When an injury happens due to someone else’s negligence or mistake, it is necessary to contact a lawyer as soon as possible if you intend to seek damages. In the aftermath of a personal injury, you may be concerned with the following:
- Physical recovery
- Paying medical bills
- Ability to continue working
You will want to receive compensation as quickly as possible, but sometimes circumstances surrounding your case can delay a settlement.
Defendant’s Perspective
To avoid large compensatory payments, a defendant and his or her insurance company will work very hard to prove that you had significant responsibility for what led to your injury. Your attorney will need time to challenge each of the defendant’s arguments.
Treatment of Injuries
When injuries are extensive, they might require ongoing and complicated medical intervention, which can take place over months or even years. It is not possible to ascertain all medical expenses or a prognosis until the completion of all recommended treatments. Requests for damages too soon can result in significantly smaller settlements than you might deserve.
Insurance Stalling Tactics
The other side’s insurance company may try to wear down your resources to force a faster and smaller settlement. A standard method of doing this involves requesting a thorough review of every minor detail of your case. As attorneys spend valuable time sorting through insignificant information, your bills will continue to pile up. You may feel that you have no choice other than to settle for less compensation than you deserve.
Going to Trial
Most attorneys agree that going to trial is the last resort when it is impossible to attain a favorable insurance settlement for their clients. The steps leading up to a trial are very time-consuming. First, it is necessary to file a claim in court, and the defendant must receive a copy of it. A lengthy process of taking the accounts of witnesses by the attorneys for both the defendant and the plaintiff can easily prolong the outcome. If the judge overseeing this process is unwilling to render a decision after both sides have presented their cases, the next step may be a jury trial. Jury trials can easily take years and can result in small damages or none at all.
If you sustain a personal injury through no fault of your own, the best thing you can do is contact an attorney, like a personal injury attorney from Yearin Law Office, who can handle your compensation so that you can focus on healing.
