Frequently Asked Questions

• What exactly is a personal injury case?
• What is negligence?
• How do I know if I have a personal injury case?
• How much is my personal injury case worth?
• What should I do if I'm hurt in an accident?
• What shouldn't I do if I suffer a personal injury?
• What is the difference between compensatory and punitive damages? Which can I get?
• Why shouldn't I deal with insurance companies on my own?
• When should I call a lawyer?
• What is the likelihood that my case will go to trial?
• What happens if I was engaging in dangerous activity when I was injured?

What exactly is a personal injury case?

Personal injury cases arise from such a wide range of circumstances that it's impossible to list them all here. Some of the most common are car accidents, slip and fall injuries, motorcycle accidents, and work injuries, but any time someone is harmed by the negligence of another person or company, there might be a personal injury claim. In fact, personal injury lawyers often handle negligence claims that don't actually involve personal injuries at all - negligent destruction of property, for instance. A personal injury lawyer will be able to tell you whether or not you might have a case.

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What is negligence?

The law requires us to act with “reasonable care”. The specifics of what constitutes reasonable care vary somewhat from state to state and from situation to situation. When someone fails to act with the reasonable care required by a given circumstance, that's negligence. That's important to you because in order to recover for most personal injuries, you'll have to prove (with your attorney's help, of course) that another person or a business was negligent, and that the negligence caused your injuries.

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How do I know if I have a personal injury case?

The best way to find out whether or not you have a viable personal injury claim is to talk to a personal injury lawyer. In general, you and your attorney will have to prove three things in order to recover in a personal injury case:

• that you suffered damages
• that the defendant was negligent
• that the defendant's negligence caused your damages

Even if you have a valid claim, though, your attorney will have to investigate whether or not you would be able to collect on your claim. If the other party does not have insurance and does not have other assets that could be used to compensate you, then it may be that you have a valid claim but will be unable to collect compensation for it.

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How much is my personal injury case worth?

A number of factors figure into the monetary value of your personal injury claim. For instance, the value of your case is as follows:

• impacted by the nature and extent of your injuries
• the amount of your medical bills
• the amount of your lost wages
• the amount of your property damage
• the amount of your other financial losses
• the amount of your pain and suffering
• the amount of your present and future disability

Even when those factors are considered, there are significant variations in the value of a claim based on the following:

• the amount of insurance involved
• the assets of the defendant
• any partial fault on the part of the injured person
• the victim's willingness and ability to invest a long period of time in litigating the claim
• the need for a relatively quick settlement
• and more

Assessing the value of your case isn't an exact science, and your attorney won't be able to give you a definite value upfront. However, an experienced personal injury lawyer will know how to weigh the various factors to give you an overall picture of the strengths and weaknesses of your case.

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What should I do if I'm hurt in an accident?

First and foremost, get medical attention. At the same time, if you're able you should be creating a record that will help protect your claim. File a police report, either at the scene or as soon as possible afterward. Try to get names and contact information from any witnesses. If you're able, write down exactly what happened as soon as possible after the event. Accident scene photographs often provide valuable evidence that can't be duplicated after the fact. And, of course, talk to a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible so that you can get advice about how to proceed, what kind of records you should be keeping, and how to handle the inevitable phone calls from the other party's insurance company.

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What shouldn't I do if I suffer a personal injury?

Don't sign anything without consulting an attorney. Don't attempt to negotiate with an insurance company (your own or the other party's) without consulting an attorney. Don't make any kind of statement, even one the insurance company rep or other party tells you is “off the record”, without consulting an attorney. Don't downplay your injuries before you know the extent of them; it's not always immediately apparent how serious your injuries are, and if you've said you were “fine” at the scene, that may come back to haunt you. The bottom line is that it's best to get advice from an attorney before taking any kind of action outside of seeking medical attention.

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What is the difference between compensatory and punitive damages, and which can I get?

Compensatory damages are damages meant to compensate. They pay you back for your actual losses. In some states, compensatory damages may cover only actual economic losses, like medical bills and lost income. In others, compensatory damages may include compensation for things like pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. The purpose of compensatory damages is to put you as nearly as possible back in the position you would have been in had the defendant's negligence not occurred. Punitive damages, on the other hand, are intended to punish the defendant and to discourage others from engaging in the kind of negligence involved in your case. Some states have eliminated or “capped” punitive damage awards. Where they are allowed, an award of punitive damages typically requires a showing of something more than mere negligence.

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Why shouldn't I deal with insurance companies on my own?

No insurance company has your best interests at heart. The business of an insurance company is to take in as many premiums as possible while paying out as few claims as possible. Their representatives are trained to minimize or outright deny your claim, and they employ a variety of tactics to accomplish that, sometimes even pretending to be on your side and want to help you get your claim resolved quickly. An experienced personal injury lawyer knows how to work with - and against - insurance companies.

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When should I call a lawyer?

Immediately after your injury would be ideal. If it's past that point and you haven't already contacted an attorney, the second-best time would be now; call us at 1 (617) 227-8118 and we'll set you up a free consultation. Every state has different statutes of limitations - time periods that can forever bar you from bringing a personal injury claim. Even if you're well within the limitations period, though, timely legal advice can be critical. If you've browsed the site, you know that there's a lot to think about - maintaining records, who you can and cannot talk to, and the necessity of following your doctor's advice to the letter, just to name a few key issues. Getting advice and guidance from a personal injury lawyer as early as possible will help you avoid mistakes that could later harm your case.

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What is the likelihood that my case will go to trial?

Less than 25 percent of personal injury cases go to trial, and most of those settle before the trial ends. Whether or not your case goes to trial, though, isn't dependent just on the odds. It's dependent on a variety of factors like the value of the claim, the insurance company involved, the certainty of the evidence, and more. Your attorney will be able to give you a better sense of whether or not yours is a case that will likely go to trial, but, just like case valuation, the analysis is not an exact science.

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What happens if I was engaging in dangerous activity when I was injured?

If you were engaging in a dangerous activity or were otherwise aware of a risk that you could be injured, you might be deemed to have “assumed the risk”. In many personal injury cases “assumption of risk” is a valid defense to a plaintiff's claim. Assumption of risk is most commonly used as a defense in products liability cases when the plaintiff failed to follow directions or warnings or to properly maintain the product.

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