Consent as a Defense in Personal Injury Cases – Victoria, Tx Personal Injury Lawyers
Does Giving Consent Bar me From Bringing a Personal Injury Claim?
If you or your loved one was injured by playing football, doing a 5K walk, or participated in any activity or behavior in the Victoria area and you are unsure if you have a cause of action because you consented to the activity, then you should contact an attorney because you may be entitled to receive compensation.
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Rule of Consent
The general rule for consent is that if a person who consents to an activity or behavior and then becomes injured is not entitled to receive damages or compensation for their injuries. An example of consent can include you signing a waiver or a release form for an activity that could possibly cause you to be injured. Even though you consented to participate in the activity or behavior you did not consent to be hurt. If someone intentionally hurt you while you were participating in the activity or behavior then you could file a cause of action of negligence against them. This person had to intentionally, willingly, and knowingly cause your injuries.
For example, you signed up to play basketball for a league in the Victoria area. During one of the basketball games, you go up to the rim for a layup and upon coming down, a player from the opposing team pushes you to the ground causing you to break your nose and arm. You can bring a cause of action against the defendant because he intentionally hurt you and despite his argument that you consented to the injuries; you did not consent to get hurt, you consented to play basketball.
Types of Consent
There are two types of consent, expressed and implied. Expressed consent means that before you participated in the activity or the behavior you signed a waiver or a release form. Implied consent is like the example above except that there isn’t a tangible or physical waiver or release form but you still participated in the activity or the behavior.
Obstacles to Proving Consent
Consent can be a very challenging issue to litigate because the defendant can use consent as their affirmative defense or strong argument. The defendant will argue that once you signed the waiver or release form or you began to participate in the activity then it was done at your own risk and you accepted the responsibilities for your injuries. In many cases, implied consent is harder to prove then expressed consent.
However, without an attorney it will be harder for you to defend yourself against this argument because the defendant will have evidence to try and support their claim. Hiring an attorney that has the expertise and the knowledge of personal injury cases will help you argue and prove the alternative.
The attorney can show that although there was an implied or expressed consent to participate in the activities, you did not consent to the unforeseen dangers that would have resulted from the activity. An attorney can also prove that the injuries you suffered may have been intentional. These are just a few arguments that an attorney can raise on your behalf. Find more here @ https://www.carabinshaw.com/el-paso-auto-accidents.html
