Get the Justice and Compensation You Deserve With the Best Pedestrian Accident Lawyers in the Nation

Accidents involving pedestrians are rarer, but they do happen. They indeed have the right of way in the vast majority of situations. However, pedestrians may be at fault in some situations. Pedestrian-vehicle collisions have many similarities on the surface. Some assumptions regarding crashes involving pedestrians are incorrect, unlike other types of accidents.

If you are in a crosswalk, you usually have the right of way. This holds regardless of whether there are traffic lights at the junction. Even if the vehicle has a green light, motorists must take precautions to avoid running over a person in a crossing. If they step into traffic without allowing the motorist enough time to prevent a collision, pedestrians at crosswalks may be held responsible. When people cross the street without using a crosswalk, the regulations are different. A pedestrian who is in this situation is required to surrender the right of way to oncoming traffic.

Pedestrians have the right of way on sidewalks. The same is true for intersections where sidewalks meet alleys or parking lots, as well. In order to avoid getting into an accident, drivers must look both ways before pulling off of a side street or a parking lot.

Pedestrians must stay on the sidewalk while crossing a roadway or a boulevard. Although most streets have sidewalks, this is not always the case. That way, people may walk on the sidewalk instead of the road. These vehicles must be given the right of way. If these standards are not followed, it may hurt your chances of winning a personal injury lawsuit. When determining responsibility in a pedestrian collision, a court or insurance company will determine who had the right of way. Pedestrians may be held responsible for the damage they do to a driver’s car, even if the driver is at fault.

This is not always the case. Each and every motorist must use caution when driving in the current conditions. This obligation is referred to as a duty of reasonable care or due care in the area of personal injury law. This means the driver must act in the same way a reasonable person would under the same conditions. When you are behind the wheel, not every situation is the same. According to the legislation, if a driver knows or suspects a pedestrian is close, they must be conscientious and keep their vehicle under tight control.

For this reason and others, pedestrians who are walking in or near a crosswalk may be at blame if they are involved in an accident because:

• Walking across the street without using a crosswalk, often known as jaywalking.

• Disregarding the traffic signal and proceeding against it (i.e. in the crosswalk but against a red “Do Not Walk” command)

• Driving a car while drunk on the street or highway.

Various Laws in various states

Vehicles in New Jersey must stop for pedestrians in designated crosswalks, while pedestrians crossing in unmarked crosswalks at intersections merely have to surrender the right-of-way. If a pedestrian is seen anywhere on the road, the vehicle’s driver is required by law to slow down and yield. The pedestrian must stop and wait for cars to pass in Louisiana, where vehicles are only required to surrender if the pedestrian is on their side of the road. The state of Nebraska requires pedestrians to yield if they are in the same lane of traffic as the vehicle or within one lane of it. Massachusetts, for instance, mandates that if a pedestrian is on the same side of the road as the driver or within ten (10) feet of the driver, the vehicle must stop and yield. But several states do not differentiate between regulated and uncontrolled crosswalks.

To put it another way, motorists have a duty of care for pedestrians. For pedestrians under the age of 18, several states require a more significant duty of care. It is also important for pedestrians to be aware of their surroundings and not cross the street without looking both ways before crossing. Contributory negligence is committed when a pedestrian fails to yield the right-of-way.

Pedestrians may be held partly responsible for an accident involving a car in the following situations:

• Walking across the street without using a crosswalk, often known as jaywalking.

• Disregarding the traffic signal and proceeding against it (i.e. in the crosswalk but against a red “Do Not Walk” command)

• Driving while drunk on the street or highway; and

• The act of walking on roads, bridges, or causeways where pedestrians are not permitted.

Shared Fault in Pedestrian Accident Cases

Even if a pedestrian is partly to blame for an accident, the motorist is almost always equally responsible. The motorist may not have been driving at a reasonable pace or might have been distracted, making it impossible for the vehicle to stop in time for a jaywalker.

If a pedestrian and a motorist are both at blame, what are the consequences? Rules for shared blame circumstances vary from state to state, but they are often built on either comparative negligence or contributory negligence as fundamental legal principles.

Comparative Negligence

A comparative negligence rule is used in most jurisdictions where an injured party bears some responsibility for the underlying accident’s cause or contribution. To be eligible for compensation (“damages”) under a “pure comparative negligence” criterion, an injured person must have contributed to the accident in some way. However, the injured person’s personal damages award (the compensation they may get) is lowered by the same proportion.

Contributory Negligence

Only a few states (including Alabama, the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia) have retained this antiquated (and severe) regulation. Contributory negligence is a one-size-fits-all approach. As soon as you are determined to be partially responsible for an accident, you will not be allowed to sue the other person for compensation.

Lawsuits can go on for months or even years before they are finally resolved. Many personal injury lawsuits are resolved before they get to trial for this exact reason. Many variables influence how long it will take to settle your claim. In order to give you an idea of how long the procedure will take, here are some items to consider.

• Legal Advice at the Start of the Process

Remember that you should contact a lawyer as soon as possible following an accident to discuss your legal options. In addition, it will take time for the attorney to examine your claim thoroughly. This entails going through your documents, listening to your recollections, and looking into the legislation.

• Claims Filing and Lawsuit Initiation

Not all personal injury cases are settled by negotiating a compromise settlement. Preparation and filing of the lawsuit would be the following stage in this scenario. Keep in mind that the statute of limitations is only suitable for two years. A claim must be filed within two years of the date on which you were injured. Else you will lose your right to file.

This is critical since filing a lawsuit before settlement negotiations have failed is not uncommon. That being stated, the defendant has 30 days from the day the first paperwork is filed with the court to respond. As a result, filing a lawsuit tells the opposing party that you are serious about your claim, and negotiations typically continue once a claim has been filed for compensation.

• Trial phase

The next stage is trial preparation once a case has been filed with the appropriate authority. Remember that the court permits a “discovery” time of six months. This is a chance for each party to examine and prepare their case by requesting evidence from the other. Several pretrial motions may have to be addressed, which will add to the overall length of the process.

The trial is the last stage, and a jury will determine your case there. If the court calendar is already complete, this may not be scheduled for months or even years after the accident. Going to court is a risk for both parties since you never know how the jury will decide. As the trial date approaches, you may feel more pressure to resolve your lawsuit.