If you suffered an injury due to the negligent or intentional actions of another party, you deserve compensation for your injuries and any negative effect those injuries have had on your life.
The journey to securing recovery can be a stressful and complicated one. To ease that stress and increase your chances of complete compensation for your losses, it is important to choose a personal injury attorney who you can trust and who gets results. Read on to learn more about personal injury claims and how to choose the best lawyer to handle your claim.
What Is Personal Injury?
Personal injury law is a broad area of the law, encompassing any civil claim for injury due to the negligent or intentional act of another person. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 39.5 million injuries require medical consultation each year.
Common bases for personal injury lawsuits include:
- Car accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Product liability
- On-the-job injuries
- Dog bites
Given the wide array of possible claims, the type and severity of resulting injuries are also numerous and could include:
- Head injuries: Head injuries are common and can occur from a fall at work, a strike to the ground during a slip and fall accident, or a car accident.
- Neck and back injuries: Given that the neck and back create the core of the body, injuries are likely and may have long-term impacts.
- Spinal injuries: Any injury to the spine could result in serious complications, including paralysis.
- Traumatic brain injuries: Brain injuries might accompany a blow to the head, require significant medical intervention, and have long-term effects on the life of the injured party.
- Broken bones and fractures: Broken bones may limit the injured individual from performing regular activities and, if severe, may require surgery.
- Internal organ damage: A blow to the body may cause damage to internal organs, including myocardial or pulmonary contusions.
- Burns: If the incident involves fire, you may suffer from burns, potentially requiring skin grafting, plastic surgery, or permanent disfigurement.
- Loss of a limb: Amputation may be required if a limb is crushed or severely damaged.
- Cuts, bruises, and sprains: These may be your only injuries, or they may accompany other injuries received as part of the accident.
No matter what injuries you have suffered, they are sure to have had some impact on your life. You deserve a personal injury lawyer with deep expertise who will partner with you to advocate for your recovery.
What to Look for in a Personal Injury Attorney
There are many factors to consider when deciding which attorney to use to seek recovery for your injuries. Choosing the right lawyer is an important step in securing recovery for your injuries. Consider the tips below as you seek out the lawyer that is the best fit for your circumstances.
Savvy About Fault
One of the most critical aspects of a personal injury lawsuit is establishing fault. If you can’t show that the individual responsible for your injuries acted intentionally or negligently, it will be very difficult to secure recovery. The facts necessary to establish fault will depend on the type of accident in which you were involved. Potential theories of fault include:
Negligent Driver
In any accident that involved a vehicle, the negligent actions of the other driver may have caused the accident. Common indicators of negligence include speeding, failure to obey traffic laws, driving under the influence of alcohol or another controlled substance, or driving while distracted.
Healthcare Professional
If a healthcare professional provides any treatment that deviates from the recognized standard of care, he or she may be liable for any injuries that result from that deviation. The recognized standard of care is based on the action a reasonably prudent medical professional would have taken under similar circumstances.
Property Owner
A property owner may be responsible if you are injured while on the owner’s property. The obligations placed upon a business property owner are more strict and require the business owner to maintain the property in reasonably safe conditions. On private property, the property owner is likely responsible for warning guests about non-obvious, dangerous conditions.
Employer
Employers have a responsibility to maintain safe working environments for their employees. If they fail to provide reasonable safety accommodations, they are negligent in that responsibility. For example, a construction company that neglects to provide safety helmets for its workers may be found responsible for injuries resulting from failure to wear a helmet.
Make sure the lawyer you choose digs into the details of your case and all of the available evidence to establish a strong case of fault against the other party. Failure to make this showing could ruin your case completely.
Deep Knowledge About Damages
Establishing fault is the first step to recovery, and the next is proving the full extent of your damages. While medical bills may be the first thing to jump into your mind, there are a variety of damages that you can recover, depending on your circumstances. These include:
- Medical expenses: These expenses will include the cost of all medical care required due to the injury. Common medical expenses include emergency transportation, hospital stays, doctors’ bills, and prescription medications. They also include the cost of future medical care, rehabilitation, and assistive devices.
- Loss of income: You may have been forced to miss work due to your injuries, and you may need to miss work again in the future. You should be able to recover for these lost wages. If your injuries will limit your ability to perform job duties, work full time, or advance in your career path, then you should seek compensation for your lost earning potential, as well.
