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Personal injury lawsuitBefore explaining the results of litigator profile it is important that you first have somewhat of an understanding of the personal injury litigation structure.Even though some would espouse that attorney are profiteers just waiting in line to make money from your injuries, please consider that you would not do surgery on yourself and you really should not go through the litigation process alone either. Although you may feel you alone are the best person to know your claim, i.e. how the accident happened, you should know that if you are without an attorney, this information alone will not be enough to settle or win your claim.You must remember that just because a person slips and falls or is hit by another car, that person is far from being automatically entitled to a recovery. Liability and damages must be proven.Litigators are in the best position to know how to structure your claim.As a Mandatory Continuing Legal Education lecturer on personal injury we will provide a brief synopsis of the personal injury litigation system in linear progression.
The process really starts when a person is injured and feels that someone other than himself or herself was the cause of the injury. Normally, most people in the personal injury litigation process are initially without a past or present attorney and therefore turn to advertisements to select an attorney.
Most litigation candidates will normally select an attorney with experience, free consultation and someone who works on a "no award, no fee" basis. Having done this, the initial consultation takes place where the client and attorney will sign a retainer agreement. Normally, fees for an automobile accident are thirty-three and one-third percent and fees for a slip and fall accident are forty percent. The reason for the higher fee for slip and falls is that normally some kind of an investigative work up is necessary and therefore the attorney knows going into the claim that it will provide him some monetary exposure.Where there is an automobile accident there is usually a police report generated which provides a ready made investigation of the facts and sometimes of liability as well. Also, at the time of the initial consultation, the client will need to sign additional forms such as an medical authorization so that the attorney may request medical records and bills to prove the damages issue of the claim and, depending on jurisdiction, other forms may be necessary. If the claimant is employed at the time of the accident then a wage loss form is given to the client to bring to his or her employer for completion.
After the initial consultation the attorney will customarily send a letter of representation to the person or entity responsible for the client\'s injury. This letter will request that the person or entity make his or her insurance company aware of the pending claim so that the insurance people also have an opportunity to investigate the facts, circumstances and possible damages of the claim. Most importantly, you do not want to sue someone without coverage because, more often than not, the resulting resolution of the case is without a monetary recovery.
Because liability or fault is the most important component of any claim, at this point the attorney will try to "pin down" the liability issue by retaining the services of investigators and experts. Statements must be taken and preserved, photographs also preserve evidence, measurements, clothing, appliances and engineering aspects such as accident reconstruction based on skid marks or anti-slip coefficients of friction must be obtained.
The client and attorney must work together as a team to prepare and present a claim for damages honestly, fearlessly and thoroughly.Therefore, it is vital that mutual trust, confidence and complete cooperation exist which means that a full disclosure of all information is necessary up front to avoid future surprises.
Many claims can be settled informally and out of court without the necessity of formally showing proof of liability or damages.Naturally, most cases of clear liability, one way or the other, will settle before trial. For a case of good or strong liability, most persons or entities with insurance coverage will pay on a claim to avoid future costs of litigation, as a hedge against a "runaway verdict" and to avoid any future goodwill or litigation problems with their own client.In the case of a bad or weak liability case, the plaintiff attorney will normally disclose to the client that the claim\'s integrity is outweighed by the economy of following through on such a claim and will therefore normally attempt to terminate the claim in the most beneficial manner before the exorbitant costs and expenses of a trial.
Before an insurance company even sends a claim file to an attorney or law firm, an adjuster will try to informally resolve the matter by taking a recorded statement of the claimant and witnesses and by gathering all pertinent medical records and bills which arose as a direct result of the accident.At this phase of the pre-litigation process the claimant's attorney and insurance adjuster work together to arrive at a resolution. Obviously this exchange cannot take place, in nine out of ten cases, before the claimant has completed medical treatment. This is because no claim can have a true value without completion of underlying medical treatment and damages.The amount and extent of special, out of pocket expenses or damages, provides a reasonable basis for determining the amount of general, pain and suffering, compensation.
It is when the claimant and respondent cannot degree on ideas of liability or value that a lawsuit will be filed so that eventually, after more of an investigate work up, a neutral of fact or even a jury can render an opinion as to the strengths, weaknesses and value of the claim.Additionally, in cases of serious bodily injury or death, it is normally standard that a lawsuit be filed so that the person being sued may be represented and have the benefit of full legal representation before paying large sums of money.
The filing of a lawsuit officially begins the litigation process. During the interval between the filing of a lawsuit and a trial there usually are depositions, interrogatories and independent medical examinations.Also, most jurisdictions schedule arbitration and a settlement conference in a maximum effort to settle the case before trial.
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