I was roller-blading with my dog, which pulled me out into traffic. Is the car that hit me liable for my damages?

In your case, the driver’s liability is going to revolve around whether he reasonably could have seen that you were going to be pulled out into traffic and whether he could have taken action to avoid you – in legal terms, whether he had the “last clear chance” to avoid the accident . If your dog made a sudden move that pulled you into traffic and the driver of the car had no time to avoid hitting you, the court will probably not find the driver liable.

However, if the driver was drunk or on drug medication, this will be closely scrutinized as that has a direct effect on whether the driver had the last clear chance to avoid the accident. If the driver was drunk, he would be legally obligated to compensate you for your injuries.