A personal injury can happen at any time, anywhere. Legally, personal injury is defined as an injury caused by the negligent or irresponsible behavior of another. If you’ve sustained one, it can be difficult to navigate whether or not you have a legal case. The immediate physical and emotional toll of an injury can be mentally and emotionally complex. There is so much misinformation out there that can confuse the savviest of people.
Here are some of 2020’s most common facts and fallacies of personal injury litigation:
Fiction: Personal injury litigation is only for car accidents
Many people immediately associate personal injury litigation with car accidents, but it actually applies to a wide variety of situations. Some of the most common cases involving personal injury include:
- Defective Car Seats
- Railroad Accidents
- Trucking Accidents
- Airplane Accidents
- Boating Accidents
- Pedestrian Accidents
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Defective Airbags
- Defective Seat Belts
- Product Liability
- Slip & Fall
- Roadway Design
- Dog Bites
- Premises Liability
- Wrongful Death
Fact: Insurance companies compensate you for the damages, but that doesn’t mean you can count them as a friend.
Insurance companies exist to make money. If you’ve been injured because of the negligence of another person, a corporation, the government, etc, insurance coverage is responsible for paying the damages won by the injured party. But that doesn’t mean they will fairly value your case; if they can find a way to reduce the damages they must pay, you can be sure they will do so.
Fiction: Successful personal injury cases are quick
When you get injured, medical bills tend to add up quickly. Physical pain and inconvenience coupled with mental and emotional stress usually lead to anger, impatience, and a simple desire for things to return to normal. Unfortunately, the personal injury lawsuit process takes time. First, you want to understand the full extent of your injuries before agreeing to any settlement. Healing takes time.
Second, it may take months of careful planning, documentation, and gathering evidence to force the insurance company to pay or for a jury to hold the responsible party accountable.
Fact: Personal injury attorneys do not require money upfront in order to take your case.
Are you worried that you can’t afford an attorney? While many attorneys in other areas require upfront payment, in personal injury attorneys don’t get paid until their clients get paid. Not only are you, the client, bearing the physical pain of an injury, but you also have to deal with the significant financial hardship that comes from the mounting medical bills and inability to return to work for something that wasn’t your fault.
At Gokal Law Group, Inc., we represent our clients on a contingency fee basis. What this means is that the attorney doesn’t get paid until you get paid. Additionally, we advance the costs of litigation on behalf of the client. This includes the team of expert witnesses we need to hire in order to prove our case and oppose the testimony of the defendant’s expert witnesses.
Gokal Law Group is a family firm that treats our clients as if they were our own flesh and blood. We fight for our clients as we would our own children, sisters, brothers, and parents. We are our clients’ warriors, fighting to bring them justice and right the wrongs they have endured.
Each attorney has a specific practice area for which they are tried, tested, and battle-ready. They have vast years of experience in their practice area, providing them the knowledge, skills, and vision to fight and win. Learn more about Gokal Law Group.