The world is filled with industries and sectors that have their own languages, words and meanings. In both past and contemporary society, the law and the people that interpret it have been scorned for their almost incomprehensible use of words. While the idea of legalise is understandable, knowing key concepts and their meanings can help you when you talk to a compensation lawyer.
While the personal injury lawyers at Gerard Malouf and Partners will use common terms when discussing your case with you, if you go to court it can be a challenging endeavour keeping up with what is happening. To help you stay up to date with all that is happening in your case, here are two key terms that can have a major effect on your legal action.
Legal term 1: Negligence
While negligence is a common word in the English language, and you have no doubt used it sometime in the last month, in law it has a number of connotations. Negligence comes under the body of law called torts. These are wrongdoings that allow an individual or organisation who has been injured the right to seek compensation on their behalf.
A tort is similar to a crime, and can be viewed as a civil wrong. It evolved from common law of England, and through New South Wales cases and new legislation it has become localised.
Negligence is the most common form a tort takes when it is taken to court. In a general sense, it involves carelessness or a failure to take reasonable care for another's safety. Negligence is a cause for seeking compensation if an individual's or organisation's negligent actions lead to injury or death.
Legal term 2: Duty of care
A duty of care is the obligation of a person or organisation to take reasonable care of a person and prevent injury or death. For instance, shopkeepers have a duty of care to the public and must act in a way that does not put their health and safety at risk.
This second term is intimately linked to negligence as it is a precursor for proving that negligence did in fact occur. When seeking compensation a person must prove that there was a duty of care, that it was breached and the breach led to an injury.
While this all may sound complex, with the help of a compensation lawyer from Gerard Malouf and Partners, you can gain access to not only a solicitor who knows the ropes, but one who can translate these meanings. Contact a representative today.
