Trial Lawyer
If you’ve been hurt by the negligence of others, you need a personal injury trial lawyer to fight for you! Our law firm specializes in personal injury lawsuits. If you’ve been hurt in an auto accident, by a dangerous drug or defective medical device or in an industrial accident contact our law firm immediately. A serious injury or death can devastate a family both morally and financially after expensive medical bills pile up. Contact us and ensure your rights are being protected while you focus on what’s most important — your family, health and medical needs.
A personal injury claim is legal claim or proceeding in which an injured party seeks to recover monetary compensation for their injuries and damages that they have suffered. Many times a personal injury claim can be settled prior to filing a lawsuit and without incurring the additional expenses associated with depositions, hiring of expert witnesses, court costs and many more obligations once a lawsuit is filed. In some cases, it may be a complete waste of time to attempt to settle a personal injury claim until after a personal injury lawsuit is filed and discovery of the facts are more complete. Once a personal injury lawsuit is filed then the personal injury attorney starts discovery for proof of facts, hire experts and get their depositions as to fault and depose the treating doctors in order to document and prove the extent of the client’s injuries. In some cases, other experts are needed such as accident reconstructionists, engineers, economists, life care experts, biomechanical engineers, human factors experts and many others.
Negligence is the failure to exercise the care toward others which a reasonable or prudent person would do in the circumstances, or taking action which such an ordinary reasonable prudent person would not. Negligence is accidental as distinguished from “intentional torts” (assault or trespass, for example) or from crimes, but a crime can also constitute negligence, such as reckless driving, speeding or drunk driving. To recover damages in negligence cases, a plaintiff must prove that the defendant had a duty under the law to be careful, but wasn’t. The plaintiff also must prove that the defendant’s inaction or carelessness caused the injury and related damages.
Gross negligence is defined as carelessness or negligence which is in reckless disregard for the safety or lives of others, and is so great it appears to be a conscious violation of other people’s rights to safety. If gross negligence is found by the trier of fact (judge or jury), it can result in the award of punitive damages on top of general and special damages.
In a personal injury lawsuit a claim for damages (money) is filed or pursued against all available entities to ensure that you receive maximum damages both for your injuries and any other losses which can include:
Where the defendant’s conduct is found to be intentional, reckless, willful, wanton or malicious, the courts may permit an award of punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages (damages to compensate the plaintiff for their losses). Punitive damages are intended to punish the defendant and to discourage others from similar conduct in the future.
Wrongful death is under tort law and is designed to compensate for harm to a person resulting in death. A wrongful death lawsuit holds that the decedent was killed as a result of negligence or other liability, and that the surviving dependents or beneficiaries are entitled to monetary (money) damages as a result of the defendant’s negligent or gross negligent conduct. Each state in the United States has is own wrongful death statutes or wrongful death laws that govern wrongful death claims and wrongful death lawsuits.
Wrongful death damages are dependent upon the relationship of the plaintiff to the deceased.
The damages to the beneficiaries may include:
Contingency fees are based on a percentage of an award or settlement that the lawyer recovers. If the lawyer does not win the case or obtain a settlement, the client does not owe any attorney fees nor does the client have to repay the attorney for the expenses that the lawyer has spent. The client however does still owe any outstanding medical bills that he or she has incurred for their medical treatment. Contingency fees have come under attack lately on the theory that they encourage lawyers to file lawsuits that may not have any merit. In actual fact, a competent lawyer is not about to take a case on a contingent basis unless it does have merit. This is because the lawyer ends up spending his time and paying for expenses to prepare a case without any guarantee that he will be paid. If he is successful, he may be well paid for his efforts. If he is not successful, he will have lost a considerable amount of time that could have been used on behalf of a client who is paying by the hour.
The contingency fee is also the only way many potential clients have of hiring a lawyer. If all fees were charged on a flat rate or by the hour, the man who is injured in an accident and loses his job would have no means to obtain the services of a lawyer. Most contingency fee contracts result from personal injury cases. Lawyers will sometimes take other types such as commercial or business types of cases on a contingency basis, but there usually must be the potential for a large award.
If you or a family member have been seriously injured or killed due to the negligent conduct or grossly negligent behavior of another, then you may have a right to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit against these wrongdoers. Due to the nature of these types of cases, a full investigation of the facts of the accident and preservation of the evidence is essential to success. Time is of the essence, Don’t Delay. Contact our law firm and find out what your legal options are.
