10 Reasons You ll Need To Be Educated About Injury Litigation
injury attorney Litigation
The legal procedure that allows you to seek compensation for your losses and injuries. Your injury lawsuit attorney will build strong evidence for your case including eyewitness testimony testimony of the defendant, expert witness opinions.
Your lawyer will begin the process of filing your lawsuit. Once the defendant has responded, the case moves into an investigation of facts, also known as discovery.
The Complaint
Before the lawsuit is filed, an injured party (plaintiff) must conduct pre-lawsuit discovery. This involves looking over police accident reports, conducting informal discovery and identifying possible at-fault parties.
After the plaintiff has completed this, they can submit a summons and a complaint. The complaint details the damages caused by the defendant's actions or his actions. It typically contains a request to seek damages for the victim's injuries, including medical bills, lost wages or injury compensation income, as well as pain and other damages.
The defendant is then given 30 days to file a reply, known as an answer in which they acknowledge or deny the allegations contained in the complaint. They can also add an additional defendant, or file counterclaims.
During the discovery phase, both parties will exchange relevant information regarding their positions and the evidence. This typically involves depositions written questions (called interrogatories), and requests for documents. This usually accounts for the major portion of the litigation timeline. If there are settlement possibilities that are available, they will be negotiated during this time. Otherwise the case will go to trial. In this time, your attorney will tell your side of the tale to a jury or judge and the defendant will defend themselves.
The Discovery Phase
The discovery phase is a formal process that allows your legal team and the party at fault to exchange information and gather evidence. This may include witness statements, information regarding your medical treatment, as well as proof of the damages you've suffered. Your attorney can also use several different tools during discovery to help your case, including interrogatories, requests for documentation and depositions. Interrogatories are written inquiries that require a response written as well as requests for documents involve requesting all relevant documents under the control of each party. Requests for admission ask the other party to acknowledge certain facts. This could save time and money as lawyers do not have to prove these facts at trial. Depositions are live interviews of witnesses where your attorney is able to ask them questions about the incident under oath and get their answers recorded and translated by a court reporter.
Discovery may appear to be an uncomfortable, long and intrusive process, but it is necessary to gather the evidence you need to win your injury attorneys claim. Your attorney will be in a position to discuss the details of the discovery process in your free consultation. For example, if you attempt to conceal a preexisting condition that has aggravated your injury compensation (click through the next article) and this information is discovered during the discovery process and removed from your case.
The Negotiation Phase
Most injury cases aim to reach a settlement through negotiations. The process to achieve this goal is usually a back-and-forth exchange between your lawyer and the insurance company. This may include informal conversations/correspondence (by phone, in meetings, by email) where the parties trade offers and counter-offers. Your lawyer can assist you choose the appropriate number to ask for your settlement, and then assist in negotiations.
One of the challenges of the process of settling a claim for injury case is that the amount you are owed - including your medical bills or lost income as well as future losses - is a constantly changing aspect. Your injuries could get worse over time, which can increase your future losses and decrease the value of your current losses. Your lawyer will ensure that your damages are determined based on your current injuries and your prognosis for the future recovery.
Insurance companies usually try to limit their payout by arguing against certain aspects of your claim. This could delay settlement negotiations, but your lawyer has strategies to help you navigate these difficulties and achieve the most favorable outcome for your case. Negotiating an agreement can sometimes take a long time or even years. Negotiations can take months or even years based on a variety of factors.
The Trial Phase
Most cases of injury are resolved outside of court through settlement negotiations. However, if an agreement is not reached your lawyer might decide to proceed to trial. This can be a costly, time-consuming and stressful process. The jury must also decide if you should be compensated for your injuries and should they, if so, in what amount. It is crucial for your lawyer to thoroughly investigate your case at this point to fully understand the extent of your injuries, the extent of your injuries, damages and expenses.
Your attorney will now summon witnesses and experts, and will present physical evidence, including photographs documents, documents, and medical reports. This is the "case-in-chief" phase. The defense attorney will call witnesses to testify and argue that the plaintiff shouldn't be awarded damages. The judge or jury then decides on the arguments and evidence of both sides.
The judge will explain to the jury the legal requirements that must be followed in order for them to decide in favor of plaintiff or against defendant. This is referred to as jury instruction. Each side then gives its closing arguments. If the jury is unable to reach a consensus on a verdict and the judge declares a mistrial. If you are not happy with the outcome of your trial, there might be an appeal option.
