The UAE is a beautiful country with diverse cultures, traditions, and religions. The UAE’s proactive government is committed to providing its citizens with the best of anything at their doorsteps. Today, not only does this include providing food, healthcare, education but also providing its people with laws covering every aspect of life they live in the UAE.
It is now common for many people living in the Emirates to seek compensation if they are injured physically, emotionally or financially. Various laws have been introduced in order to protect civil rights and personal liberties of the people here. A Personal Injury law has also been established that would provide relief to victims of accidents or injuries resulting from another party’s negligence.
In order for a claim to be filed successfully, the injury must have been sustained as a result of another person’s negligence. Injuries can occur due to:
In order to recover compensation for personal injury, it is important that one follows the steps given below:
Damages are categorized into two groups: General damages and Special damages. General damages are awarded when an injury has led to physical, mental or emotional injury. This includes pain, suffering, and loss of amenities in life.
Special damages are awarded when an injury has led to financial losses by the claimant that have been directly attributed to the defendant’s actions. These include medical expenses incurred for treatment, loss of salary due to being unable to attend work, loss of future earnings, and property damage.
After filing a case in court, the proceedings can be divided into three stages:
1) Discovery Proceedings- This involves exchanging information between both parties through either written question to each other or requests for production of documents. Parties are allowed to request that the other party provide any documents or information they hold that is relevant to the trial.
2) Assertion of Claims– This is where each party provides their claims and evidence in order to prove them during the trial.
3) Trial Proceedings- The claimant outlines all facts relevant to the case and presents any documents, reports, or witness testimonies as evidence for their claim. The defendant is then given a chance to refute these claims and provide their own evidence.
Witness testimonies are considered the most important evidence provided during trial proceedings since they directly prove or disprove claims made by both parties. Expert opinions or reports can also be used as evidence in cases where there is no eyewitness testimony.
Evidence provided by witnesses is verified before being accepted. Questions asked to a witness must be directly related to the case and cannot be intended to intimidate or defame them. If a witness refuses to answer a question or makes a false claim, they can be charged with perjury.
If two defendants are found guilty of causing an injury, they are jointly responsible for compensating the claimant. Jointly held liability can apply to both parties in cases where one party has caused an injury through negligence and the other party is also negligent, but fails to provide compensation The two defendants may be given separate claims or may be offered a joint settlement.
There are several common issues that arise during personal injury trials, including:
Every case must be justified by evidence provided and the claimant must provide adequate evidence for their claims. The defendant is not required to prove that they did not cause an injury or were not negligent. It is up to the claimant to prove that they have suffered damages and that these damages were caused by the defendant.
Every case must be justified by evidence provided and the claimant must provide adequate evidence for their claims. The defendant is not required to prove that they did not cause an injury or were not negligent. It is up to the claimant to prove that they have suffered damages and that these damages were caused by the defendant.
The defendant must also be qualified to file lawsuit or lawsuit under Sharia law. If they are not qualified, the case will be dismissed.
Libel is defined as written defamation that damages someone’s reputation and can be sued for in court. Slander is defined as oral defamation, which cannot be sued for.
The defendant must prove that the claimant knows about their injuries or should have known about them, meaning that someone who files a claim 7 years after an accident has occurred has not met the statute of limitations. They must file within 3 years of discovering their injury, although there may be certain exceptions, such as if the defendant is involved in continuing their negligence.
The collateral source rule means that the claimant cannot be compensated for losses covered by insurance or accident funds. For example, if someone is injured in an accident and receives $10 000 from the company they work for, they cannot claim any more money for their injuries
The last clear chance doctrine is when someone who has the ability to prevent an accident or injury does not do so and contributes to its occurrence. This can be applied in cases where a defendant might have been negligent in causing an injury, but another party could have prevented it through non negligence or awareness of their surroundings.
Common defenses used by defendants include:
Contributory negligence is when a defendant claims that the claimant was partially responsible for causing the injury and should therefore not be compensated for damages. This defense will only work if the claimant caused their own injuries through carelessness.
The defendant claims that the claimant voluntarily assumed risk and therefore should not be compensated for their injuries. If this defense is used, the claimant must prove that they did not know about the particular risk or had no way of understanding it.
Comparative negligence is when a defendant claims that the claimant is partially responsible for causing their own injuries and should not be compensated fully. This defense will only work if the claimant was partly negligent in causing their own injuries, while also being partly negligent of the defendant.
This defense can apply if a claimant was being reckless while they were injured and were partly responsible for causing their own injuries.
The defendant claims that they had no other option but to cause the claimant’s injuries under particular circumstances. This defense can only apply if the claimant was in some way putting themselves, or others, at risk at the time of the accident.
This defense uses the claim that it was impossible for the defendant to avoid causing injuries and therefore should not be held responsible for them. This defense applies if no alternative existed and cannot apply in situations where it is possible to take other precautions against an injury.
The following defenses involve the claimant and not the defendant:
This is where another company claims that they have a better right to property than the claimant, such as in calling something their property when it is actually owned by someone else. The claimant must prove that they possess a good title and show that nobody has an outstanding claim against them.
This is where the claimant claims that they were injured by another employee and the defendant did not provide them with a safe place to work. The defendant must provide evidence that there were no unsafe conditions or it was impossible for them to prevent an accident from occurring.
The claimant claims that the defendant has caused damage to their reputation, such as through slander or libel. The claimant must prove how they were wronged and show that they suffered a loss of some form.
This is where a claimant claims that they should be compensated for damages while receiving medical treatment following an injury. The amount calculated will cover the cost of treatment, lost wages and other damages suffered during legal proceedings.
Punitive damages are assigned when the defendant has acted in a very malicious or outrageous way that caused severe emotional harm to the claimant. This defense can only be used if it was necessary to punish the defendant to prevent future offenses from occurring.
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