Litigation Lawyers in Los Alamos

In Los Alamos, New Mexico, a "tort" is any wrongful act, besides a breach of contract or a crime, that the legal system can remedy.

In Los Alamos, New Mexico, when a tort is committed, and the victim of the tort is vested with a right to sue the person who committed the tort, they are said to have a "cause of action."

In Los Alamos, New Mexico, there are laws and court rulings that recognize scores of different torts. Many of these torts are very obscure, and are almost never litigated. In the modern era, the torts that the average person is most likely to face are fraud, negligence, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Types of Torts in Los Alamos, New Mexico

Negligence: Negligence is by far the most frequent tort that results in litigation in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Negligence is a failure to exercise the amount of care appropriate for a given situation, and causing harm to someone else as a result of this carelessness. For example, running a red light is inherently careless. If you run a red light, and cause personal injury or property damage, you are liable for the harm you caused. Of course, this is just one example, and negligence can occur in essentially any context.

Fraud: Fraud is an intentional tort, unlike negligence. It is also dealt with fairly often by courts in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Fraud is a lie that one person tells to another, with the intent to harm the other person, normally by inducing them to give money or property to the person committing the fraud. Fraud can occur in a wide variety of different contexts. For example, suppose a jeweler tries to sell a fake diamond to a customer, by passing it off as the real thing. If the customer believes the jeweler's lie, and bases his buying decision on it, the jeweler has committed fraud. If the customer discovers this fraud, he will be able to sue the jeweler, and recover, at the very least, the difference between the value of the fake diamond, and what he paid for it.

Battery: Battery is defined by the law of Los Alamos, New Mexico as any contact by one person, with the body of another, which is offensive or harmful. Any conduct that causes physical injury, pain, or emotional distress is battery. Also, you do not need to really touch a person with your own body to commit battery - simply directing harmful contact (say, by throwing a rock) toward another person is sufficient to create liability for battery. Battery can also arise from "offensive" contact, which is basically any physical contact that violates one's sense of personal dignity constitutes battery, and the victim could technically sue over it. However, in most cases like that, the plaintiff hasn't suffered any real harm, and will only be able to recover nominal damages, which would be far, far less than the cost of filing a lawsuit.

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress: Intentional infliction of emotional distress, also known as IIED, was not recognized in Los Alamos, New Mexico as a valid tort until the early to mid 20th Century. However, since it became available as a cause of action, it has become one of the most common sources of civil litigation in the tort context. IIED is committed when a person engages in "outrageous" conduct towards another person, with actual intent of causing mental trauma or distress, and then really causes the intended result. Physical injuries are not necessary to prove IIED, but if the emotional trauma is so severe that it causes physical symptoms (such as a heart attack, in the most extreme cases), the defendant will be liable for them, as well.

How Can A Los Alamos, New Mexico Tort Lawyer Help?

If you have been the victim of a tort in , New Mexico, you have the authority to seek legal redress. And if you have been sued for a tort, you have a right to defend yourself.

In both examples, a brilliant Los Alamos, New Mexico tort lawyer will probably prove indispensable. The best thing you can do early in the process is make a good-faith effort to negotiate a settlement with the other side, to prevent the matter from going to trial in the first place, which will often prove more costly than settling. Most tort lawyers are also skilled negotiators, and will be able to help you on this front, too.