When you are hurt because someone else was negligent or engaged in wrongful acts, the law allows you to seek compensation for your expenses from these circumstances. You may have heard the terms ‘tort’ and ‘personal injury’ before, but you might not be sure what the difference is between them. Understanding them will help you know the best way to proceed through the legal process.
Torts vs Personal Injuries
Torts and personal injuries are similar, yet they have some key distinctions. A tort is a wrongful action that violates another person’s legal rights, such as trespassing. On the other hand, personal injuries are a type of tort, but they cover events that left you physically or emotionally injured by another person.
Many people think of car accidents when they think of personal injuries because these are indeed the most common instances. If you were hurt or had your rights violated in such a way, it helps to speak with legal professionals for personal injury cases to know which type of action to file.
Getting to Know the 3 Categories of Torts
There are 3 main categories of torts that may help you determine what you should do. Intentional torts are classified as actions that intentionally cause harm to someone else. With intentional torts, someone willingly harms another person as is the case with assault and battery.
Negligent torts are different in that a person causes harm to others by way of negligent or careless acts. Every personal injury claim is a negligent tort as they all involve the negligence of a person who failed in their duty of care to other persons.
Strict liability torts are the third type of tort, which assigns liability to an at-fault party even if they were prudent in taking all the right precautions. These types of torts are less common and usually involve manufacturing defects or animal attacks.
Understanding the Time Limit to File a Tort or a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Pennsylvania
Regardless of whether your circumstances involve a tort or a personal injury, you will want to take action as soon as possible. Evidence will disappear quickly which will make it much more difficult to prove your claim against the at-fault party.
There are deadlines in place as well which mean you need to file before this time limit runs out. These statutes of limitations are set at 2 years from the date of the incident, or from the date your injuries were discovered.
If you are filing on behalf of a child, other rules will apply, making it imperative that you discuss your case with an attorney. Additionally, if you are filing against a city, county, or state government agency, you must provide a notice of your intent to sue and file it within 6 months.
It is critical that you prepare your case as quickly as possible when you are dealing with a tort or personal injury. When you make sure you are within the statute of limitations, you will be more likely to be awarded the compensation you deserve.