Litigation Lawyers in Blakely

A "tort" in Blakely, Pennsylvania is essentially any legally-recognized harm for which the victim is legally entitled to pursue compensation from the perpetrator.

Essentially, a tort in Blakely, Pennsylvania is any wrongful action committed by one individual against another, which gives the victim of the wrongdoing the legal right to sue the wrongdoer. This is known as a "cause of action."

Statutes and appellate court rulings in Blakely, Pennsylvania recognize a very large number of different torts. However, most of these torts are largely relics of history, and are no longer litigated very frequently, if at all. There are only a few that the average person has a decent chance of dealing with at least once in their lives. They include, but aren't limited to, negligence, fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and battery.

Types of Torts in Blakely, Pennsylvania

Negligence: This is by far the tort that is most often dealt with in the courts of Blakely, Pennsylvania. Put simply, negligence is a failure to exercise a reasonable amount of care, and causing harm to someone as a result. For instance, driving 30 miles per hour over the speed limit is obviously very careless. So, if you are driving that fast, and your speed causes you to get into an accident that harms someone else (either their body or their property), you have committed negligence, and will be obligated to compensate the victim for the harm that you caused. You should know, however, that this is just an discernible example, and there are a practically infinite number of situations in which a negligence lawsuit can arise.

Fraud: Fraud is an intentional tort, unlike negligence. It is also dealt with fairly frequently by courts in Blakely, Pennsylvania. Fraud is a lie that one person tells to another, with the intent to harm the other person, usually by inducing them to give money or property to the person committing the fraud. Fraud can occur in a wide number of different contexts. For instance, 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 Blakely, Pennsylvania 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 actually 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 essentially any physical contact that violates one's sense of personal dignity constitutes battery, and the victim could technically sue over it. Nonetheless, in most cases like that, the plaintiff hasn't sustained 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: This is a tort in Blakely, Pennsylvania that involves emotional distress, and does not need physical harm or financial loss. It is also known by the acronym IIED. IIED is committed when a person engages in outrageous conduct towards another, with the intent of causing emotional distress, and actually causes the intended distress.

How Can A Blakely, Pennsylvania Tort Lawyer Help?

If someone has committed a tort against in you Blakely, Pennsylvania, you have a legal option to seek compensation. Furthermore, if someone has sued you, alleging that you committed a tort, you have a right to mount a legal defense.

In either case, a Blakely, Pennsylvania attorney who is experienced in handling tort cases will be able to help. Your lawyer can advise you on the best trial strategy, should the case go to trial, and negotiate with the other side, to try and reach a resolution that both parties can live with.