligent if a reasonable person in the same situation acted more carefully. Negligence cases arise in many different situations, such as auto accidents, slip-and-falls, and medical malpractice.

If you are still unsure how to define this type of tort, think about insurance companies. If you purchase insurance, you are paying for coverage in case something happens, and you are a victim of negligence. With car insurance specifically, the type of tort insurance you have can make a major difference in what kind of compensation you can try to get from the negligent party in the accident to cover things like medical bills or pain and suffering costs. If you’ve been injured or harmed in an accident, injury attorneys in Greensburg, PA, can assist you with your injury case.

3. Strict Liability

Strict liability law holds people responsible for certain kinds of actions that cause harm, even if they did not act intentionally or carelessly. Strict liability law, or intentional tort law, holds people responsible for certain kinds of actions that cause harm, even if they did not act intentionally or carelessly. The main situations in which the law may impose strict liability involve abnormally dangerous or ultra-hazardous activities and liability for animals and products.

Some activities are so inherently dangerous that society has decided that people should be held responsible for harm they cause even if they’re being careful—the classic example is using or storing explosives. Other examples involve animals and products:

• Animals can be dangerous and unpredictable, so the law generally holds animal owners strictly liable for harm the animals cause (especially when people own animals that are normally wild).
• In product liability cases, such as those involving defective drugs or recalled defective products, it doesn’t matter if the manufacturer was careful when it designed or made the product. Victims only have to show that a product had a dangerous defect that caused them harm. If you are dealing with such a case, injury lawyers in Greensburg, PA, can help you seek compensation in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

What Are the “Elements” of Negligence?

Of the three types of tort discussed above, the one most likely to have affected you or a loved one is negligence, so you might be curious to know a little more about what makes a negligence case. Generally speaking, lawyers say that negligence has four “elements.” That just means there are four things a victim of negligence must prove to have a successful claim: duty, breach, causation, and damages. Of course, if you are the victim of negligence, you don’t have to prove these things yourself—an experienced tort attorney in Greensburg, PA, at Westmoreland Injury Lawyers can make your case.

1. Duty

The idea of duty can sometimes be complex. In the past, before the development of modern tort law, legal duties were mainly imposed on individuals with specific relationships, leaving others vulnerable. Today, the law requires everyone to act with reasonable care toward others who might get hurt.

In cases of negligence, the focus often shifts to understanding the nature of duty in different scenarios. For example, the duty expected from a driver differs from that of a doctor treating a patient with the same level of care as any other competent peer in the local medical community. This distinction plays a crucial role in cases like medical malpractice and car accident tort claims. Similarly, a property owner’s responsibility towards guests may differ from that towards trespassers.

2. Breach

Once you can show someone had a particular duty to you, you can next prove that they violated—or “breached”—that duty. This may be a simple question of whether they lived up to the specific limits of the already clearly defined responsibility. Still, the law generally asks whether a reasonable person would have taken more precautions, considering the relative burden of being more careful and the severity and likelihood of injuries that might result without greater care.

3. Causation

It may seem obvious that the defendant’s negligence caused your injuries, but many factors may have contributed to the harm suffered by a victim of negligence. Having a tort lawyer for your tort law case will help you establish that the defendant’s action or inaction led to your injuries.

Sometimes tort lawyers in Greensburg, PA break causation into two parts: “Factual cause” just means that your injuries would not have actually happened (or at least would not have been as bad) if it were not for what the defendants did. “Proximate cause” usually means that what happened to you was foreseeable enough that the defendants should have realized it and been more careful—in other words, the law doesn’t make people pay for every single thing that happens as a result of their actions in a distant chain of events. Still, your lawyer can help you show that the defendants could have foreseen your injuries and should be held accountable.

4. Damages

The term “damages” refers to the harm suffered by a victim of negligence. Legally, you need to demonstrate physical injuries to seek compensation. Simply put, proving that you’ve been harmed is crucial to validate your right to compensation. A tort lawyer in Greensburg, PA will help you showcase the extent of your injuries and losses to ensure you receive fair compensation.

Common Law and Statutory Law

Tort law is mainly shaped by the “common law,” which refers to the rules developed by courts over time, as opposed to statutory law, which is the formal legal rules written by elected legislators. Statutes do affect tort law in some ways.

Maybe the most obvious way is through statutes of limitation that control how long you have to bring a claim to court. In Pennsylvania, under 42 Pa. C.S. § 5524, tort claims generally must be filed within two years, though there are details and exceptions about when that period runs out. If you have surpassed this timeline but still think you have a case, a lawyer can help you figure out if your claim is still valid.

Also, some statutes are about safety and make proving negligence claims easier. The simplest example is the speed limit law. If someone injures you in an auto accident, the fact that they were speeding may automatically establish that they were negligent, and you will just have to prove they caused your injuries.

Finally, statutes determine the rules of what is called “comparative negligence.” A long time ago, you could not sue someone for negligence if your injuries were partially your own fault. Most states have changed this by statute. Pennsylvania has a “modified comparative fault” statute that says you can sue and recover some compensation for your injury or injuries unless you yourself are 51% or more at fault.

Burden of Proof

In the realm of tort law, plaintiff victims shoulder the burden of proof, requiring them to present compelling evidence that the defendant wrongdoers should be held accountable (defendants are not obligated to prove otherwise). Notably, this burden is comparatively more achievable in tort cases than in criminal proceedings.

You are likely acquainted with the concept of proving criminal guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt,” whereas in civil tort cases, plaintiffs need only establish their claims by a “preponderance of the evidence.” This standard dictates that they simply need to tip the scales slightly to demonstrate that the facts they allege are marginally more likely to be true than false. So, if you have been injured or harmed somehow, you may have a successful tort claim. But tort law is complicated, and pursuing your claim through negotiation and litigation takes expertise and experience you will only get with help from a tort lawyer in Greensburg, PA.

Do You Need Help From the Best Tort Lawyers in Greensburg, PA?

When considering a potential claim, seeking help from seasoned tort lawyers is essential. At Westmoreland Injury Lawyers in Greensburg, PA, our team combines a deep understanding of tort laws with a strong local connection to provide personalized support tailored to your needs. From the initial consultation onwards, we offer empathetic representation to guide you through the legal process towards a resolution that offers both peace of mind and justice.

Contact us today for a complimentary consultation and take the first step towards resolving your legal concerns with the support and expertise of Westmoreland Injury Lawyers.