How Do Lawyers Handle Personal Injury Cases?
Most of the personal injury cases are settled by the jury. The litigation process can be costly and has no guarantee of a fair judgment. In some instances, acquiring a reasonable settlement is better than following a court-based system. Still, a lawyer such as a Springfield IL personal injury attorney, must push to get the optimum reimbursement for a personal injury case.
When we hire personal injury lawyers from somewhere like coinjurylaw.com, we expect to get fair compensation. But many times, we don’t ask how the attorneys fight to get us the amount we deserve. What exactly does a reasonable settlement constitute?
Understanding Damages
Damages are the injuries or losses on which the compensation amount is based. We cannot rightfully estimate the value of a personal injury case until we understand the exact damages involved in our case. The basic types of personal injury damages are:
-Economic damages: Quantifiable financial expenditures we can directly attribute to the accident and the injury. The calculation of economic damages becomes easier if we keep diligent personal records of our expenses, including loss of wages resulting from the injury. A good lawyer can negotiate these damages since placing value is relatively easy.
-Non-economic damages: They are the non-self-evident damages caused by pain and suffering. They compensate for psychological or emotional burdens from the injuries. Negotiating non-economic damages is a bit tricky since pain and suffering is hard to quantify.
-Punitive damages: A negligent party in an accident scene deserves to be punished. This is where punitive damages come in. They apply to specific instances and not always part of the settlement calculations.
A lawyer such as can be found at https://valientemott.com/ determines what to demand in damages; hence they must do thorough research. Their experience and assessment skills play a significant role in how much we can receive in compensation. In a perfect world, we would want to receive a huge sum no matter the level of personal injury. However, our insurance provider can only give so much under their policy. That is why we must hire accomplished legal experts who know how insurance policies work. Most experienced attorneys have a clue of how much money we can get. Some research on past injury cases pays off in the process of demanding a settlement.
An honest assessment looks into the value of our case and the amount we consider to be reasonable. For this matter, a minor accident is likely to settle for a less amount than a permanent disability case. When a lawyer knows the extent of our injury, medical expenses, and duration of treatment, they are in a better position to calculate an honorable settlement. There are special calculators from lawyers’ websites that can give a rough figure of what our damages could be worth.
The Demand Letter
Once a lawyer such as this personal injury attorney Tifton Georgia based or other areas can grasp the extent of damages and the potential compensation amount, they formalize the case by framing a demand. In the demand letter, they leave room for negotiation, i.e., by asking a sum bigger than the ideal figure. The request includes the economic damages plus a monetary value for pain and suffering. The insurance company always negotiates the number down. This is where the strength or weakness of our case is tested. They aim to give us as little money as possible.
The timeframe within which our lawyer makes a demand may determine if the insurance company gives a counteroffer. This is a lower lump sum than the initial request and is completely normal. Many victims fall for this, especially when they are facing the pressure of medical bills. The negotiation process doesn’t have to take weeks. A lawyer can make a few phone calls or bring mediators, judges, and facilitators. The court prefers this case to be settled before trial. And so the judges can bring in all possible resources to resolve the matter. The value our lawyer placed on the demand letter can affect how the negotiations go. Making extremely high demands is one way to force the unwilling defendant into facilitation or mediation.
When placing settlement values on personal injury claims, a wise lawyer knows the ultimate goal is to help the victim recover. The recovery process involves a series of compromises. In a strong case, we are likely to settle even when our lawyer places a high value. Let us keep these facts in mind when we are using lawyers to get satisfactory settlements.