Tort Law

Brien Roche

This page within Virginia Tort Case Law is a compilation of cases reported by the Virginia Supreme Court and summarized by personal injury lawyer Brien Roche dealing with the topic of personal injury definition . For more information see the pages on Wikipedia dealing with personal injury.

Personal Injury Definition-Cases

1993 Renner v. Stafford, 245 Va. 351, 429 S.E.2d 218. Medical malpractice action. Plaintiff alleged that doctor negligently prescribed medication, that prolonged use of this medication caused plaintiff to develop other conditions, and that such conditions did not occur until January 1989, after prescription. In determining when personal injury was sustained in cases such as this, court must look to medical evidence. In this case, it was inappropriate to grant summary judgment since plaintiff had not been given opportunity to fully develop medical evidence supporting her theory that she sustained no injury until January 1989, and as such her claim in that instance would have been timely. Decision of trial court reversed.

1993 Howard v. Alexandria Hosp., 245 Va. 346, 429 S.E.2d 22. Plaintiff alleged that as result of defendant’s failure to sterilize instruments ring course of surgical procedure, she was forced to undergo subsequent treatment consisting of insertion of intravenous tubes, administration of pain shots, and blood extraction. She experienced physical pain and discomfort of headaches, nausea, vomiting, fever, chills, and other such symptoms as result of antibiotic therapy necessarily prescribed because of defendant’s negligence. Injury in this case means positive physical or mental hurt to plaintiff. In this case, plaintiff suffered such personal injury, and as such this was sufficient to satisfy this element of claim in this medical malpractice action.

1942 Fuller v. Edwards, 180 Va. 191, 22 S.E.2d 26. Personal injury definition. Weight of authorities hold that injury to one’s reputation is injury to person. That is, it is injury to absolute personal right.