Personal injury lawsuits provide injured parties with an avenue for financial recovery after suffering injuries. Claims may be heard in small claims court with limited damages; alternatively, circuit or superior courts with more expansive jurisdiction may hear cases as well.
Locating those responsible for an injury often involves extensive investigations and legal proceedings, and many people have questions regarding who pays for these costs.
Insurance companies
As their name implies, insurance companies provide payouts in personal injury cases on behalf of defendants. But who pays depends heavily upon your specifics as well as who was at fault’s insurance coverage and your state limits for medical expenses and property damage claims; hence why having uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) becomes critical in car accident claims in order to cover gaps between both amounts available from both sides.
As well as medical bills, compensation can also be awarded for pain and suffering damages. Although insurance companies may try to minimize these intangible losses, an experienced personal injury attorney can level the playing field and negotiate from a position of strength.
Mediation can often be the answer to successful personal injury claims. Mediation involves gatherings between both sides and their attorneys with an aim of hastening settlement negotiations; otherwise, trials will likely follow where a judge or jury determines liability and compensation. Once an agreement has been reached, your lawyer will reimburse creditors who placed liens for reimbursement on your file as well as loan providers who provided financing during recovery.
Defendants
Personal injury cases involve individuals or entities being accused of causing an accident. When this occurs, they are legally required to compensate victims for both tangible costs such as medical expenses or lost income and intangible ones such as pain and suffering. A plaintiff is defined as any individual filing a complaint in such matters.
Defense defendants are officially notified of a complaint by receiving a summons and copy of the lawsuit, and must respond by filing an answer that admits or denies specific points and details their defenses. Both parties are then required to participate in discovery, which involves sharing information and evidence between each side; during discovery, defendants can offer affirmative defenses such as assumption of risk or comparative negligence; they may attempt settlement negotiations; however if an agreement cannot be reached the case will proceed to trial before either judge or jury.
Appeals
Personal injury victims should always try to settle their claims amicably; however, when this is not possible or feasible they can turn to civil court to find those at fault and receive compensation.
Once a lawsuit is filed, the defendant will be served with a complaint outlining what occurred and any injuries that were suffered, along with copies of medical records, invoices for damages incurred, and an account of what damages are claimed for. At this stage, plaintiffs can opt for either a jury trial or bench trial; jury trials tend to be best for more complex or fact-driven cases while bench trials can provide better resolution of straightforward disputes.
Respondents may respond to your lawsuit by raising various defenses, such as saying you contributed to your own injuries or they weren’t at fault. They could also file a counterclaim seeking to recover damages from you; having an attorney with knowledge of how courtrooms handle personal injury cases will be an asset if the matter must go to court.
Judgments
Once a personal injury claim concludes, a court judgment will outline how much compensation you are due. Unfortunately, collecting awarded damages can often prove challenging if those at fault lack the financial means to make payment on their judgments.
Personal injury cases require proof that someone exhibited negligence that led to an accident and injuries, which your personal injury lawyer will help gather through detailed investigations and legal proceedings.
At trial, your lawyer will present evidence and present arguments to persuade the jury in your favor. Most often, juries decide if someone else is at fault and award damages such as a lump sum payment or structured settlement as well as non-economic ones like loss of enjoyment of life or other non-economic harms.