The broadness of a personal injury as a civil case demands an explanation of the direct duties and responsibilities of the lawyer who can handle it. Personal injury lawyer represents clients who allege that they have suffered an injury as a direct or indirect result of the negligence of an entity or individual; this area of the law is called tort law.
It’s important to understand that civil actions, which personal injury falls under, aren’t usually crimes that can lead to jail time unless any form of criminal activity or false testimony occurred. This doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be taken seriously; a lot of personal injury cases revolve around a hefty amount of compensation or other penalties. To help you fully understand the responsibilities of a personal injury lawyer, we’ve made a brief list of the most important features you should look for.
Information Protection
As many people know, conversations with attorneys who represent you in the court are protected by what’s known as the attorney-client privilege. This is a legal obligation that ensures that the attorney is protecting their client’s information. A personal injury lawyer should never share the information of your case or claim to others. They will also advise you when it comes to certain information that you’re obligated to share with the court.
Detailed Explanation
Since there are a lot of variables at play when it comes to personal injury cases and claims, a personal injury attorney should be good and thorough during the explanation of the case. The compensation for every case is different because it’s dependent on the type of injury and the circumstances surrounding it. Not all states don’t necessarily share this rule, as some may vary in certain fields like the statute of limitations and liability.
In some states, there are certain laws and conditions that you need to clear to be able to properly file a personal injury claim. For example, no-fault states mediate the majority of the liability to the insurance company, regardless of who was at fault. While a state like Illinois distributes liability on both the at-fault individual or company and the insurer. As the personal injury lawyers at Curcio Law Offices recommend, finding reputable and experienced legal representation who will explain the case thoroughly is essential to effectively get compensation. A personal injury attorney knows the ins-and-outs of the states that they represent their clients in, leaving no room for small slights.
Objective and Professional Advice
One of the main responsibilities of professional personal injury lawyers is to provide you with sound advice based on facts and other experience-based situations. It’s important to understand that reputable personal injury attorneys have a lot of years of experience under their belt, making their advice the most accurate course of action that can lead you to the compensation you deserve. Whether the recommendation is to seek medical treatment as soon as possible to prove the injuries or to avoid providing written statements to insurance companies, heeding to their advice is integral to your case.
Thorough Investigation
Tort injury law is one of the few fields in law that require a proper and thorough investigation of all the specifics in the case. A lot of small details that can go unnoticed in a case can actually be used to turn the tides to get you the compensation required. The lawyer is going to provide you the most honest and realistic expectations you should set regarding the amount of compensation that you deserve. It’s also their role to counteroffer insurance companies that try to offer settlements that are lower than the compensation they calculated.
Negotiation
The process of reaching a settlement with an insurance company can sometimes become an unnecessary ordeal that the victim has to go through. Professional personal attorneys know the business-oriented mentality of many insurance companies that tend to avoid losing money in favor of providing fully legit compensations. This is why it’s always recommended to resort to a lawyer before accepting the claim of an insurance company. Aside from being experienced in these negotiations, personal injury lawyers will help you avoid the stress that comes with these kinds of negotiations, especially when you’re severely injured.
Court Representation
Some insurance companies may use the resources of legal arbitration as a trump card when they want to corner victims of personal injury because they know it’s a relatively hard process for the average person. A personal injury lawyer is your first line of defense and offense when it comes to court representation. Even though it’s not really common for a personal injury case to reach the court easily, a personal injury lawyer should be more than ready to fight the long battle to provide their clients with the settlement they deserve.
A personal injury attorney knows a lot about tort law and how to navigate the specifics of a lawsuit or claim to get you the compensation you need. Instead of rushing the attorney selection process, it’s important to be familiar with the responsibilities of experienced personal injury lawyers to know what to look for whenever you need to.
