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Duties of a Body Injury Lawyer Near Me:
Have you or a loved one been injured in an accident or by way of the neglect of others? Sure, sometimes issues can be determined through insurance or through a small claims case. If it is very minor it’s best to walk it off and get on with your life because it may cause you more headache than it is worth .
But sometimes you really could use someone to take your side. Someone that will really gun for your case. A professional who can really fight on your side. Then you really should retain a Douglas personal injury attorney that will fight for your rights, both financial and personal, so you can roll back as close as possible to your life before the injury occurred.
Being unwillingly involved in a crime, accident, or negligence is not ever a good time. It’s an emotional roller coaster, and seeing things objectively is difficult. But staying cool and collected can make the difference between receiving the best compensation that you deserve or dropping the case feeling horrible.
A great Douglas personal injury lawyer can act as a counselor between you and the difficult situation, making it much easier to work with the ins and outs of the legal system. If you are like most people, you may not even get the full breadth of what could happen until talking with a professional. A lawyer can help you realize all of this in a more objective light, determine if a potential claim exists and how they can help with your case, and help you move ahead with the process of any potential claim or case.
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What is a Douglas Body Injury Attorney?
To start, personal injury lawyers (PILs) fall within the bigger category of civil lawyers; they are also known as litigation lawyers. Civil lawyers are generally retained to recover cash or other assets from a person or legal entity on behalf of another person or legal entity.
This means that when a person brings a civil action suit against someone else, a civil attorney is usually hired to bring the lawsuit and a different civil attorney is hired by the defendant to defend against it. In the case of bodily injury, the injured person will retain a personal injury attorney when the claim involves reimbursement or payment of expenses caused by the injury such as medical costs, mental health issues arising from the injury, and more.
After the attorney has been hired, they will gather all of the information from the case that they are legally able to get. They will confront all witnesses that can be contacted, research any and all documents related to the claim, and use all potential resources to make sure all of their is accurate.
Then he or she may first try to work out a settlement in the case. If that negotiation fails, the attorney will consider filing a lawsuit in response, depending on the potential for a win. But what cases can a personal injury lawyer take on?
The PIL usually handles a wide variety of cases that fall into two primary categories. The first field includes negligence and accident cases such as medical malpractice, legal malpractice, vehicle accidents, child neglect, and wrongful death cases. Wrongful death is usually at the hands of a doctor, nurse, or other medical practitioner. In most of these cases, someone is injured (or worse) due to the uncaring state or incompetence of another.
The second main field of a PIL is the purposefully perpetrated injustice case. An intentional tort occurs when someone purposefully injures another person. This type of act occurs in a violent crime, assault and battery cases, slander, theft, and other such situations. Really the potential reasons for a personal injury case is pretty much endless.
In addition, and completely different from pretty much all other fields of the legal universe, PILs almost always work on a contingency fee basis. What this means is that they are not paid unless the person or entity that they are representing has won the case. It means that there should be no upfront payment, for consultation or any other service. Their fee is based strictly upon financial compensation received by their client.
What Are the Implications in a Personal Injury Case?
Of course, sometimes even the last steps of the process aren’t so simple. The injured party can counteroffer if they feel they are not receiving in their eyes a fair compensation. It is when these offers do not get agreed upon or an offer is unacceptable that a personal injury claim could potentially end up going to trial.
But it is unusual for a personal injury case to get to the trial phase. And this is for a variety of reasons:
First, a settlement creates a situation where the defendant can control risks and avoid unnecessary legal fees. If the liable party is 100% aware that they are at fault for the incident that led to the claim, they probably do not want the case to get in front of a sympathetic jury that could provide much larger damages.
Secondly, a settling the case will keep it low profile. This is especially important for publicly known people. A lengthy trial brings public attention. And even a small trial can provoke unwanted attention. A settlement agreement allows all of those involved to fully negotiate terms, including those terms regarding confidentiality.
Thirdly, a settlement can decrease the time for proceedings. Lengthy court cases can take an eternity, lasting for many months. Adding to that, if the other party appeals, the outcome can remain up in the air for an additional length of time. The plaintiff probably wants financial compensation in the near term rather than later. Or they may simply not want to complete the ridiculously long process of putting on a case, presenting evidence, and doing whatever it takes to beat the claim.
And finally, settlement allows the plaintiff a guaranteed win. A trial is more of a ‘the higher the risk the more the reward’ type of situation, which is not always in the best interest of either party. The plaintiff may in many cases rather settle for a little less in a guaranteed win. This, versus demanding the highest dollar amount but also risking either losing the claim completely or having a judge or jury award a much lesser amount.
What are the Personal Injury Lawyer’s Tasks?
First they will take care of locating evidence and finding the responsible party, whether it be an insurance company, individual, or other legal entity.
Once the lawyer has formed a case, they draft and send an official letter of demand to the opposing party. This letter includes a breakdown of what happened, of injuries incurred, and the amount of financial compensation demanded.
Next, the attorney attempts to negotiate the settlement, and depending on whether both sides reach an agreement, chooses if they will push to bring the case to trial. This is determined by how much the other party agrees to the terms of the settlement. If the other party agrees completely to everything proposed, then there would be absolutely no reason to go to trial. If the other party agrees to some terms but not others or is in partial agreement, it will be up to the plaintiff to decide if they will push for additional negotiations, agree to the new terms, or file a claim in court.
Choose the Successful Body Injury Lawyer Near Me in Douglas
Here at DeLozier Law, we have many decades of experience in successful personal injury law litigation. Our clients are extremely pleased with us because we helped them get the settlement they needed and deserved. We offer a free consultation so you can see if we can help you with your claim, too. Give us a call today at 602-989-1759!