- Property damage: The most likely cause of property damage is in a car accident where your vehicle is damaged or destroyed. Other injuries may also result in property damage, for example, if property is damaged during a fall. If your property was damaged, you should secure recovery or replacement.
- Pain and suffering and emotional distress: Your injuries may cause ongoing pain and suffering or emotional distress. Due to the pain or the changes in your life, you might suffer from depression, anxiety, or PTSD. A jury may award recovery for these ongoing side effects of the accident.
- Loss of enjoyment: If you can’t participate in activities that you previously enjoyed due to your injuries, you should seek compensation for this loss. For example, if you were an avid painter but suffered an injury to your hands, this would be a basis for recovery.
- Punitive damages: Punitive damages are not intended to compensate for any specific injury. Instead, they are meant to punish the defendant for egregious behavior. The Florida statute on punitive damages only allows for recovery when the actions of the defendant constitute intentional misconduct or gross negligence.
As you can see, calculating damages is not as straightforward as adding up the totals of your doctors’ bills. They require a deep understanding of how your accident and the resulting injuries have affected your life. In some instances, a lawyer may need to bring in an economic expert to testify to the appropriate amount of damages.
Choosing a lawyer with a proven track record of securing comprehensive awards for his or her clients is a good indicator that your lawyer has deep expertise in evaluating and advocating for damages.
Look Local
It may be tempting to seek out a large, national firm to take on your case. In fact, you are much better off finding an experienced attorney in your area. Tort law is primarily based on common law, meaning the decisions handed down in previous cases, also known as precedent, are often state-specific. A local attorney who has spent his or her career understanding Florida personal injury law can advise you based on Florida law much more efficiently and effectively than an attorney researching it for the first time.
There are other benefits to hiring a local attorney. First, your attorney will need to be familiar with local laws around punitive damages and the statute of limitations. Second, a local attorney will understand the nuances of the local court system, such as filing deadlines, court locations, and e-filing. Third, the lawyer will be familiar with the judges and other attorneys in the area. This will give them important insight into the best strategy for your case, depending on which judge has been assigned and who is serving as opposing counsel.
Evaluate Results
Review the attorney’s website to see if he or she provides summaries of successful past cases. Reviewing these results can provide a few important insights. First, it will help you see the types of cases the law firm has handled. Second, it will help you confirm that the lawyers are skilled in establishing fault and securing appropriate compensation for their clients.
Finally, such a review also gives you insight into the strategy of the firm. Does it settle all of its cases? Do all of its cases go to trial? Both settlement and securing a verdict in court are strategies that make sense for different cases. You will want to seek out a law firm that employs both strategies where it makes the most sense.
Understand Payment
Lawyers have a variety of different pay structures. Some require you to pay by the hour, some collect an upfront retainer, and others don’t require any payment until they recover money for you. When a lawyer doesn’t require payment until he or she recovers money on your behalf, this is called a contingency fee basis. It ensures that the lawyer is invested in the outcome of the case and avoids costly payments upfront. Be sure you understand the percentage the lawyer will recover once your case is completed.
Schedule a Consultation
No matter how qualified a lawyer or law firm seems on paper, you must feel comfortable working with whomever you choose. Most personal injury lawyers will offer a free consultation. You should take them up on this offer. A consultation will allow you to ask them any questions you have about the process. It will also allow the lawyer to get a sense of your case and the amount of work involved. Finally, it will also allow you to determine whether you feel comfortable with the lawyer.
Consider asking some of the following questions at the consultation:
- How many years have you been practicing personal injury law?
- Have you handled cases similar to mine?
- What resources does your firm have at its disposal?
- Will you be handling my case directly? If not, who would I be working with?
- What is your payment structure?
- Are there any additional expenses I should be aware of?
- What do you think is the value of my case?
- How long will the legal process take?
- Do you have experience going to trial?
While it can intimidate you, make sure to use the consultation to understand the process as well as the skills and personality of the attorney with whom you are meeting.
Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA
800 North Belcher Road
Clearwater, FL 33765
(727) 451-6900
https://www.dolmanlaw.com/florida-personal-injury-lawyer/
