Personal injury attorneys help accident victims and their family members seek compensation for medical bills and other damages caused by a preventable accident.
The legal team at Florin|Roebig has over 30 years of experience in providing high-quality legal representation in all areas of personal injury law.
Find out about personal injury claims, how to file them, how a personal injury lawyer can help with your case, and why you should consider Florin|Roebig law firm for your case.
What Do Personal Injury Attorneys Do?
Personal injury attorneys help accident victims restore themselves financially in the wake of an accident.
In 2020, there were more than 24 million emergency department visits in the U.S. due to unintentional injuries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC also reports that unintentional injury is the fourth-leading cause of death in the U.S. People suffer personal injuries every day, often due to preventable accidents caused by the negligence of another party or parties.
Yet a personal injury lawyer, also known as an accident lawyer, can help you get paid for medical care and other expenses that result from the accident.
Some duties of personal injury attorneys include:
- File your personal injury claim
- Act on your behalf in legal settings
- Negotiate a fair settlement amount
- Communicate with the defendant’s lawyer(s)
- Communicate with insurance companies
- Find evidence to support your case
- Gather witness statements, medical records, and other documentation
- Represent your case if it goes to trial
- Provide clear, consistent, and trustworthy legal advice throughout your case
How Personal Injury Cases Work
Once you decide to file a personal injury claim, your attorney can walk you through the process and explain how it works. They will ensure you stay informed throughout your case.
In general, personal injury claims follow these steps:
- File the claim: Your personal injury attorney files your claim, notifying the defendant and their lawyers. The defendant will then have a chance to respond to or dispute the claim.
- Discovery process: Once the defendant responds to your claim, each side has a chance to request details regarding the case from the other party.
- Settlement negotiations: The personal injury attorney will request a settlement amount. After a round of back-and-forth negotiations, both parties will either agree to a settlement amount or disagree, sending your claim to trial.
- Personal injury lawsuit: Once your case goes to court, it is known as a lawsuit. A judge and jury will hear the case and a verdict (judgment) will be rendered.
Personal injury attorneys play an important role throughout the claims process. That is, claimants who hire attorneys receive higher settlements on average than those who do not hire attorneys.
Give yourself optimal chances of receiving the compensation you deserve by reaching out to our board-certified team of attorneys. Call Florin|Roebig now — the initial consultation is completely free.
Types Of Personal Injury Cases Florin|Roebig Accepts
Personal injury cases can vary widely. The type of case can affect the laws that apply to it. Personal injury attorneys tend to specialize in certain types of cases, known as practice areas.
Specialization allows attorneys to gain skills and experience over time that aids them when they represent your case.
Personal injury accident cases range from those involving minor injuries, like broken bones, to those involving catastrophic injuries, or life-altering, serious injuries.
Some common types of cases the Florin|Roebig law firm accepts include:
A personal injury lawyer can help you pursue compensation for your medical bills as well as any pain and suffering.
Why Start A Personal Injury Case?
Mounting medical expenses, lost wages, and severe physical injuries are just a few of the ways that a personal injury can affect a person or their loved ones.
If you have suffered an injury, you may want to file a claim against the party that caused it. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you seek compensation from the negligent party as well as the insurance company.
In addition to recovering damages for tangible things, like lost wages or medical bills resulting from the accident, filing a personal injury claim holds the negligent party accountable.
Here are the top four reasons to file a personal injury lawsuit:
1. Covering Medical Expenses
Some injuries, such as a brain injury, can lead to multiple doctor appointments, emergency medical treatment, or surgeries.
If you suffered mental or emotional anguish, counseling, therapy, and other forms of mental healthcare may also be necessary.
Even with insurance, these expenses can mount quickly and be overwhelming for even the most financially stable individuals.
Filing a claim for your injury can cover the medical costs caused by the accident. In some cases, personal injury claims can apply to future medical expenses as well.
2. Recovering Other Damages
Sometimes, you may suffer a loss of enjoyment of life or a loss of a relationship due catastrophic injuries caused by your accident.
For example, if you lose the use of your legs due to a motor vehicle accident, you may want compensation for things you will miss out on in life.
Such damages include loss of enjoyment of life, lost earning potential, or loss of quality of life.
Property damage to a vehicle or other property harmed in the accident may also be covered by the claim settlement.
3. Avoiding Future Accidents
Perhaps one of the most important reasons to file a personal injury claim is to help avoid future, repeat accidents. If a person was driving recklessly and caused an auto accident, society will want that person held accountable.
