Scranton Campus Injury Lawyer
School campuses are fraught with potential for personal injury accidents. Sporting events, parking lots, dorm buildings, obstacles on classroom floors, faulty staircases, broken elevators, fires, robberies – accidents can run the gamut from vehicle collisions in campus parking garages to physical assaults. When you or your child suffers an injury in any type of accident on campus, you may not know who is liable for covering medical bills, property damage, or pain and suffering. Come to Rosenbaum & Associates in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA, area for legal help with these complex claims.
Negligence vs. Intentional Acts
A personal injury claim can take one of two forms – negligence-based or intent-based. Most personal injury claims center on the legal theory of negligence. In these cases, someone breached their duties to another person, resulting in injury to the latter. Cases that involve an intentional act, such as a robbery or physical assault, take the form of intentional torts. Intentional and negligence torts both require the plaintiff to determine the defendant and prove that they failed in some way, and that this failure resulted in injury.
For example, if a student suffers a concussion after someone hit them in the head during a mugging in a school parking lot, the victim may be able to sue the school for failing to provide adequate security. In this case, it was the school’s duty to foresee the risk of injury and take steps to prevent harm to students. Failure to properly light the parking lot or post security guards may be negligence on the school’s part. This case could also take the form of an intentional tort against the attacker, in addition to a criminal case.
An accident victim may be able to sue the school if the injury resulted from a failure on the school’s part to provide a safe campus. This includes all premises liability incidents such as slips and falls, swimming pool accidents, elevator/escalator accidents, and security-related incidents. In these cases, one of the first things an accident victim should do is to call an attorney. In most cases, the school’s insurance company will compensate accident victims. However, you may encounter roadblocks to recovering damages. The attorneys at Rosenbaum & Associates can help you negotiate with a school administration and take them to court, if necessary.
Who Is Liable for Campus Injuries?
Liability in a campus injury case will depend on the circumstances. If your child suffered an injury on a playground at school, for example, a number of parties may be responsible: the teacher who failed to supervise children properly, the playground equipment manufacturer that produced a defective and dangerous product, or the school for failing to maintain the playground. Identifying the defendant in your case requires an in-depth look at your accident, and the multiple factors that may have played a part in causing the injury.
In some cases, such as a car accident pulling onto campus, the other driver’s insurance company may compensate you for damages instead of the school. If, however, the school played some part in the accident (e.g., failing to trim back a shrub that covered a stop sign), the school may be liable. Pennsylvania’s comparative negligence laws make it possible to recover damages from more than one defendant. When the courts attribute liability to more than one defendant, each defendant is responsible for his or her proportion of the total dollar amount the court awards as damages.
Contact an Experienced Campus Injury Lawyer
After any campus accident in Wilkes-Barre or Scranton, don’t hesitate to call the injury lawyers at Rosenbaum & Associates. We will examine the facts of your case and help you determine the defendant(s) during a free consultation.