If an adult causes an accident through their own misconduct that results in a child under the age of 18 suffering a serious physical injury, they can be held civilly liable for short-term and long-term consequences of that accident just like they could be if they had injured another adult. However, because minor children cannot represent themselves in Arizona court proceedings, the burden of actually filing suit over an incident like this typically falls to the child’s parent(s) or legal guardian(s).
The process of demanding compensation for a child’s injury works a little differently in practice compared to suing on your own behalf for your own injury, and this makes it especially crucial when pursuing a case like this to have help from a seasoned personal injury attorney. Right from the start of your legal proceedings, your Mesa child injury lawyer can ensure your child’s rights are enforced and their best interests are protected while minimizing additional stress for you and your entire family. Contact the team at Phillips Law Group to learn more.
Proving an Adult Liable for Injuring a Minor Child
One aspect of child injury litigation that works more or less the same as standard personal injury litigation is how a named “defendant” is typically found liable for damages stemming from the injury in question. With relatively few exceptions, child injury claims are built around the same legal theory of “negligence” as most other personal injury cases, under which someone must have directly caused an injury to occur through their own reckless or careless breach of a “duty of care” to be held financially accountable for ensuing damages.
As a Mesa child injury attorney can further explain, adults sometimes owe different “duties of care” to children compared to those they owe to adults, which means it is sometimes possible to sue on an injured child’s behalf even when there would be no grounds for an injured adult to file suit. An archetypal example of this is the “attractive nuisance” doctrine, which holds that property owners can be liable for injuries stemming from their failure to prevent very young children from trespassing on their property and accessing things like swimming pools which the children are not old enough to identify as dangerous.
Is It Possible to Settle a Child Injury Claim Out of Court?
Much like adult personal injury claims, a substantial portion of child injury lawsuits end with out-of-court settlements rather than damage awards imposed by a civil court. That said, court approval is still required for all settlement agreements for $10,000 or more in damages — and sometimes for less valuable settlements as well — made on behalf of injured minor children, to ensure the agreement properly serves the child’s best interests.
Additionally, any parent or guardian who obtains civil compensation through any means on behalf of an injured child may be required to funnel that money into a structured settlement or store it in a restricted bank account, to ensure that the funds are only used for the child’s benefit and that the child can take ownership of them once they turn 18. A child injury lawyer in Mesa can explain these and other unique rules for claims of this nature during a confidential consultation.
Talk to a Mesa Child Injury Attorney About Recovery Options
No child ever deserves to get injured because of an adult’s negligent or wrongful act, and they certainly should not have to deal with long-lasting and potentially life-altering losses as a result of such an accident. When your family is dealing with a situation like this, you have help available from dedicated legal counsel to minimize the negative impacts it will have on your child’s life.
Working with a Mesa child injury lawyer from Phillips Law Group can dramatically improve your chances of achieving the best possible outcome from your unique claim. Please call today to schedule a free, no-obligation initial consultation with a trusted member of our local team and find out how we can help you and your family now.
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