Nearly 25 million Americans visit the ER for unintentional personal injuries each year. In many of these cases, the victim was injured in an accident directly caused by another party’s actions or negligence.
From car crashes to slips and falls, these accidents result in billions of dollars in lifetime medical costs. To get justice and the financial help they need to pay their medical bills, victims often need to bring a law suit against the parties responsible.
But going to court over a personal injury is more complicated than it sounds. Keep reading now to learn what you need to do if you have a personal injury case to pursue.
Your Case Starts With an Attorney
One look at the statistics makes it clear that attempting to represent yourself in court is a recipe for disaster. On average, litigants are twice as likely to lose their cases if they attempt to represent themselves in court.
That figure only gets worse when:
- You try to sue a company or business instead of an individual
- You go to court against an individual with a lawyer when you don’t have one yourself
- You seek a substantial court settlement such as the kind needed to pay off medical bills
What many litigants don’t realize is that there are around 200 distinct steps in filing a law suit and bringing it to court. Each of those steps is governed by an array of different laws, timelines, and procedural requirements. Missing or mishandling a single step can be enough to cost you your case.
So if you want to pursue a personal injury case, hiring a lawyer must be your first step.
A Word About Legal Fees
Many potential litigants hesitate when it comes to hiring an attorney because they do not have the resources to pay substantial legal fees. However, good personal injury attornies in your area will work on a contingency basis.
This means that you only pay them if you win your case or settle out of court. In either case, of course, your attorney’s fees come out of your award or settlement, meaning that you never pay out of pocket.
Choosing a Personal Injury Attorney
What questions should you ask when hiring a personal injury attorney? First and foremost, it is important to choose an attorney with experience in your specific type of case.
Car accidents and slip-and-fall cases are both types of personal injury cases but they are very different. Ask prospective attorneys about their success rates in the type of case you are pursuing.
There are other important questions to ask, too, such as how much you stand to win or settle for. However, the second most important thing to look for in an attorney is how comfortable you feel working with them. Look for an attorney that listens to you, takes your case seriously, and makes time to explain things to you in a way you can understand.
This will create a strong foundation on which to move forward. Everything else depends on that.
Learn More
Now that you know how important it is to hire a personal injury attorney to represent you, learn more about structured settlements and other important subjects related to personal injury law suits by visiting our blog.
