When you get injured at work or during medical treatment, it is a very traumatic time. The injury itself could be causing some life changes and the process of going through personal injury lawyers and court cases is very stressful. There are too many things happening all at once and this causes problems for many people.
The key is to understand how the process goes so you know what to expect. Knowing what to expect will allow you to do one thing at a time when the moment is right. You won’t need to feel like you have too much on your plate when you can see the process for what it is. In this article, we will go over what the process is like when you start a personal injury claim.
The consultation with a lawyer
Once you have sufficiently gotten over the worst of your injuries and are capable, you will need to talk to a personal injury lawyer like Lamber Goodnow. They will be able to analyze your case and give you an idea of what kind of compensation you may be entitled to get. A good personal injury lawyer knows how these cases go and what to look for to be able to understand what you should expect to receive.
They will also know what the chances of success will be based on the information that you give them. It’s important to make sure that you have accumulated enough evidence for them to be able to make a solid case that any judge will want to award you damages.
It won’t work to simply tell them what happened and what financial damages were caused by the injury. Make sure to give them witness statements and any communication from your work or whoever was responsible for the injury.
Filing the complaint
Once your lawyer agrees to take on your case, you will then have to file the formal complaint with the relevant court. This will usually take place in a civil court that handles things like personal injury and not a criminal case. It will also take place in the jurisdiction where the injury took place.
In the complaint, you’ll have to detail exactly what happened and how you believe the other party was responsible for your injury. In it, you will also indicate what your injuries were and how they impacted you.
The settlement phase
Before the case goes to court, the person or entity that was responsible for your injury may have the opportunity to settle with you. They will likely understand that they don’t have a very good case and are likely to lose. Going to court just to lose will end up being more expensive for them so they will likely want to offer you a sum to avoid going to court.
You can decide to not settle and go to court if you feel that you deserve more compensation than what is being offered.