The “Twist”

Although the idea of monetary compensation for injuries goes back some 4,000 years, the current definition of tort is a fairly recent one, dating from 11th century England. The word tort ultimately derives from the Latin term torquere, meaning to “twist” or “wring.” Related to the word “torture,” it came into use by lawyers around the year 1250 as tortum, meaning “injury” or “injustice.”

By Shakespeare’s time (the late 1500s), tort had come to refer to a “breach of duty,” in which an aggrieved party was entitled to seek a legal remedy for an injury that did not involve criminal wrongdoing or a breach of a written contract.

This is an important distinction. An injury that arises out of a breach of contractual obligation is considered a different issue from a legal standpoint, as is an injury due to a criminal action. Both contract and criminal law are different areas of specialty in the legal profession, although there can be some overlap. For example, if someone in your family is assaulted with a deadly weapon and/or murdered and the accused is found “not guilty” because of a technicality, they are constitutionally protected from further criminal prosecution under the doctrine of double jeopardy; however, as long as the statute of limitations has not expired, you are free to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against him.

What Constitutes “Personal Injury”?

Some of the areas that are covered by torts include:

• Intentional torts: this is where there is some overlap with the criminal justice system; “intentional torts” include assault and battery as well as false imprisonment, both of which are offenses against the state. However, it could also include infliction of emotional and psychological harm, such as bullying.

• Property torts: an example here would be someone trespassing on your property and causing damage to landscaping, plants, etc. or removing something from the property without your permission.

• Negligence: the most common personal injury cases involve negligence, when said injury is caused by another’s failure to exercise a “duty of care” (action or steps that would have prevented the accident).

• Liability: generally, this covers injuries and illnesses that are caused by defective products and/or services. Much of the time, liability lawsuits involve large corporations and thousands of people; in these cases, the suit often takes the form of a class action.

• Dignitary: usually, the injury here involves defamation, as when someone publishes malicious and/or misleading statements about you in print or online that damages your standing or reputation.

Are you in need of a personal injury attorney? Maryland tort law can be quite complex, and if you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence, it is vital to get professional legal counsel as soon as possible.

A Short History of Torts

The idea that an injured party should be compensated by the party responsible for said injury is nothing new, and in fact may be one of the most ancient of legal concepts. For example, the oldest known written laws, the Code of Ur-Nammu (dating back to around 2100 BCE and thus predating the better-known Code of Hammurabi by some three centuries), has several laws stating that one man who causes an injury to another man must pay a certain amount of silver to the injured party. In the Old Testament Book of Deuteronomy, the Mosaic Code contains law that govern (among other things) compensation for personal injuries, property damage and even slander.

During the early Middle Ages, Old Germanic laws allowed an injured party to bring a complaint before a counsel of village elders; if this party could prove that his injury or loss was caused by the person so accused, the latter was required to pay a sum of gold or silver to the victim (this was literally called a “man-price”). This sum varied according to the nature of the injury and the victim’s rank in that society.

Torts Today

Personal injury law is an incredibly broad area. Some of the areas covered by torts include:

• Intentional: Deliberate assault or acts of inflicting emotional/psychological distress
• Property: Trespass, theft of personal property or damage to the same
• Dignitary: Slander, libel, damage to one’s reputation
• Economic: Fraud, loss due to financial schemes, etc.
• Negligence: Failure to prevent an injury by exercising “duty of care”
• Liability: Injury due to a defective or toxic product

As you can see, there is some overlap with criminal law, such as assault and theft. However, in these cases, it is necessary to file criminal charges against the perpetrator with local law enforcement. in these cases. Many victims pursue civil litigation instead. There are a few reasons for this:

• It is possible to get personal compensation in civil court
• A civil case may be placed on the docket sooner than a criminal one
• The standard of proof against a defendant is lower

This last point is an important one. In a criminal case, a defendant must be found innocent if there is “reasonable doubt,” which is a very high standard. In civil litigation, a defendant may be found liable if there is a “preponderance of evidence.” Some of you may remember the O.J. Simpson case in the mid 1990s; although found innocent of the murder of his ex-wife and her companion in criminal court, he was later found liable for their wrongful deaths when sued by the victims’ families in civil court.

The term “personal injury” is used to refer to injuries sustained in a wide variety of situations. These may include injuries sustained at work, injuries incurred in motor vehicle accidents, injuries resulting from the use of defective products, slipping and falling in public or commercial spaces or even medical malpractice.

After an accident one of the biggest mistakes some people make is attempting to take care of the situation by themselves. However, you will probably not get the settlement you are entitled to unless you engage a competent personal injury lawyer to lead you through the process.