Personal injury lawsuits have changed over the last decade. The combination of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as how people interact with each other has changed the way the non-specialist views personal injury lawsuits. Trends, especially in law, come and go over time. What may be popular today won’t be popular five years from now. Legislative changes and the ease of doing business with other parties all affect legal processes. As 2020 ends and we start 2021, a few trends exist within the legal community that may continue to play a significant part in how lawyers do business. But the landscape may have changed drastically, and the legal profession needs to take that into account as they enter this new year.
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Rideshare Suits
Forbes mentions that companies such as Uber and Lyft have seen a decrease in the number of passengers they’ve had during 2020 by as much as 90%. However, before the pandemic, there was a general upward trend of people to take rideshare companies to court for liabilities and damages. Passengers would locate the top personal injury lawyers in their area and seek damages for inconveniences. While these companies have scaled back significantly since the pandemic, they will likely resume operation as soon as they can. This resumption of service means that we may once again see a surge in rideshare suits during 2021, provided that vaccines go out on time and life returns to a semblance of normalcy.
Drone Use
The pandemic has seen more and more people realize the joy of drone photography. Broad, sweeping panoramas captured from thousands of feet in the air make for fantastic talking points and social media shares. Drones have seen a lot of use as both professional and recreational devices, but they also can be dangerous to operate in the wrong areas. Regulatory frameworks for drones and how they’re used are only now being developed. We’re likely to see more suits about trespass and property liability come to the fore during the coming year. These cases will be necessary since they will define what the accepted practice in common law is. Being aware of these decisions can help individuals decide how they’ll use their devices in the future. It’s far easier to know the facts about how you’re allowed to operate a drone beforehand than having to answer in court.
The Future of Personal Injury May be Different
The one driving factor that will lead to a change in personal injury law will come from technology. Even today, many individuals are worried about large tech companies’ power and how much influence they have on governments around the world. However, there is some comfort in knowing that tech companies are still accountable to the law and can be held responsible for wrongdoing. In the future, personal injury will center on technology as a facilitator. We use tech daily, but we rarely pay close attention to how it impacts our lives. We may need to do so more often in the future to ensure that our rights as individuals are not being infringed upon.
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