What Is Required To Prove More Than One Person Responsible For My Injuries?

by Friedman & Ranzenhofer, PC on November 18, 2011

in Buffalo Injury Questions and Answers

ManyBuffalopersonal injury lawsuits involve more than one defendant.  In some cases, this may be a simple case of legal responsibility.  For example, when someone is driving a motor vehicle registered to someone else and causes an accident, both the owner and the driver often are sued.  Because the owner carries the insurance coverage, he or she has a purely legal responsibility for the accident.  In other cases – such as accidents involving more than two cars – there may be more than one defendant because more than one person’s actions caused the injury.

When more than one person’s actions lead to an injury, there are essentially two things that the injured party must prove for both to be held responsible.  First, the proof must establish that each of the parties was negligent in his or her conduct.  Second, it must be proven that the negligence of that person was a substantial factor in causing the injury.  If one party engaged in negligent conduct but the injury would have occurred anyway due to the negligence of the other party, the first party is not liable for the injury.

If you have suffered a personal injury and have any questions, we would be happy to help you.   Please feel free to call us at 716-542-5444.

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