When someone else’s behavior leads to your injuries, it only makes sense for them to pay for those injuries. However, many wrongdoers try to escape responsibility for the harm they cause. A Gretna personal injury lawyer from Scott Vicknair could work on your behalf to hold them responsible.
An experienced personal injury attorney could file an insurance claim on your behalf, aggressively negotiating for the best possible settlement. When the insurer is unwilling to offer a fair settlement, they could file a lawsuit and pursue your claim in court.
A Personal Injury Attorney Knows How Much a Claim Is Worth
Because claims can be complicated, injured people should not negotiate with insurance companies on their own. The responsible party’s insurance company may seem like they are working to help those who are injured, but they are not. Insurance companies are in the business of making money, which means paying as little as possible for claims.
An attorney could help an injured person understand the fair value of their claim so they do not accept a lowball settlement offer. This is especially important for people with severe injuries that can lead to lifelong medical expenses. Injured parties should schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with a Gretna personal injury lawyer before taking any steps on their claim.
Elements in a Personal Injury Claim
To establish a personal injury claim, a plaintiff must demonstrate:
- The defendant had a duty of care towards the plaintiff
- The defendant breached the duty of care
- The breach led to the incident
- The incident created harm or damages
This test is the same regardless of the type of injury, but the duty of care changes depending on the circumstances. For example, all drivers must drive responsibly because they have a general duty to others on the road. In contrast, childcare providers have a specific duty to the children in their care.
Breaching the duty of care means the person who caused the accident did not act reasonably under the circumstances. What is reasonable depends on the fact-specific situation. The court does not compare the defendant’s behavior to the behavior of all other people. Instead, it compares the defendant’s behavior to someone in the same situation. It compares a doctor in a malpractice suit to other doctors and a driver to another driver in a car, truck, or motorcycle accident suit.
People can breach their duty through action or inaction. Most wrongful acts are actions, such as a driver who runs a red light. However, some lawsuits depend on inaction. In a medical malpractice lawsuit, a doctor’s failure to properly diagnose someone is an inaction.
A personal injury attorney in Gretna could investigate the facts of the case to determine whether the wrongdoer owed the plaintiff a duty and the duty was breached.
Demonstrating Fault and Harm
A plaintiff must prove fault and harm to win a personal injury claim. Fault means the wrongdoer caused the accident or event. In a pure comparative negligence state, a plaintiff can recover compensation for injuries even when they contributed to those injuries.
There is no cutoff of responsibility that would stop an injured person from receiving money, but the court will reduce an award to reflect the percentage of responsibility. This means that even when the injured person shares the blame for the accident, they may be entitled to compensation.
Next, the party who brought the lawsuit must prove the accident led to their injuries. Soft tissue injuries, accidents that worsen existing conditions, pain and suffering, and mental anguish can all be hard to prove. A Gretna personal injury attorney could use medical experts to establish the extent of a person’s injuries and get them the compensation they deserve.
Consult a Personal Injury Attorney in Gretna
After an injury, you may be entitled to various types of compensation. Depending on the circumstances, those can include medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, property damage, emotional distress, pain and suffering, and more. Insurance companies may offer settlements that seem generous, but some injuries come with lifelong costs.
We offer free consultations to help you evaluate the actual costs of your injury. When you choose us to represent you, the attorneys at Scott Vicknair only get paid when you get paid. Contact us today to talk to a Gretna personal injury lawyer.
