3 Situations When Personal Injury Cases Could Also Involve Criminal Law

12 August 2017
 Categories: , Blog

Share

Most people think of personal injury law and criminal law as two totally separate sects of the law. However, it is not at all uncommon for both of these areas of law to be part of a case. The fact is, sometimes people are injured as a result of someone doing something criminal and sometimes criminal charges come out as a result of a personal injury. If you are facing a personal injury case in which someone or some entity is directly responsible, you could find yourself in this odd territory where two law forms collide. Take a look at some of the situations when personal injury and criminal law could be involved with your case. 

You are injured in an auto accident as the result of a drunk driver. 

Auto accidents are perhaps one of the most common causes of personal injury cases. The simple truth is, insurance companies don't always step up to the plate when you are injured by another driver, but this can especially be true if the other driver was intoxicated by drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident. In these situations, you may be faced with filing a claim for a personal injury case and the driver may be faced with criminal charges concurrently because of their DUI. 

You have been injured due to a personal physical attack. 

In some states, if you are injured because someone physically attacks you, you have the right to both press charges against them in a criminal case and file a claim against them for your personal injuries to get compensation. If a physical attack left you with injuries that also caused you to have medical bills or lost wages, you shouldn't stop with just filing criminal charges against the person responsible; they should also be responsible for paying for your injuries. 

You have been a victim of libel and slander as a result of information theft. 

In the modern world we live in, access to your personal information that should be held private is a huge concern. If someone steals your private information and then uses that information to cause libel and slander, you could have a case that will involve both a personal injury claim and criminal charges. The person at fault could be sued to pay for the damages you have sustained, but they can also be facing charges for information theft or data breaching.