Negligence Per Se and Car Accidents

Negligence per se is the doctrine of tort law that says certain actions are always negligent and there isn’t really a defense for them. Regardless of the circumstances around them, the action was negligent. In car accidents, this can be seen as well.

Typically when a negligence per se claim arises, there has been a violation of a regulation or rule or law or something that prohibits the action that occurred. Because the legislature or some other entity has already said that the action that was committed is inherently negligent, the person who is accused of that action has very little ground to say that he or she didn’t breach the duty to the injured party. Once the action has been shown, the only question remaining is one of damages, and it is more efficient just to try the action and the damages portion.

In car accidents, this is an obvious claim to make in the event of a drunk driving accident. If the party has already been convicted of driving under the influence, he or she has already been convicted of the rule violation and so claiming that a duty was not breached or that there wasn’t a duty is likely not to be very effective.

Other areas where negligence per se may arise in crime accidents occurs if the party that caused the action is cited for speeding, running a red light, or some other traffic violation.

Contact a Milwaukee Car Accident Attorney

If you have been injured in an accident that was caused by another party’s negligent violation of a traffic law, contact the Milwaukee car accident attorneys of Habush Habush & Rottier at 1-800-242-2874.