How a Personal Injury Lawyer Works

Personal injury law firms provide legal representation to injured victims who have suffered harm caused by others. Tort law involves civil litigation for property damage, mild to severe injuries, wrongdoings, and preventable death resulting from negligence or intent (intentional tort).

A personal injury attorney's primary goal is to ensure that the injured party (the plaintiff) is made whole again through financial recovery to discourage other parties from committing a similar offense. At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC, our personal injury attorneys work in civil tort courts to pursue financial compensation for accident victims.

Nearly all personal injury claims involve injuries caused by another's negligence or intentional action. For example, personal injury cases could include automobile accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, medical malpractice, premises liability, defective products, harmful medications, etc.

See below for a comprehensive list of the types of cases a personal injury practice will handle.

Types of Financial Compensation

Injured victims can file a personal injury claim if they are entitled to receive monetary compensation for the damages caused by another's negligence or intent to harm, like physical assault or nursing home abuse. Common types of compensation include:

• Hospitalization costs
• Medical bills
• The cost of ongoing rehabilitation and therapies
• Future costs of permanent or temporary disabilities
• Lost income
• Future lost earning capacity
• Loss of companionship
• Loss of consortium
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Mental anguish
• Emotional distress
• Pain and suffering

Hiring an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer

Before a personal injury lawyer can represent injured parties, they must find prospective clients through word-of-mouth, paid attorney advertising, a lawyer referral service, or recommendations from another personal injury lawyer.

Once a potential client contacts the attorney, the law office will usually schedule a free evaluation and consultation to determine if legal action is warranted by reviewing the facts.

After the personal injury case facts have been gathered, an attorney will review your legal matters with experience with your specific situation. Then, depending on the circumstance and your desires, the intake process can be accomplished via any of the following methods:

1. An in-person meeting in our office
2. An in-person meeting at your home or hospital room
3. Intake documents brought to your home via a firm investigator
4. Electronic document service that allows you to sign forms on your phone or computer

Our goal is to make your experience with our office as smooth as possible while providing you with the legal representation you need to recover the maximum compensation for your case. Our personal injury attorneys have developed systems to help achieve superior results for clients while being as transparent as feasible about the process to ensure a successful outcome.

When you contact our personal injury office (via telephone, email contact, or chat), your case is handled by a team of professionals committed to treating you with the respect you deserve.

During your free initial consultation, your injury lawyer will listen to your story, review the evidence and medical records, and provide legal counseling and answer questions on how to move your case forward.

Explain Your Legal Rights

Your personal injury attorney will explain in detail how your damages, the evidence, your medical records, and other legal issues affect your legal rights. In addition, your lawyer will explain comprehensive civil tort law about the state's statute of limitations and how comparative negligence might affect the outcome of a typical personal injury case.

The discussion might include negotiating with insurance companies to resolve the case out of court and provide a monetary recovery to pay your medical bills and receive additional funding for future medical treatment for damages caused by the other party.

Provide Legal Advice

Your experienced personal injury lawyer will explain how we navigate complicated legal procedures, answer questions, and interpret medical terminology and jargon used by insurance companies. For example, in most personal injury cases involving automobile accidents, insurance companies will look for any out to deny liability and blame the victim for causing the accident, minimizing or delaying the payout.

A personal injury attorney can take the case to court when the insurance company refuses to pay or fails to offer a fair settlement. The personal injury lawyer can file a complaint setting the legal arguments regarding why the defendant (responsible party) is at fault for causing the harm.

Your personal injury attorney will recommend you seek medical treatment and procedures to diagnose your medical condition accurately and document the relationship between your injuries and the accident.

While providing legal advice, most personal injury attorneys will give objective opinions about the outcome of your case to help you make an informed decision not clouded by frustration, anger, fear, stress, and emotional trauma that many victims endure when seeking compensation.

Legal Representation in Court

According to statistics, approximately 95% of all injury cases are resolved out of court where both the plaintiff (injured party) and defendants (liable party and possibly third parties) agree to stop the case through a negotiated settlement offer.

The settlement offer stops the litigation phase and provides monetary compensation to all relevant parties (injured victims) named in the personal injury lawsuit. Many plaintiffs and defendants choose to negotiate a settlement to avoid a jury trial that could have resulted in an unpredictable outcome like the injured party losing the case or the liable party paying punitive damages.

Personal Injury Attorneys: Building a Case

The case will likely start with an initial investigation to provide sufficient evidence to build the case. Then, as our law office is retained in a new legal matter soon, the handling attorney will prepare a list of tasks for our support staff to accomplish.

Initial Investigative Period

As soon as our office is retained in a new matter, the handling attorney prepares a list of tasks for our support staff to accomplish.

Frequently, this entails obtaining:

• Medical records and bills
• Specialist medical reports
• Police reports
• Accident report
• Photographing injuries and scene of the incident
• Taking recorded statements
• Interview witnesses reports
• Reports from physicians
• Hiring expert witnesses to provide testimony at trial

After your personal injury lawyer has reviewed the materials, they will review their findings and opinions with you in terms of moving forward. Sometimes, this means approaching the insurance company involved.

Taking the Case to Trial

In other situations, your personal injury lawyer will recommend commencing a lawsuit and deal with the insurance company in court. You will have the final decision as to the course that your case will take in either respect.

