A personal injury lawyer will evaluate
both the legal and financial elements necessary to file a personal
injury
lawsuit. Even if a lawsuit will not need to be litigated in court, making a personal injury claim means being prepared to take the case to a jury trial if the defendant refuses to offer a fair settlement.
What a Lawyer Will Look For
Liability
The
first thing lawyer will want to be able to determine is a liable
party. If a personal injury claim is to be brought, there must be a
party on whom to place blame for the injury. In some cases, the party
will be another person, like the driver of a car that caused an
accident. In other cases the liable party may be a property owner whose
slippery floor posed a hazard that cause injury, or a corporation whose
business harmed a consumer somehow.
In
any case, there must be liability, and the liable party is the one
that will be held accountable and made to pay for the damages.
Severity of Injury
The
next important legal issue is the actual injury that was caused by the
liable party. In order to make a personal injury claim, the injury
must be significant enough to warrant the trouble and work involved in
making a personal injury case.
If
the injured person suffered some insignificant injury that will heal
in a week or two and not have any substantial impact on their life,
then it’s probably not worth pursuing a claim. On the other hand, if
the injury is serious, permanent or disabling, then it is absolutely
worth the time and energy to get compensation.
Why Money is Important in Personal Injury Cases
It
may seem wrong, but money is the most important factor in personal
injury law. Money is the means by which injured people are “made whole”
for the wrongs done to them. In civil court, money is the equivalent of
“sentencing” in criminal court. If you commit a crime, you may have to
go to prison. If you wrong someone are are sued in civil court, you
will have to pay money for what you’ve done.
If
you are injured and you want to bring a personal injury case, you will
essentially be demanding payment from the person who caused you
injury. If they refuse to pay you, then your attorney will bring a
lawsuit in court where a jury will decide if and how much the
responsible person must pay.
All
of this effort makes a lot of work for a personal injury lawyer, and
since they take cases on a contingency fee basis (meaning they only get
paid if a successful settlement or jury verdict is reached), they have
to be careful not to take cases that are weak in terms of legal
evidence and/or lack significant injury or a defendant with deep
pockets. In most cases, the defendant will be insured, so the money is
usually paid out through an insurance company.
Always Talk to a Lawyer
Every
case is different, and the damages involved range from pain and
suffering to a wide variety of economic damages that may make what
seems like a weak case into a very good one. It is important to talk to a personal injury lawyer
if you believe you have a case or if the defendant, usually an
insurance company looking to pay out as little as possible, refuses to
give you a fair settlement