Professional Negligence Lawyer in Columbia
This is an area of law where experience is invaluable to a successful outcome and to properly assess the case and determine how it should best be approached and handled.
Professional negligence is defined as a professional falling below the standard of care in the performance of his or her duties.
The standard of care is generally defined as what other professionals in the same field would have done, or not done, in the same or similar circumstances.
Negligence Representation in South Carolina
It includes a failure to do something that a professional should have done (omission), or the doing of something they should not have done (commission) in the particular circumstances then and there prevailing. The standard of care is usually proven by testimony from another professional qualified in the same area and field of expertise as the professional whose work is being reviewed to determine whether or not a breach of the duty of care has occurred. In other words, have they fallen below the standard of care.
Negligence is the name the law gives to carelessness. It is said to have occurred when (1) one person owed a duty to one or more persons and (2) they have failed to fulfill, breached that duty and (3) as a result, someone has been injured.
The law recognizes many professions where breaches of duty may have occurred and the court has left the door open for more such claims to be recognized as more professions are created, or more duties recognized, over time.
Malpractice Attorney in Columbia, South Carolina
Most people are familiar with the concepts of medical malpractice and legal malpractice. Our law firm has always put emphasis on these areas of practice. Mr. Hawkins has handled numerous such cases over his 30 plus years of practice, having won his first medical malpractice case in 1986, only a few years after finishing law school and his clerkship for Chief Justice C. Bruce Littlejohn of the South Carolina Supreme Court.
Other areas of professional negligence include architecture, CPAs, accounting in some particulars, chiropractors, dentistry, land surveying, therapy, optometry, pharmacy, physician assistance, counseling, engineering, podiatry, psychology and veterinary medicine.
This a complex area of law which requires careful scrutiny of cases and almost always requires one or more expert witnesses to prove the case to the satisfaction of a jury or other fact finder.
See also, our section on Medical Malpractice.
These notes are for guidance and general knowledge but are not intended to be legal advice and may not be relied upon as such. Questions seeking legal advice need to be asked of a lawyer and you should contact our office to set an appointment with a licensed lawyer.