Attempting to settle a personal injury claim on your own can put you at a disadvantage for a number of reasons.
In any line of work, professionals get educated, gain experience, and acquire a level of expertise that may make their work appear easy. However, a great deal of knowledge and understanding underpins successful results. Legal terms, court procedures, personal injury laws, and even insurance laws are often involved with the claims process.
Overcoming challenges in a personal injury case
Certain challenges, inherent to any personal injury case, generally involve investigating the accident or incident to determine the cause of injury, proving negligence or establishing liability, and estimating the amount of damages. Economic damages are fairly straightforward. However, determining monetary equivalents for pain and suffering, loss of quality of life, and other non-economic damages are not clear cut and are usually left for lawyers to argue and juries to decide.
Personal injury lawyers have to weigh the strength of a case and what type of recovery it might bring in court. When attorneys can develop and convincingly present a case, they gain leverage during negotiations. Most cases are settled outside of court. Yet failures to reach settlements can lead to lawsuits. Whether settling or trying a case, a significant amount of hard work and strategy goes into achieving a favorable outcome.
Legal complexities
The deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit is called the statute of limitations (http://research.lawyers.com/Ohio/Ohio-Statutes-of-Limitations.html). In Ohio, the statute of limitations varies depending on the type of personal injury or civil action taken. Even determining the date that the statute starts to run can be complicated and is best discussed with a lawyer.
Advantages of using a personal injury lawyer
Challenges and complexities are good reasons to obtain a personal injury lawyer. A personal injury lawyer can also offer advantages:
- You eliminate the stress of directly dealing with the insurance company.
- You get legal advice about how to proceed.
- You receive guidance about dealing with medical bills.
- Your lawyer navigates the legal process for you.
- Initial consultations to determine whether you have a case are free.
§ Personal injury lawyers represent clients on contingency—no fees are owed unless the firm recovers through settlement or verdict.
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