Louisiana Negligence Laws

You were just changing lanes on I-49 and then bang, a speeding car in the lane next to you hits your truck. Who is at fault for the accident, and are they liable for you injuries and damage to your vehicle? And if you file a lawsuit, how does the claim work? Here is a brief overview of negligence laws in Louisiana.

General Negligence Law

There are several elements of a negligence case you must prove in court in order for your negligence claim to be successful:

Duty: the other party owed you a duty of care;
Breach of Duty: the other party failed to meet that duty;
Cause in Fact: but for the other partyâ€™s failure, you would not have been injured;
Proximate Cause: the other partyâ€™s failure (and not something else) caused your injury; and
Damages: you have actually been injured and suffered some loss.

Negligence Laws in Louisiana

State negligence laws vary significantly based on the civil justice system in that jurisdiction. The basics of negligence laws in Louisiana are listed below.

Code Section	Louisiana Laws Civil Code CC 2323: Comparative Fault
Comparative Negligence	Percentage of fault of all persons contributing is determined. If person who suffers as a result partly of his own negligence, the amount of damages reduced in proportion to % of attributable negligence.
Contributory Negligence-Limit to Plaintiff's Recovery	-
Contribution Among Tortfeasors	No
Uniform Act	No

A negligence claim is a legal way of assigning blame for injuries resulting from an accident. If one person has a duty of care to another and failed in fulfilling that duty he or she might be liable for any injuries that result from his or her lack of care. From the example above, the other driver owed a duty of care to drive safely and failed, or â€œbreached,â€ that duty by speeding. Therefore, he or she may be liable in a negligence claim.

Louisiana law, however, employs a doctrine known as â€œcomparative faultâ€ in negligence cases. This means that liability will be spread to everyone who contributed to accident, in equal proportion to their proven fault. For example, letâ€™s say you didnâ€™t use your blinker or look over your shoulder when you were changing lanes. If you were also negligent in the accident, the amount of damages you could receive would be reduced by the percentage that you were at fault for your injuries.

Louisiana Negligence Laws: Related Resources

Negligence law is complicated, and can be difficult to comprehend. You can visit FindLaw's section on Negligence for more resources and information on this topic. You can also contact a Louisiana personal injury attorney if you would like legal assistance with a negligence matter.