Pursuing damages and exposing the person’s fault in the accident will help deter them from engaging in future risky behavior. It can also serve as an example to others.
4. Holding the Negligent Party Accountable
Holding the at-fault party responsible is important, but it is equally important to hold your insurance company and the negligent party’s insurance company accountable.
Insurance companies must protect their own rights, which means they will likely try to compensate accident victims with a low settlement offer.
Filing a personal injury claim and seeking legal advice from an attorney ensures you will have help in fighting for the compensation you deserve according to your losses.
When To Hire A Personal Injury Lawyer
There is no set deadline for when to hire a personal injury attorney following an accident. However, it is in your best interest to seek legal advice as soon as possible in order to avoid being without counsel throughout the process.
For certain claims, it is extremely important to take legal steps in a timely manner. Medical malpractice cases, for example, can be extremely lengthy and require that the doctor be notified within a certain amount of time in some states.
No matter the type of case, hiring a personal injury attorney with experience in your type of case is crucial.
Consider hiring a personal injury law firm if you experience any of the following:
- Car accident injuries that require medical care
- Work-related injuries that require medical care
- Injuries in a car accident where the other driver is uninsured
- Injuries in an auto accident involving a third-party organization, like Uber, Lyft, or a trucking company
- Negligence from a doctor or hospital that leads to your or your child’s injuries
- Fault in a car accident due to a defective car part
- Injuries caused in a public place, like airport injuries, hotel injuries, or amusement park injuries
Questions To Ask A Personal Injury Attorney
To protect your own legal interests, you should never pursue a personal injury claim without hiring an experienced lawyer.
Before you seek an attorney, you may want to prepare any questions you have. This can ease the process and help you make an informed decision.
Here are 7 questions to ask before hiring a personal injury lawyer:
1. Have you tried personal injury cases before?
Hiring experienced trial lawyers can be crucial to the outcome of your claim. Most claims settle out of court, but your attorney should be ready to represent your claim if it goes to trial.
Florin|Roebig has nearly four decades of experience in representing personal injury cases and our attorneys are board-certified trial lawyers.
2. What legal fees do you charge?
Knowing the attorney fees upfront can be an important deciding factor in who you hire. Personal injury lawyers typically receive a percentage of recovered damages or work on a contingency fee basis.
It is also necessary to understand if you will be responsible for any legal fees if you do not recover damages. Be sure that you have a clear fee agreement prior to signing on with an attorney.
The Florin|Roebig law firm always works on a contingency fee basis, meaning we don’t receive any payments unless we win your case.
3. Will my personal injury case go to trial?
While it would be optimal for each case to be resolved with a favorable settlement out of court for both parties, this is not always the outcome.
Your personal injury lawyer should prepare for your case to go to trial if a settlement offer cannot be agreed upon.
When asking about the possibility of a trial for your claim, be sure to ask about your attorney’s success rate and track record for personal injury cases.
To date, Florin|Roebig personal injury attorneys have won more than $1 billion in case awards for their clients nationwide.
4. Which personal injury attorney will work on my case?
Some law firms are not transparent from the beginning about who will be handling your individual case. Yet building a strong attorney-client relationship with your attorney is crucial to feeling comfortable during your case.
Ask for specific details on attorneys in the law firm and request contact information for the lawyer who will oversee your claim in case you have questions.
5. What will be expected of me during the claims process?
If you are an injury victim, ask if you will be allowed to attend depositions and informative meetings. If not, ask during your initial case evaluation how the law firm intends to keep you informed as the case proceeds.
6. Can your law firm provide references?
Before making an ultimate decision, it may be a good idea to speak to a previous client who can provide a testimonial of their experience in working with the potential attorney.
Florin|Roebig can provide a documented track record of successful case results and has received numerous testimonials from satisfied personal injury clients.
7. What is my personal injury case worth?
While no one can tell you the exact worth of your case, an experienced personal injury attorney should be able to provide a range for reference.
They may also be able to determine approximately how much you may possibly recover based on specific details related to your case.
Recoverable Damages In Personal Injury Cases
Each person’s incident is unique to them, and each accident can lead to a myriad of injuries. The ways you are affected, known as damages, can depend on a range of factors.
First, your personal injury lawyer must prove negligence on behalf of the at-fault party.
Whether you can recover damages will then depend on your state’s individual law regarding negligence and the statute of limitations, or how long you have to file.
Damages are awarded based on the type of claim you are trying to pursue. In general, damages are classified as compensatory, punitive, and general.