Can A Child Be Negligent Or Contribute To His Or Her Injuries?
The law of five jurisdictions, Alabama, District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, contains the doctrine of “contributory negligence”. This principle, a leftover vestige from the common law of England, hundreds of years old, operates to deny any financial recovery whatsoever to an auto accident victim found to be responsible, in even the smallest measure, for causing or contributing to the accident. But what if the injured person happened to be a child?
Children under five years of age can never cause or contribute to their injuries.
Children over 5 are judged by the standard of conduct that children of similar age, intelligence and experience and development would be held to under similar circumstances. As a personal injury attorney, I routinely handle cases involving allegations of contributory negligence. I Attorney Eric T. Kirk can advise you what, if any, role contributory negligence may play in your case, and how to overcome the defense.
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When an insurance company unfairly denies your claim, the next step matters.
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For over three decades, I have battled against the nation’s largest insurance companies, always endeavoring to ensure my clients receive the compensation they deserve. As lead counsel in thousands of cases across Maryland, New York, and Florida, I have recovered millions for clients whose claims were wrongfully denied and delayed. Whether denying fair compensation for a personal injury victim or denying benefits to a homeowner, Insurance companies employ policy exclusions, technicalities, and lowball offers to deny and defeat claims. They also hire very good lawyers to fight you in court. So should you. When an insurance company unfairly rejects a claim, I stop them.
