Personal Injury Quiz 1

Insurance

A contract between an individual/business and an insurance company where a premium is paid in exchange for a promise to pay for an insured's property loss, medical bills, liability in an accident, etc. Society has a vested interest in parties not being "wiped out" after an accident or disaster and the insurance company pools the money collected by spreading the risk of loss over a large group in order to stay profitable.

Ambulance chaser

A derogatory phrase used to describe lawyers who specialize in representing accident victims. It evokes the image of attorneys soliciting business from accident victims or their families at the scene of an accident or disaster (or shortly thereafter). This conduct violates rule 7.4 of the Louisiana rules of professional conduct for attorneys.

Plaintiff firm

A law firm that represents persons who have been injured through the negligence of others.

Defense firm

A law firm that represents persons/parties who have been sued.

In-house or staff counsel

A law firm where the staff (attorneys, paralegals, secretaries, clerks, investigators, etc.) is directly employed by an insurance company or corporation.

Tort reform

A movement by large corporations to limit the tort victims ability to file claims and capping the awards of damages. They argue that reform is necessary because of the large number of "frivolous" lawsuits where juries are awarding millions of dollars in damages. Supporters of the existing tort system, including consumer advocates, argue that tort reformers have mis-reported the facts in the cases they use and criticize tort reform as disguised corporate welfare.

Deep pocket

A person or company/corporation of substantial wealth and resources from which a claim or judgment may be made. In personal injury cases the "deep pocket" is often the target defendant because it has the money to pay the verdict.

Tortfeasor

A person/party who causes harm, and is known as the defendant in a lawsuit.

Personal injury

A tort or civil wrong that can include bodily injury or damage to the character or reputation of a person, for which an injured victim can receive compensation in the form of damages.

Duty to defend

If you are in an accident and are sued, your insurance company has a duty to pay a lawyer to represent you. The insurer can hire a private law firm and/or employ legal staff (in-house counsel) to defend its clients.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage

If you are in an automobile accident caused by a driver who does not have insurance or limited insurance on his/her vehicle, your damages are covered under your uninsured motorist coverage. This is to protect drivers who would have no recourse against the tortfeasor, as the reasoning is that someone who does not carry automobile insurance is most likely to be without any assets.

No pay, no play

If you are involved in an automobile accident through no fault of your own but do not have insurance on your vehicle, you are not allowed to collect the first $25,000 of your property damage, and the first $15,000 for any bodily injury in Louisiana. The reasoning is that someone who doesn't "pay" to be insured should not be able to "play" the personal injury game. Of course, the law is not so harsh in that it would forbid recovery in cases of severe injury as a result of someone else's negligence.

Rules of professional conduct

In Louisiana, Attorney conduct is regulated by the Louisiana Supreme Court through the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board, which was established in 1990 to investigate all allegations of lawyer misconduct and make recommendations to the court when discipline is warranted. Standards of attorney conduct are set forth in the Louisiana rules of professional conduct, which include rules on the matters of competence (rule 1.1), Communication with clients (rule 1.4), fees (rule 1.5), confidentiality of client information (rule 1.6), responsibilities regarding staff (rule 5.3), and contact with potential clients (rule 7.4), for example.

Contingency fee agreement

In personal injury cases the plaintiff is not charged any attorney fees, court costs, and other fees until the case is settled or won at trial. In that case, the plaintiff attorney receives part of the damage award (usually 33% if the case settles, 40% if a case has to be tried) and all costs are then paid out of the plaintiff's award.

Liable

Legally obligated, responsible. In tort law, liability is an obligation of one party to another, usually to compensate financially.

Tort

The French word for wrong. A legal wrong or legal injury that entitles a victim to compensation from the party who is liable for the damages. Torts include physical, financial, and emotional damages (personal injury, product liability, defamation, medical malpractice).