If you have been injured, you are likely wondering what you should do next? Should you speak with an attorney now or later? Should you try and handle the claim on your own? Should you focus on healing and not worry about trying to bring a legal claim in court or at all? You may wonder, how will I pay for medical bills, property damage, lost wages, out of pocket expenses or recover money for pain and suffering after a serious injury? Miami personal injury attorneys help injury victims through injury claims. No matter how you were injured—whether it was in a motor vehicle accident, a slip and fall, or in some other type of incident personal injury claims take time to resolve. Many injury victims don’t understand that amount of information that needs to be processed. From the minute you walk into the law firm office information needs to be gathered. Case facts need to be analyzed. Injuries also can take time to heal and in some cases the long term consequences are not recognized until well after an accident. As personal injury lawyers, our job is to not only understand how an accident occurs, but also how understand how it will affect our clients long term. Is future medical care needed? Are the injuries going to heal on their own? Is the defendant financially viable? There are many in variables to consider after serious accident, injury or death claim.
WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT TO HAPPEN FIRST AFTER AN ACCIDENT
If you have not hired a lawyer yet, you will probably receive calls from insurance companies, investigators or insurance adjusters. These insurance companies will likely try to settle the claim for as little money as possible. If you were in a car accident, the at-fault driver’s insurance company may contact you. If you slipped and fell in a store, the store’s insurance company representative may call you too. As a rule of thumb, if you are injured in Miami, Florida then you should not speak to these insurance companies without the advice or guidance of an reputable accident attorney.
To have achieve the best result, you should seek the advice of for your legal claim and hire a Miami personal injury attorney to represent you. Personal injury lawyers will deal with the insurance companies on your behalf and will work hard to ensure your legal interests are properly protected. Even if you do not need to file a formal lawsuit, hiring the best personal injury attorney in Miami, Fl. for example (assuming you were injured in Miami Dade County, is vital to handling negotiations and to obtain the full case value after a serious injury or wrongful death claim.
WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT AFTER I HIRE AN INJURY ATTORNEY AFTER AN ACCIDENT?
First, your attorney will gather as much factual evidence any and information related to the accident claim. In injury law firm in Miami, Florida will start by requesting copies of the accident or incident report and gather all medical records and bills you have incurred so far. Personal injury claims are usually not finalized until accident victims have completed medical treatment and/or have a good idea of what medical treatment you may need in the future. In the beginning stages, a lawyer will likely obtain statements, go to the accident scene, talk to investigators, and interview witnesses that may have information that can help or even hurt your case. Experienced injury lawyers will always conduct a thorough investigation of the case facts so that the legal issues can be analyzed. After careful investigation of case facts, an identification of all negligent and financially responsible parties is completed and a complete understanding of injuries a clients injuries are understood and clients are finalized from medical treatment, then the financial implications can be understood. This process can take many month depending on the severity and type of injuries at hand. Once all of this information is processed, settlement negotiations can begin.
Depending on the type of case a lawyer may then attempt to negotiate a settlement with the Defendant or responsible parties. These negotiations usually take place with an insurance company representative or other responsible party. If the insurance company or wrongdoer refuses to settle then an injury lawyer may then decide to file a lawsuit on your behalf. A personal injury lawsuit will lay out the legal claims like negligence, product liability, fraud, wrongful death or allegations of wrongdoing against the defendant. The Defendant(s) can be anyone from a person, corporation, or another legal entity. They will be collectively be referred to as Defendants and may have lawyers analyzing the case facts just like your own attorney. Once a lawsuit is filed, the Defendant will have a period of time to respond to the lawsuit. In the State of Florida, Defendants have 20 days to file a response.
After these initial documents, which are called pleadings, are exchanged, the parties enter the discovery period. During discovery, the parties request evidence from each other. They may request records, documents, photographs, statements, and other relevant items. They may also ask to take the deposition of certain parties or witnesses or request medical examinations of injured parties.
After compiling this evidence, the parties may be able to reach a settlement agreement. If no settlement is reached, the parties will go to trial, where they will present evidence in the form of exhibits and witness testimony to argue claims.
Contact Gerson & Schwartz today to discuss your injury claim
At Gerson & Schwartz, our miami trial attorneys only represent Plaintiff’s seriously injured. Gerson & Schwartz lawyers are experienced in a variety of claims from cruise ship accidents, catastrophic injuries, and victims of crime. Our law firm is committed to helping our clients obtain legal compensation for harms caused by the negligence of third parties. All cases are handled under a contingent fees. For a free consultation with a Miami accident and injury lawyer call us at (877) 475-2905 email us at info@gslawusa.com