Injury Litigation

Injuries litigation is the legal procedure that allows you to seek compensation for your injuries and losses. Your injury attorney will build solid evidence for your case, including eyewitness testimony in the form of defendant statements, expert witness opinions.

Your lawyer will then start the lawsuit. Once the defendant has responded and the case is moved to an investigation stage, also known as discovery.

The Complaint

Before the lawsuit can be filed, an injured person (plaintiff) must conduct pre-lawsuit discovery. This involves studying police accident reports, conducting informal discovery and identifying at-fault parties.

After the plaintiff has completed this, they are able to make a complaint and summons. The complaint is a formal declaration of the party who is being sued and describes the harm caused by the defendant's actions or inaction. It typically contains a request for damages for injuries suffered by the victim, including medical bills as well as lost wages along with pain and suffering and other damages.

The defendant has 30 days to respond, also referred to as an answer. In this response, the defendant is able to acknowledge or deny the allegations made in the complaint. They may also make a counterclaim or add a third-party defendant the suit.

During the discovery stage, both parties will exchange pertinent information about their positions and evidence. This phase includes depositions (also known as interrogatories) as well as written questions (also called interrogatories) as well as requests for documents. This phase typically accounts for the major portion of the litigation timeline. In this phase, if there are any settlement opportunities that are discussed, they will be discussed. Otherwise the case will go to trial. During this time, your attorney will tell your story before a judge or jury and the defendant will defend themselves.

The Discovery Phase

The discovery phase is a formal process that permits your legal team and the party at fault to exchange information and collect evidence. This can include witness testimony, details of your medical treatment, as well as evidence of losses you've suffered. Your attorney can use several tools to assist you during discovery, such as interrogatories or requests for documents. Requests for documents are the requests to provide all relevant evidence that are within each party's control. Interrogatories require written responses. Requests for admissions ask the other party to acknowledge certain facts. This can save time and money as attorneys do not need to prove the facts uncontested in court. Depositions are live conversations with witnesses, where your attorney can ask them questions about the incident under oath. Their answers will be recorded and transcribing.

Discovery may appear to be an uncomfortable, long and tedious process, but it is essential to collect the evidence you require to win your belgrade injury attorney claim. During your consultation for free the attorney can discuss the details of the discovery process. If you attempt to conceal a preexisting injury attorney that worsened due to a preexisting medical condition the information could be discovered during discovery and your case could be thrown out.

The Negotiation Phase

Most cases of injury aim to settle through negotiations. This process usually involves an exchange of information back and forth between your lawyer and that of the insurer of the party who is responsible. This may include informal conversations/correspondence (by phone, in meetings, by email) where the parties trade offers and counter-offers. Your lawyer can assist you decide on a number to request for your settlement, and then assist in negotiations.

The amount of damages, such as medical bills, lost wages and future loss, is a factor that is constantly changing. Your injuries could get worse over time, which can increase your future losses and decrease the value of your current losses. Your lawyer will ensure that your damages are dependent on the current condition of your injuries, and injury attorney provide an accurate prognosis for your future recovery.

Insurance companies typically attempt to limit the amount they pay by disputing certain elements of your claim. This can result in a delay in settlement negotiations. However your lawyer will have strategies to help you overcome these obstacles to get the best possible outcome for your case. Negotiating an agreement may take a long time or even years. Negotiations can last for months or even a whole year based on many different factors.

The Trial Phase

While the majority of injuries cases are resolved through settlement negotiations outside of court, your attorney may decide to bring your case to trial if a fair solution is not reached. This can be a stressful lengthy, costly and expensive procedure. The jury must also decide if you should be compensated for your injuries, and should they, if so, in what amount. Your lawyer must thoroughly investigate your case in order to understand the circumstances of your injury, as well as the severity of damages, injuries and the costs.

Your attorney will then call witnesses and experts and present physical evidence, including photographs documents, documents, and medical reports. This is known as the case-in chief phase. The defense attorney will call witnesses to testify in defense and argue that the plaintiff should not be entitled to damages. The judge or jury evaluates the evidence and arguments of both parties.

The judge will then outline the legal requirements that must be met in order for the jury to come up with a verdict for the plaintiff and against the defendant. This is referred to as jury instruction. Then, each side presents their closing arguments. If the jury cannot agree on a decision, the judge will declare that the trial a mistrial. If you are not happy with the results of your trial, there may be an appeal available.