If you are injured in an accident, whether on the road, in the workplace or some other site, you may be tempted to handle the case yourself. After all, your injuries are visible, so the offender should be willing to pay, right? Well, making this sort of assumption can be a mistake.

Victims who try to go it alone after an accident often wind up with nothing or, at best, a low ball settlement offer. To increase the odds of success, always retain an experienced personal injury lawyer who can establish the negligence of the other party.

To help you better understand the necessity of working with a competent accident attorney, the following is a discussion of some important elements of negligence, which has to be proven to win a civil lawsuit for financial damages.

Duty

The first thing your lawyer will look for is the presence of a duty to protect you. If not, there is no case.

For example, a motorist who drinks and gets behind the wheel has failed their duty as a licensed driver not to harm others on the road. A doctor or nurse should give you the appropriate medication to make you well. Anything else can be a failure of that duty.

Rest assured that the person you plan to sue for damages will argue they had no duty to protect you. Your lawyer will know the contemporary legal interpretation of duty in your jurisdiction and can establish its presence in the case facts.

Cause

Even if you have visible injuries with medical reports to describe them, you still have to prove that the accident was the direct cause of the damages.

The defendant and their legal team will surely claim that something else caused your injuries. For this reason, you need a lawyer to help you document your physical condition from the start. Otherwise, the defense can more easily opine that something in the interim is the reason you are hurt and not the accident itself.

Comparative Negligence

Now, here is where many victims lose their cases. They get blamed for causing all or some of the accident. They have no legal advisor and make crucial errors.

Some accident victims talk a bit too much. Saying something as simple as "sorry," to the defendant, for whatever reason, can ruin a case. The comment can be taken out of context to make it seem you thought you caused the entire accident.

Again, contact a personal injury lawyer immediately after an accident. They will instruct you on what to say and do throughout the litigation.

Prove Negligence, Win Your Case

As you can see, proving negligence can be tricky. Hire a compassionate personal injury lawyer to help you establish the negligence of the other party.

You deserve justice for the damage done. For more information, check out a website like http://www.gdamianilaw.com.

Share