Personal injury is a vast area of law with different situations requiring the implementation of completely distinct sets of laws. Therefore, if you ever need to file a lawsuit, you should reach out to a personal injury lawyer in Baltimore who understands the laws applicable to your particular case. Here is a small guide to help you understand the fundamentals of personal injury laws.
Maryland Statute of Limitations
In Maryland, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit is three years from the date on which the cause of action arose. So, if you are in an accident in Baltimore, the clock starts ticking from the date of the accident. But if a person dies after the accident, the statute of limitations is three years from the date of the death and not the date of the accident. If you do not file a lawsuit before then, your case will be dismissed.
If any government entity or employee is a defendant in your personal injury case, you will need to provide a notice of the claim to the entity within one year of the injury. This notice period shrinks to six months for claims filed against local government entities like Baltimore City. If you fail to send a notice during the prescribed time, you will not be allowed to file a lawsuit against the government.
In medical malpractice cases, the victims have a slightly longer statute of limitations if the injury is not detected right away. You may file a lawsuit within three years from the date of the discovery of the injury. But in any case, you cannot delay it further than five years from the date of the occurrence of the injury.
Maryland Personal Injury Damage Caps
Maryland law does not apply any cap on economic damages in personal injury cases. This means you can recover the full amount for your medical care, income losses, property damage and every other economic loss caused by the negligence of the defendants.
But the state law has placed caps on non-economic damages like pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical impairment, etc. Your Baltimore personal injury lawyer can help you determine the value you are entitled to claim as non-economic damages, but here are the caps that will be applied to the final claim amount in 2023.
- Non-Medical Malpractice Personal Injuries. The cap for personal injury cases other than a medical malpractice suit is $920,000. This value increases every year by $15,000 and will be $935,000 from October 1, 2023.
- Non-Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death. The current cap on wrongful death caused by negligence other than medical malpractice is $1.38 million. It increases every year too and will be $1.40 million from October 1, 2023.
- Medical Malpractice Personal Injuries. The current cap on non-economic damages in these cases is $875,000. The value increases slightly at the beginning of every year.
- Medical Malpractice Wrongful Death. The non-economic damages cap for medical malpractice causing wrongful death in 2023 is $1,093,750. This value increases slightly every year.
Dog Bite Claims
If your dog hurts someone or causes property damage in Maryland, it is your liability to pay for those damages. The law assumes that you should have known your dog was dangerous and was capable of causing harm.
However, you will not be held liable under the dog bite law if the person who was injured or suffered property damage was:
- Committing or attempting trespass or any other criminal offense on your property;
- Committing or attempting a criminal offense against you or
- Teasing, tormenting, abusing or provoking your dog.
Finding Fault and Defining Negligence
Maryland is an at-fault state. This means, if you can prove that you suffered harm because of someone’s negligence, they are obligated to compensate you. In order to prove negligence, you will need to show the following:
- The defendant owed a duty of care to you.
- The defendant breached the said duty by acting a certain way.
- This action led to your injury.
- You were harmed as a result of the defendant’s action.
Along with proving the negligence of the other party, you will also need to make sure that your negligence did not contribute to the accident. This is because Maryland applies the rule of contributory negligence to determine the compensation amount.
As per this principle, if you were even 1% responsible for causing the action that led to the injury, you will not be eligible for any compensation.
How Can an Attorney Help You?
Consulting a lawyer is generally a good idea if you have suffered personal injury in Maryland. Your lawyer can explain to you the laws applicable to your case and determine the claim amount you are entitled to receive.
When you find a good personal injury lawyer in Baltimore, your chances of getting a favorable outcome easily multiplies. Your lawyer takes care of all the legal work from filing the claim, sending the necessary notices and identifying all the defendants to collecting the evidence and preparing a strong case.
They calso negotiate with the insurance company and ensure that you receive the highest possible compensation. But if no settlement is reached, they represent you in the trial and fight for what you deserve.