In these cases, the claim will move into the pre-trial process that involves the discovery phase. During the initial stage, both sides appear in court, informing the judge how they will proceed with the case by agreeing are not agreeing to mediation or arbitration.

Setting the Trial Date

At that point, the judge will typically set a trial date. Then, at the start of the discovery phase, both sides will schedule depositions of witnesses and the opposing party to answer questions given under oath.

Usually, various discovery and intermittent court appearances last for months, a year, or longer, continually pushing back the trial date. But, eventually, both sides will conclude their discovery.

Summary Judgment

At that stage, the defense (the responsible party) will ask the court to throw the case out based on "summary judgment." The defense will likely argue that the plaintiff failed to prove their case and could not possibly win the lawsuit at trial. Typically, defendants lose their summary judgment motion.

The case then proceeds closer to trial as both sides (plaintiffs and defendants) prepare to engage in mandatory settlement conferences. During this phase, both sides will make motions to show the judge why their evidence should be allowed at the civil trial and how the jury will be selected.

Punitive Damages

Before most cases are heard before the jury, the defendants will relent to negotiate a settlement to avoid the unpredictability of a jury verdict. In many cases, jurors will find on behalf of the plaintiff and seek punitive damages against the defendant who acted egregiously, leading to the victim's harm or death.

If the case is won or lost a trial, the losing party can appeal the jury's verdict. However, the appeals process can take years. If the defendant lost and the appeals process has been exhausted, they will be required to pay the victim the damages established by the jurors or on appeal.

How Personal Injury Lawyers Handle Pending Cases

We recognize that having a pending case can be stressful for you and your family. Therefore, our law office is committed to keeping you updated on the progress of your case at regular intervals and as we progress through the stages of litigation.

Of course, should you have questions about your case or medical care, we are genuinely here for you. Our office has a same-day return call policy. You are also welcome to email your attorney with questions. Finally, if you have an emergency or are not satisfied with the response, you are always welcome to contact Mr. Rosenfeld.

We firmly believe that keeping clients 'in the loop' regarding the status of their case results in greater client satisfaction and ultimately better results.

Personal Injury Lawyers and Case Settlements

Just as we are transparent with the initial sign-up process, we try to be equally transparent with case settlement and disbursement of funds. Every case receives a formal 'Settlement Statement' that clearly states the settlement, case expenses, liens, and how much money you will receive--to the penny.

You will have an opportunity to review this document and ask any questions concerning these figures with your attorney. In addition, once you review and sign this document, this gives our office-limited power of attorney to sign off on other settlement documents on your behalf to expedite the disbursement of funds.

Just as you will receive a copy of all initial intake documents, you will also receive copies of all settlement documents, including releases, lien reduction letters, and copies of checks.

Common Personal Injury Cases Filed in Civil Court

According to statistics, practically 40 million individuals require medical attention caused by a personal injury through someone else's negligence every year. In the United States, accidental injuries and medical negligence remain the third leading cause of death among adults and children.

The American civil tort law system is filled with claims, cases, and lawsuits filed for personal injury that left a lasting impact on the victims' lives.

Were you or a loved one injured from another person's wrongdoing, carelessness, or recklessness? If so, you have the legal right to pursue monetary compensation to recover your damages. In many cases, your personal injury lawyer can demonstrate the physical, mental, emotional, psychological, sexual, or financial harm as the evidence to prove your case.

A personal injury attorney works in various practice areas that include:

• Amputation accidents
• Anesthesia malpractice
• Baby brain damage
• Bicyclists accidents
• Car accident case involving a negligent driver
• Cerebral palsy
• Childbirth injuries
• Construction site injuries
• Defamation claims
• Dog bites and animal attacks
• Drug recalls
• FELA injuries
• Hernia mesh
• Hospital and surgical malpractice
• Medical device recalls
• Medical negligence
• Motorcycle injuries
• Nursing home neglect and abuse
• Nursing home negligence
• Pedestrian injuries
• Physical assault
• Premises liability
• Product liability (defective product)
• Roundup weed killer
• Sexual abuse
• Slip and fall accident
• Substandard health care
• Truck Accidents
• Uber accidents
• Worker's Compensation
• Workplace accident
• Zantac cancer
• Preventable death

While living a life in a community does not provide a guarantee, filing a personal injury case can help those harmed by the dangerous actions of others get back on the road to health to move forward. In addition, any victim of files a personal injury claim can seek compensation for their actual damages (medical expenses, lost wages, etc.) and intangible damages (mental anguish, pain, and suffering).

Get Legal Help From an Experienced Personal Injury Law Firm Today

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC takes pride in achieving superior results for each client. We are also deeply committed to seeing that you are satisfied with our services and how you were treated. We want to be the lawyers you like and would recommend to your friends and family.

We believe our business model is the best and only way to keep a law office growing and retain a network of thousands of satisfied clients who continue to be our primary source of referrals.

If you are looking for an established law firm to represent yourself or a loved one in a severe injury or preventable death, contact Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC at (888) 424-5757 today to get the compensation you deserve. We provide every potential client a free consultation to discuss their case's merits after reviewing their confidential information.

Our law office accepts all personal injury cases and wrongful death lawsuits on a contingency fee basis. Contingency agreements ensure our clients pay for our services only after their personal injury lawyers resolve their case through a negotiated settlement or jury trial verdict.

All sensitive or confidential information you share with our law office remains private through an attorney-client relationship.

Resources:

• American Bar Association – Frequently Asked Questions