Most Buffalo personal injury lawsuits are fairly straightforward in their basic structure: The person or persons injured seek monetary compensation from the person or persons responsible for the injury. An injured party bringing the lawsuit is termed a plaintiff, and a party against whom a claim for damages is being made is known as a defendant.
Occasionally, however, a defendant may believe that another party should be held responsible for the damages to the plaintiff. This can occur, for example, in a car accident when the defendant feels the actions of another driver forced him or her to act in such a way that the collision with the plaintiff occurred. Because the plaintiff did not choose to directly sue this other party, the defendant may be able to file his or her own claim against this person. This additional party to the action is known as a third party defendant.
This situation usually occurs when the defendant is seeking to recover at least part of the damages it anticipates paying to the plaintiff from the third party defendant.
If you have suffered a personal injury and have any questions regarding this subject, we would be happy to help you. Please feel free to call us at 716-542-5444.
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