What is negligence and how do I prove it?

Negligence is the legal standard that must be proven in most personal injury cases. It has four required elements, all of which must be established: (1) Duty — the defendant owed you a legal duty of care (all drivers owe a duty to drive safely; property owners owe a duty to maintain safe premises; doctors owe a duty to meet the standard of care). (2) Breach — the defendant failed to meet that duty (ran a red light, left a wet floor unmarked, performed a procedure incorrectly). (3) Causation — the breach of duty directly caused your injury (the running of the red light caused the collision that injured you). (4) Damages — you suffered actual compensable harm as a result. If any element cannot be established, the negligence claim fails. Evidence supporting each element must be gathered and presented by your attorney. In some situations, negligence can be presumed through the doctrine of negligence per se when the defendant violated a safety statute.