Personal Injury is a general term that includes any type of case where a person is injured as a result of another person’s negligence. This includes bodily injury or defamation of character. Examples of bodily injuries are injuries that result from car accident, truck accident, train accidents, bike accidents, dog bites, construction accidents, electrical accidents, premise accidents, products that cause injuries. There are many more categories of compensable accidents. Defamation of character is where a person publishes a statement that injures another person’s reputation.

This category of cases occurs when one or more drivers’ negligence causes an accident that results in a bodily injury to the plaintiff (injured person).  This is a very common personal injury case.  A problem may occur if the negligent driver is uninsured or underinsured.   Under these circumstances, the injured person may have a cause of action directly against their insurance company where they can recover much more for their injuries.  Depending on who the driver of the car is and what they were doing while driving there may be a larger claim against the company the driver was driving for.

This is another common type of personal injury case.  Given the size of the semi-tractor trailer trucks and other large motor vehicles operating on the road, these accidents are often more serious.  Trucks and trucking companies are required to carry more insurance for injuries that truck accidents may cause.

This is another type of personal injury case.  As with other cases, determining the at-fault party is paramount.   The driver of a vehicle that struct a motorcycle can be at fault for failing to check their side or rear mirrors, for trying to use the same lane as the motorcycle, for following too closely to the motorcycle, for turning in front of a motorcycle, and other acts of negligence.

This category of personal injury case arises when a business or a host sells alcohol or provides alcohol to a clearly intoxicated drinker or minor who then goes on to cause an injury to another person.  The injured person has a cause of action against the establishment that overserved the intoxicated person that caused the injury.   This typically allows for greater recovery for the injured person since the establishment may carry more insurance or additional insurance.

Bicycle Accidents can occur between a motor vehicle and cyclist.   They can occur as a result of an obstruction in the right of way of the cyclist.

These types of accidents can occur between a vehicle and a person collide.  If the vehicle was at fault, then there may be a right to recover against the other persons insurance or your own insurance company.

Dog owners are required to properly watch and control their dogs or animals.  If they do not, and their dog bites or attacks another person and that person is injured, there is a cause of action against the owner.  These cases can be compelling cases because of the horror of a dog or animal attack especially if it involves a minor child.   Typically, homeowner insurance covers a dog bite, so it is important to know and investigate the owner of the dog.

Slip and fall types of personal injury occur when a person is injured as a result of a condition of someone else’s premises or an activity on someone else premises.  Examples include but are not limited to:  tripping in a hole in a parking lot, slipping on a wet floor, falling on ice or snow.  These cases can be difficult to prove because the injured party must prove that the owner or user or manager of the land’s negligence in maintaining the land caused the injury.

A construction accident can affect a construction worker as an employee or it can affect a person not employed by the company responsible for the accident.  When there is an injury related to a construction site or operation, there may be a claim for injuries either under workers’ compensation or a third-party lawsuit.    Depending on who was injured and who caused the injuries, it will either be a workers’ comp. claim or a third-party suit against the at-fault party.

These injuries are surprising given the fact that most people expect a nursing home to administer the proper care to its residents or patients.  This is not always the case.   Common injuries that may occur in nursing homes are as follows:

• Falls and broken bones
• Bed sores or pressure sore or ulcerations of the skin
• Sepsis, a deadly infection
• Medication errors
• Dehydration
• Malnutrition
• Burns
• Choking

This is a personal injury type case.  However, the case is initiated by the estate of the person injured rather than by the person who was injured.    This case occurs when a person dies as a result of the negligence of another person or company.  Often times, there is a related action called a survival action that accompanies this type of case.

Bodily injuries that occur while a person is working for their employer are compensable under the workers’’ compensation act.  This is similar to a personal injury action, but different because it is a claim against the employer to recover statutory benefits the employee is entitled to.   All Illinois employee who are injured have a legal right to workers comp benefits whether the employer tells them this or no.  The claim covers wage loss, medical bills, and a lump sum settlement to compensate for the extent of the bodily injury.

An employee that gets disabled, impaired, disfigured, or dies due to a disease that arises from their employment is eligible for recovery under this act.   Examples of occupational diseases that may result from employment are strokes, heart attacks, exposure to chemicals, dust, noise, radiation, or drugs which can develop into disease.