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Lawsuit: A lawsuit is a formal legal
action made by the injured party (the plaintiff)
against another accused negligent person or
corporation (the defendant) in which recovery is
sought for damages suffered by the plaintiff. The
lawsuit is formally initiated with the filing of a
complaint in the proper court of law.
Liability: Just stating that someone
caused an injury or death isn't enough. It has to be
proven, and it has to meet the legal requirements to
establish liability. This legal conclusion, that
someone is formally responsible for injuries, or
death, suffered by another, is far more complicated
than just reading a traffic collision report to see
whom a police officer has concluded was the cause of
an accident, for example. It may be necessary to
establish liability for many different people,
corporations, or government entities involved
directly or indirectly in an incident. For example,
it might involve proof that one negligent person was
driving a vehicle and was responsible for causing
the death of another, proof that a second person
owned the vehicle and gave the first person
permission to use it, proof that a third person or
corporation employed the driver and that the driver
was in the "course and scope" of his
employment, and so on. Establishing liability for
injuries is every bit as important as establishing
the value of the damages that the injured person has
suffered. An experienced attorney will carefully
review all the facts of an incident and apply the
law to those facts in order to prove the liability
of all responsible parties.
Litigation: The process of carrying on a
lawsuit.
