When you get hurt in an accident, you should turn to a lawyer for help. Our attorneys represent injury victims in all sorts of accident cases, from car accidents to slip and falls, from work injuries to wrongful death.
We can help you fight insurance companies to get the damages that you and your family need. Do not try to negotiate with insurance without a lawyer on your side, as they will do whatever they can to reduce payouts and blame the victim.
For a free case review, call our personal injury lawyers at Rhatigan Law Offices at (312) 578-8502 today.
What Constitutes a Personal Injury Case in Burbank, IL?
To have a personal injury case under Illinois law, you usually need to have been the victim of either negligence or intentional injuries. Intentional injury cases require assault and/or battery, but negligence claims are much more common and much more complex.
First, you need someone to sue for negligence. Finding the at-fault party can be complicated if you are suing a property owner/operator, a company, or another person who was not present at the accident. However, our lawyers can help you locate the right party to sue.
Second, your case needs to meet the four elements of negligence:
- The defendant owed the victim a legal duty
- The defendant breached/violated that duty
- That breach was what caused the accident
- The victim suffered damages.
For example, in a car accident case, the other driver might have run a red light in violation of traffic laws and injured you because of it. As another example, a property owner might have left their sidewalk icy in violation of local ordinances and reasonable burdens on property owners, causing you to slip and get hurt.
How Do Courts Determine Fault in an Injury Case?
Looking at the examples above, it might seem clear, at first, who was at fault: if someone ran a red light, then they are at fault; if a property owner did not clear their sidewalk, they are at fault. However, these cases can be more complicated. For example, if the other driver ran the red light because their brakes malfunctioned, they might not be at fault; if the property owner rented the property out, the tenant might be at fault instead.
Our lawyers often need to break down the facts, research exactly what happened, and ensure we are suing the parties who actually breached a legal duty.
There may also be cases where an employer or another party is at fault for something someone else did. This comes up most often when someone injures you while they were working, and their employer takes on the liability.
Cases can also involve multiple at-fault parties, in which case courts will assign a percentage of fault to each party.
Damages Available in an Injury Case in Burbank, IL
When you file your case against the at-fault party, we are usually looking for two broad categories of damages:
- Economic damages, which reimburse you for medical bills, lost earnings, and other expenses the accident caused you
- Non-economic damages, which reimburse you for the physical, mental, and emotional experiences the accident caused you – a.k.a. pain and suffering.
Economic damages focus on medical bills and lost earnings, but you may also claim compensation for property damage, childcare costs, household services, and other replacement services. Non-economic damages focus on pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other intangible harms.
Injuries have no set prices for each injury; instead, your damages are personalized to your specific losses. Even non-economic damages are tied to the overall severity of your injury and how it affects your life.
Do I File a Lawsuit or Insurance Claim for My Personal Injury Case?
Often, victims will file both an insurance claim and a lawsuit. Insurance may be able to cover your damages through a claim if the defendant has insurance to cover the situation. However, these insurance companies are unlikely to pay up without a fight, which might mean taking the case to court.
Insurance companies may give an initial settlement offer, but it might not account for your specific damages. These early settlements are often based on the insurance company’s profit margins, and the settlement thus might be far too low.
If we can negotiate a fair settlement, your case can end quickly and the insurance company may pay up. If not, we can file a lawsuit to take them to trial.
Once your case is filed in court, you are not locked into going to trial. Your case can still settle in a last-minute “courthouse steps” settlement if the insurance company decides to pay what they owe you.
Otherwise, we will see them in court.
Do I Have to Testify in My Personal Injury Case?
In most injury cases, your testimony will be vital in building the story of what happened. At the very least, your testimony will be the primary evidence of your pain and suffering damages.
Occasionally, injuries knock victims unconscious, meaning they cannot say much about the actual injury. Medical malpractice claims also see the victim unconscious during surgery, potentially blocking them from being able to say what happened. However, you still have vital info about the lead-up and aftermath of the injury.
If your case settles before trial, you can usually avoid testifying. However, you might still need to sit for a deposition, which takes place in an office instead of a courtroom.
If there is a reason you might want to avoid testifying – e.g., you do not want to relive the trauma – we can look into settling early or taking other steps to avoid in-court testimony.
How Much is My Case Worth?
As mentioned, every case is different. While we can broadly say that you should be entitled to pain and suffering, medical bills, and lost wages, we cannot analyze the specific values without examining the facts of your case.
Call Our Personal Injury Lawyers to Get Started
For a free initial case review with the personal injury attorneys at Rhatigan Law Offices, call (312) 578-8502.
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