Questions from the Average Joe: Injuries and Accidents 2

Personal injuries can happen at any place or time, but understanding if you have a case can be difficult. Zachary Belcher is our Intake attorney at Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy and is here to answer common questions we receive about personal injury cases.

Q: I fell on someone else’s property and injured myself. Can I sue them?

A: It depends. Ohio has relatively strict premises liability requirements that make these kinds of lawsuits challenging. First, the danger that caused the injury cannot have been objectively “open and obvious.” This means that, with reasonable attention, something that could have been avoided. Additionally, it must be a danger that the property owner or their employees know about and failed to maintain or repair. If a danger is recently created and there was no opportunity for the property owner to fix it, a lawsuit may not be possible. Furthermore, it is often a challenge to collect sufficient evidence to prove that all the requirements are met.

If you suffered an injury due to dangerous conditions on another’s property, it is imperative that you contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible so that the situation can be assessed and as much evidence as possible can maintained.

Q:  I just found that a surgery I had in the 90s was performed incorrectly. Doesn’t the statute of limitations start when I find out about the issues?

A: Ohio’s medical malpractice statute of limitations is highly nuanced. Depending on the facts of your case, the statute of limitations may not be up, but the determination is very fact dependent. In general, with some exceptions, there is a maximum of four years to bring a claim. The statute of limitations itself is one year from the date of the incident, but there is a three-year period in which you can discover a problem. Then, you must bring a claim within one year from the time it was discovered. That said, there are certain exceptions – if you were a minor at the time of the procedure, or if the discovered mistake involves a piece of medical equipment left inside you, you may have more time. Before you decide it’s been too long to pursue your claim, have a conversation with an experienced medical malpractice attorney. The Ohio Statute of Limitations is complex, and you do not have to determine if your claim has expired alone.

Q: I was injured when a city bus accelerated quickly, causing me to fall out of my seat. Do I have a claim against the bus driver?

A: You may have a claim, but you must act quickly. The answer to this question depends on a few minor details that can make or break the case. To establish any claim against the driver, you will need to prove that the driver was negligent. To do this, it is important to file a report with the authority operating the bus as soon as possible. Most buses have surveillance footage available, but it is never retained for very long if no reports have been filed requiring its retention. Even then, it may be difficult to prove that the rapid acceleration qualifies as “negligence” under the law.

That said, if you were seriously injured on a city bus through no fault of your own, it is important that you contact an experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible in order to make sure all necessary steps are taken to protect vital evidence for your claim. Even waiting an extra day could make the difference between a successful claim and the loss of key evidence preventing recovery against the driver and the company.

Get to Know Our Intake Attorney

Zachary Belcher joined Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy and ensures that every individual who contacts the firm receives outstanding service and support throughout the intake process.

Zack graduated from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 2015 and has handled more than 500 injury cases for clients injured in automobile accidents. He understands the stressful and life-altering situations clients face before seeking a personal injury attorney.

Contact Our Ohio Personal Injury Attorneys

At Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy, we know that over 90 years of success does not come without hard work. We are committed to building resources so that we can achieve the best possible results for clients like you. Put ours to work for you—call our Cleveland personal injury attorney at (216) 230-6382 or complete a free initial consultation form today.