How Do I Know if I Have a Personal Injury Case?

 Posted on November 28, 2025 in Personal Injury

Personal injury law in Ohio allows you to recover damages when someone else's negligence causes you harm. Knowing the elements of a valid claim, the types of cases that succeed, and the steps to evaluate your situation helps you make informed decisions about your rights.

If you were injured in 2025 and you are wondering if you can take legal action, call our Medina, OH personal injury attorney today. 

What Are the Most Common Types of Personal Injury Cases in Ohio?

Car Accidents

Car accidents represent the largest category of personal injury cases in Ohio. When drivers violate traffic laws or drive carelessly, they cause crashes that injure others. Rear-end collisions, intersection accidents, drunk driving crashes, and distracted driving accidents all create liability for negligent drivers.

Slip and Fall

Slip and fall accidents are another common type of case, and happen when property owners fail to maintain safe conditions. Wet floors without warning signs, broken stairs, poor lighting, icy sidewalks, and other hazards cause people to fall and suffer injuries.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice cases can sometimes be brought when healthcare providers make mistakes that harm patients. Surgical errors, misdiagnosis, medication mistakes, and failure to treat conditions properly can all support malpractice claims. 

Dog Bites

Dog bite cases hold owners liable when their dogs attack people. Ohio Revised Code Section 955.28 makes dog owners strictly liable for injuries their dogs cause, meaning you do not need to prove the owner was negligent. The fact that the dog bit someone is enough.

Work Accidents

Workplace accidents can lead to personal injury cases against third parties even when workers’ compensation covers some losses. If a defective product, negligent contractor, or dangerous condition created by someone other than your employer caused your workplace injury, you might have a personal injury claim in addition to workers’ compensation.

Product Liability

Product liability cases arise when defective products cause injuries. Defective car parts, dangerous medications, faulty machinery, and unsafe consumer products all create liability for manufacturers and sellers under Ohio product liability law.

What Is Negligence Under Ohio Law?

Negligence is the legal foundation for most personal injury cases. To win a negligence claim in Ohio, you must prove four elements:

• First, the defendant owed you a duty of care. 

• Second, they breached that duty through careless or reckless conduct. 

• Third, their breach caused your injury. 

• Fourth, you suffered actual damages as a result.

"Duty of care" means the defendant had a legal obligation to act reasonably to avoid harming you. Drivers have a duty to follow traffic laws and operate vehicles safely. Property owners have a duty to maintain safe premises. Doctors have a duty to provide competent medical care. The specific duty depends on the relationship and circumstances.

Breach of duty occurs when someone fails to meet the standard of care required. A driver who runs a red light breaches their duty. A store owner who ignores a spill breaches their duty. A doctor who makes an obvious error breaches their duty. The breach must be a failure to act as a reasonable person would under similar circumstances.

Causation requires proving the defendant's breach directly caused your injury. This has two parts under Ohio law. Cause in fact means the injury would not have happened if it wasn’t for the defendant's conduct. Proximate cause means the injury was a foreseeable result of the negligent conduct. Both must be proven.

Damages are the actual harm you suffered. Physical injuries, medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage all count as damages. You cannot win a personal injury case without proving you suffered real harm, even if someone acted negligently.

Call a Medina County, OH Personal Injury Lawyer Today

Not every injury creates a legal claim, but when someone else's carelessness causes you harm, you deserve compensation. Contact our Brunswick, OH personal injury attorney at The Law Office of Whitney K.S. Miller, LLC to discuss your potential case. We offer free consultations in most cases. 330-725-4114.