Having an understanding of the terminologies used in injury claims helps an individual to make sound decisions when they get involved in an accident.
According to the Insurance Information Institute, the average cost of auto bodily injury liability claims in the U.S. rose to $28,278 in 2024 from $26,178 in 2023. These statistics represent the average cost of auto insurance claims and not a settlement for a personal injury claim.
According to a Charlotte personal injury lawyer, F. William (Will) DeVore IV, an attorney can help you review your case and determine who the liable party is and help you pursue the compensation you deserve for your injuries.
Understanding common legal and insurance terminology can help injured people interpret claim documents, communicate with insurers, and understand the factors that may affect their case.
Let’s take a closer look at the key terms used in injury claims.
The Cast of Characters
The U.S. judiciary provides a convenient list of terms used in law, which includes almost everything one needs to know.
According to the dictionary, a tort is defined as a civil wrong or breach of a duty to another individual, thus being the legal term injury claims belong to.
Plaintiff refers to the person or company bringing the civil action. Defendant is the other side of a lawsuit, which is being sued. For an injury claim, the defendant is usually an automobile driver, property owner, or corporation. Still, it is an insurance company that defends the claim and pays out any damages due.
Negligence occurs when a person fails to use reasonable care and that causes harm to others. States take different approaches when both sides share fault. With comparative negligence rules, the injured person’s own share of fault can reduce recovery.
Injury firms often build their own reference lists on top of these basics. Frank Santini of Santini Personal Injury & Car Accident Law, based in Riverview, Florida, maintains a glossary of more than 60 personal injury law terms sorted by case type. They handle car crashes and premises cases, from medical malpractice to product liability. A list like that makes a handy bookmark during a long claim.
Getting a Case Started
The complaint is what starts the litigation process. In the federal glossary, it is defined as the written statement that begins a civil lawsuit. To be specific, the plaintiff details the claims against the defendant.
Statute of limitations refers to the filing period. This is explained in the federal glossary as the time within which a lawsuit must be filed.
Discovery and Its Tools
Discovery is the stage of a lawsuit when both sides gather and exchange information before trial. According to the federal courts’ glossary, common methods include witness interviews under oath, written questions, requests to confirm facts, and requests for documents.
Witness interviews under oath or depositions are the sworn testimony taken outside of court proceedings. The interview is held in a conference room where everything said is recorded word for word by a court reporter. Written questions, also called interrogatories, are a set of questions put to one party in a lawsuit in writing. These must also be answered in writing under oath.
Both can feel intrusive, and both tend to affect how much a case is worth long before trial.
The Money Words
Damages are the money a defendant pays a plaintiff who wins. The federal glossary splits them into compensatory damages, which pay for loss or injury, and punitive damages, which punish and deter bad conduct. Injury lawyers often break compensatory damages down further.
Economic damages refer to any loss with an associated dollar amount, such as medical bills or salary loss, whereas non-economic damages encompass pain and suffering, as well as loss of enjoyment of activities.
Settlement refers to the resolution of a case without the need for going through a trial process. According to the glossary, settlements often involve payment but usually do not include an admission of fault.
Proof and Outcomes
Proof burden shows what one party must prove. This burden of proof is usually held by the plaintiff in a civil suit, and the standard used in most civil suits is preponderance of the evidence, where something is likely to be true rather than not.
Mediation is an informal process where a neutral mediator helps the two sides negotiate. Summary judgment is a ruling without a trial, used when the facts are not really in dispute. A verdict is the final decision of a judge or jury.
None of these words is difficult when one translates it. Knowing even a dozen of them before the adjuster’s first call puts an injured person in a better position for every conversation that follows.
