What are Parties?
Parties are individuals, corporations, or associations involved in a lawsuit as plaintiffs or defendants.
According to Black’s Law Dictionary, parties are defined as “persons or entities actively participating in a transaction or proceeding.” Due to the formal nature of the proceedings, each party has specific rights, duties, and interests related to the legal matter. Parties can include plaintiffs or those bringing the lawsuit, and defendants, those who refute the allegations; they can also include third-party defendants who are asserted as being partially responsible for the plaintiff’s claims.
The most important responsibility of a party is the burden of proof. In a civil case, this falls to the plaintiff. Understanding the roles and identities of the parties is crucial for determining legal responsibilities, enforcing rights, and reaching resolutions in disputes.
More information about Parties
PATCO to Pay $10 Million in Crash Settlement
After only twenty minutes into a car accident trial last week, a recess was called and the two parties came to agreement on a $10 million settlement to be paid by the Port Authority Transit Corp. (PATCO). The transit authority had admitted before trial that its truck driver was liable for the collision.
A 55-year-old Berlin, NJ man was driving to work in July 2007 when he was struck by a PATCO truck in Philadelphia, PA. The man had just crossed a bridge into Philadelphia when the PATCO driver ran a red light and shoved the man’s vehicle into a median strip. The accident resulted in shattered bones and a broken ankle to the driver.
The man has since undergone 12 surgeries and a painful debriding procedure to try to rid the leg of a serious infection which had begun to cause his flesh to rot. […]
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San Diego Man Awarded $2.4 Million in Asbestos Exposure Lawsuit
A San Diego Navy Veteran who was diagnosed in 2010 with mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, was awarded $2.4 million in damages after his disease was found to be attributed to his work in ship boiler rooms.
The lawsuit, filed against John Crane, Inc., claimed the plaintiff was exposed to asbestos while serving in the Navy from 1961 to 1971 in his work in the maintenance and repair of boilers, pumps and valves. The suit claimed John Crane made some of the asbestos-containing packing material and gaskets in the equipment.
The total damages of about $2.4 million include nearly $1.4 million in noneconomic damages and $450,000 for loss of consortium. The jury found John Crane five percent liable, the Navy and insulation companies 57 percent at fault, some manufacturers and suppliers 37 percent at fault. […]
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Fiery Crash in NY Kills One Teen, Injures Four
Speeding suspected to be the cause of the fatal teen crash
Teen Pulled From Burning Car after Fiery Crash In N.Y.
One teen is dead and four are injured following a Wednesday night crash in Rush, N.Y. Speed is suspected in the crash where the vehicle overturned and caught fire. One man heard the car go by, and then heard the crash. He rushed to the scene in his truck and was able to pull one girl out by cutting her seatbelt, saving her life. All she remembers of the incident is swerving, panicking, and calling her mom to tell her she had been in an accident. Most of the five teens grew up together.
Iowa Man Killed In Head-On Collision
A 61-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene of an accident on I-80 Wednesday night when a van crossed over the median and crashed with his Chevy HHR, […]
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South Carolina Mother Files Lawsuit Over Fire That Killed Her Son
SCnow.com reports a Lamar, South Carolina mother has filed a lawsuit against several parties, including her landlord and an electric company, over her 11-year-old’s death in a fire two years ago when the family lived in a manufactured home.
The lawsuit claims the home was “sloppily, recklessly and dangerously electrically wired and uninhabitable” as the suit cites several electrical wiring errors. The lawsuit also claims gross negligence, negligent infliction of emotional distress and wrongful death. Knowledge of the electrical problems and the “defendants’ failure to exercise reasonable care and comply with the law” led to the child’s untimely death.
A fire investigator has testified the fire was a result of faulty wiring in the home’s stove.
The lawsuit alleges the landlord was aware of the electrical hazards and of other recurrent electrical problems at the home, […]
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VT. Carbon Monoxide Wrongful Death/Personal Injury Lawsuit Settled
The Associated Press has announced the victims of carbon monoxide poisoning in Burlington, VT have settled out of court with the parties they named in their lawsuit.
Although not revealing the amount, the 23-year-old woman, who nearly died in the incident is said to be pleased with the settlement. The estate of her boyfriend, who died in the poisoning, also settled out of court.
In January 2005, carbon monoxide poisoning in the Redstone Apartments, which houses roughly 200 residents, killed one and sent nine others to the hospital. The investigation revealed a faulty boiler and a recalled pipe were to blame for the leak resulting in 40 times the normal level of carbon monoxide.
UVM students occupied most of the rooms of the apartment building, which did not have carbon monoxide detectors at the time of the incident.
Both families sued the building and maintenance companies of the Redstone Apartments and the installers of the heating boiler and pipe. […]
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