Injuries that occur in drunk driving accidents usually lead to civil suits being filed against the person accused of drunk driving. This means that people who cause injuries due to driving under the influence face additional civil penalties as well as the criminal charges they are likely to face.

Civil suits are completely separate from the criminal DUI process. While criminal law proceedings are meant to protect the general public from any future harm that could be caused by the offender, civil lawsuits work to help a person who was wronged or injured to recover damages in their case to help compensate for their losses.

Filing a lawsuit against a person who was driving drunk basically works the same as any personal injury or auto accident case. It is up to the person filing the lawsuit to be able to prove that the driver was drunk at the time of the accident, and that this negligence caused poor driving and their injury.

In some cases, lawsuits against drunk drivers may take the form of a wrongful death suit. In this situation, you or any other personal representative may file a civil lawsuit on behalf of the deceased’s estate. These suits help to compensate family members and close loved ones for the loss of the deceased and to ensure greater financial stability in the wake of their loved one’s death. The actual process of proving negligence takes the same path, but the people that receive compensation and have the right to actually file the suit to begin with are different.

Drunk driving accident cases are different from other suits in that they are also more likely to result in punitive damages, in which the offender is forced to pay a certain amount of money as part of the damages given to the person filing the claim.

For more information on how you can file a lawsuit against a drunk driver in Georgia, speak with skilled Atlanta personal injury lawyers at McMenamy Law, LLC.