Personal Injury
| Federal Volunteer Protection Act -- Preemption of State Law |
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| The federal Volunteer Protection Act (VPA) preempts state laws to the extent that such laws are inconsistent with the VPA. However, state laws that offer additional protections to volunteers are not preempted by the VPA. More... |
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| Opinion and Other Defenses to Defamation |
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| Defamation lawsuits are not easy to win because the plaintiff must both prove the difficult elements of his or her case and avoid the many defenses to defamation. This article discusses some of the standard defenses to defamation, including the defense of opinion. More... |
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| Negligence Per Se |
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| Ordinarily, a jury determines whether a defendant was negligent in a personal injury action. However, in some cases, a court may determine that a defendant was "negligent per se." If a court determines that a defendant is guilty of negligence per se, then the defendant's negligence is conclusively established and the plaintiff is not required to offer further evidence of the defendant's negligence. More... |
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| Federal Tort Claims Act -- Scope of Employment |
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| The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) applies to claims for personal injury caused by the negligence of a federal government employee who is acting within the scope of his or her employment, under circumstances where a private person would be liable under state law. Therefore, in order for the FTCA to apply, the employee's negligence must occur within the scope of his or her employment. Generally, a federal government employee is acting within the scope of his or her employment if the employee is engaged in an authorized activity that serves a governmental purpose. More... |
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| The Jones Act -- Definition of a Seaman |
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| The Jones Act applies only to a "seaman" who is injured while working aboard a vessel in navigable waters. In order to be a "seaman" within the meaning of the Jones Act, the worker must meet certain requirements. More... |
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