Accidents can happen anywhere, at any time – even when you least expect them. From slip and fall incidents to car crashes, personal injuries can be severe and life-altering. If you were injured in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you may be wondering if you need to prove fault to file a personal injury claim.
In Wisconsin, the answer to this question is somewhat complicated. To understand the state’s personal injury laws fully, let’s dig into the details.
Table of Contents
Understanding Wisconsin’s Negligence Rules
To start, we need to outline Wisconsin’s negligence laws. When someone is negligent, it means that they failed to exercise reasonable care in a given situation, leading to someone else’s injury or harm.
In Wisconsin, negligence is determined by a variety of factors, including:
- The defendant’s duty of care in the situation
- How the defendant breached that duty of care
- Whether that breach caused the plaintiff’s injury
- Whether the plaintiff’s injury resulted in damages (such as medical bills or lost wages)
To file a personal injury claim in Wisconsin, you must show that:
- The defendant owed you a duty of care to act reasonably
- The defendant breached that duty of care, typically through negligence
- This breach caused your injuries or damages
- You suffered financial damages as a result of the injury (such as medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering)
How Fault Affects Compensation
While Wisconsin operates under a negligence system, that doesn’t mean that fault isn’t a consideration in personal injury cases.
Under Wisconsin law, your recovery compensation can be reduced depending on the level of fault that you share in an accident. For example, if you were determined to be 30% at fault for the accident, your total compensation could be reduced by 30%.
If you were more than 50% at fault for the accident, you won’t be able to recover anything.
Exceptions to Fault Rules
There are a few exceptions to these fault rules in Wisconsin personal injury cases. For example, if you were injured due to a defective product, you wouldn’t need to prove fault to win your case. Instead, you would file a product liability claim.
Additionally, Wisconsin has a comparative negligence system that is different from other states. Instead of being barred from recovery for being partially at fault, you can still recover compensation if you were less than 50% responsible.
Wisconsin also operates under modified comparative fault, meaning that your compensation would be reduced by the percentage of fault that you contributed to the accident.
Conclusion
In conclusion, to file a personal injury claim in Wisconsin, you do need to prove fault. You must show that the other party breached their duty of care and caused your injuries. However, fault is also applied to compensation through Wisconsin’s comparative fault system, which can reduce or bar your compensation if you share some level of fault for the accident.
If you’re unsure about the level of fault in your case, it’s important to consult with a personal injury attorney who understands Wisconsin’s laws and can help you navigate the legal system.