History of Injury Claims: The Industrial Revolution
Injury compensation claims are an important form of legal representation that provides protection for people who have been injured. Personal injury claims have a long history dating back to the 1490’s when the New World was developing. Res Ispa Loquitur, which translates as “the thing that speaks unto itself”, indicated under canon law that if a personal injury occurred, there was legal representation that could help protect the injured individual.
Injury compensation claims then developed into a more specific form of law with the birth of the industrial revolution. In the 19th century, many debilitating injuries occurred in factories and with the rise of unions, personal injury law became popularized. Laws were eventually created in the late 1860’s to protect workers and injury compensation claims grew from this form of legal representation. Prior to the placement of these laws, there was little that could be done to protect workers from receiving legal protection from workplace injuries and poor work conditions.
The labour laws that came into place during the industrial revolution were integral for protection of individuals in the workplace and laid the foundation for injury compensation claims. The Factory Act of 1833 delineated that that children must be educated in schools and not work more than 12 hours daily. In 1874, it became illegal to force British workers to work more than 56 hours weekly.
Frivolous Litigation
With the popularization of personal injury claims, certain clients began to claim injuries that were frivolous and in flagrant abuse of the law. In 1990, frivolous litigation became impermissible if deemed so by the courts. Under the Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 2.1.02 Dismissal deems that a case can be thrown out of court if it shown to be a frivolous lawsuit. Frivolous lawsuits are legal proceedings that are fruitless and do not have a good chance of winning. Frivolous litigation is an important development in injury compensation claims because some personal injury claims are not justified and it is important to designate which injuries are worthy of protection by the law.
Media and the Internet
Media has also had an important effect on the popularization of personal injury law. Injury compensation claims have risen in popularity over the course of the last twenty years due to increased advertising and public awareness of personal injury law protection. The first ad for personal injury law was put into a television commercial in 1979. Jacoby & Meyers were the law firm that began advertising for personal law injury and claims have consistently risen since that time period.
The rise of the Internet has been an integral development for injury compensation claims. When a person is injured, they can access a number of injury law firms at their disposal to obtain the services they need. Educational articles are also accessible which help people to navigate whether or not their personal injury claim is permissible in court and worth pursuing. The internet has allowed personal injury law firms to reach clientele in new and innovative ways and help injured individuals receive the protection from the law that they need.
Sources
https://www.canlii.org/en/on/laws/regu/rro-1990-reg-194/latest/
http://ontlaw.com/wacko/?utm_source=Mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_campaign=View-Original
http://infographicjournal.com/the-history-of-personal-injury-law/
http://www.simmonsfirm.com/personal-injury/lawsuit-process/history/
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/1833-factory-act/