Accidents & Injuries

Typically, personal injury cases are taken on a contingent fee basis.  In a contingent fee arrangement, the attorney agrees to take the case in return for a fixed percentage of the money recovered.  A contingent fee agreement usually requires that the attorney will receive one-third to one-half of the gross recovered amount.  If you win the case, the attorney will take the percentage agreed to from the recovered amount.  If you lose the case, no money will be recovered and you will not be required to pay the attorney for his services.  Therefore, in a contingent fee arrangement for a personal injury claim, you will not have to pay anything upfront if the attorney decides to take your case.  Under ethical rules, in most cases, you will have to pay the costs incurred in pursuing your case, whether you win or lose.

There is really no sure fire way of determining exactly how much a case will be worth.  To get an estimate, you and your attorney should go over receipts from repairs, medical bills, and doctor’s visits, and anything other relevant expenditure caused by your injury.  The amount of recovery will also depend on the seriousness of your injury.  If an injury is extremely serious with lasting effects, you may be able to recover more in damages.  On the other hand, a less serious injury may return a lesser award in damages.  Lastly, an injury caused completely by the other person may return a greater award compared to an injury in which you were at least partially at fault.

The honest, and unfortunate, answer is “it depends.”  There is no set way to determine when a settlement will be given.  A case that has strong facts in favor of the injured person may see a quick settlement compared to one that has obscure or weak facts, which may go all the way through trial.  However, it also depends on who you are filing a claim against.  A big company with liability insurance may be more likely to settle quickly; and you may not get much money, if any, if you are suing an insolvent person.

– Compensatory Damages are those awarded to a plaintiff to compensate for the injury sustained.  These damages may be for direct injuries, such as medical expenses or lost wages, or maybe for indirect harms, such as emotional distress.

– Punitive Damages are reserved for cases where a defendant’s behavior was particularly bad or heinous, and this bad behavior caused the victim’s injuries.  Punitive damages are designed to punish a defendant and to deter the defendant or others from committing similar bad behavior.

For many personal injury cases, there is a statute of limitations of four (4) years.  This means that a lawsuit must be filed in court within four years of discovery of the cause of action.  The cause of action (in a personal injury case the cause of action is usually the injury) is discovered when a plaintiff knows or has reason to know of the existence of the cause of action.  Since the statute of limitations begins to run when you have reason to know of a cause of action, it is advisable to seek the aid of an attorney as soon as possible so time to file your case does not run out.  There are many shorter statutes of limitations

The first thing you should do after an accident is to try and remain calm.  Do not admit fault for an accident.  You may not be thinking clearly immediately after an accident so it is best to wait until you have a clear head to assess who may or may not have been at fault.  Next, you should seek medical attention.  Injuries may not be apparent right after an accident, but may become more apparent later.  Seeking medical attention soon after an accident may also help in proving that the injuries were directly caused by the accident.  If you are able, you or a friend should take pictures and notes of the accident.  This will help preserve any evidence from the time of the accident and will help you recall important details after suit is filed.  You should also obtain a copy of the police report of the accident.  The report may be obtained from the office of the agency that took the report.  And lastly, you should contact an attorney.  A personal injury attorney may be able to help secure a settlement for your injuries or to help protect your rights if you are in any way at fault for the accident.

Car and motorcycle accidents are not the only personal injury cases that may be filed.  Others may include, but are not limited to: Dog bites; injuries resulting from faulty products; Slip and fall cases; Class Actions; and medical malpractice cases.

You should speak to an attorney before discussing your case with anyone.  If you sign documents or agree to any settlement before speaking you an attorney, you may not be able to recover the full amount to compensate you for your injuries.  The attorney may be able to negotiate a better settlement and fully protect your rights.

In many personal injury cases, a settlement can be reached with the defending party.  However, the case always has a possibility of going to trial because the other party may not have the ability to give you the settlement you are looking for or an insurance company may not agree to pay you adequate compensation.  In these situations, it may be more desirable to go to trial in an attempt to get a more favorable result.