When a lawyer takes your personal injury case in Decatur, there’s a lot they have to take into account. A variety of factors determine whether you receive a settlement and how much you get. While considering how much you may be entitled to, your personal injury attorney in Georgia will weigh the following factors.
1. Severity of the Injury
The extent of the injury, and consequently the amount of money it takes to repair it, is one of the most important factors in a case. A lot depends on whether you have a hard or soft injury. Soft injuries, including bruises, small lacerations, and sprains, tend to be fairly minor.
Hard injuries can have a more significant impact on your quality of life and ability to work, so they often lead to higher settlements. Hard injuries include traumatic brain injuries, bone fractures, spinal damage, and significant joint damage. People with one or more hard injuries typically receive higher settlements than those with soft injuries.
On the same note, the amount of medical treatment needed for an injury also influences the outcome of a case. While it may be easy to determine damages for an injury that no longer needs treatment, it can be more challenging to assess damages for something that requires ongoing treatment.
2. Liability in a Personal Injury Case
Another prominent factor in personal injury cases is liability. Lawyers, insurance companies, and the courts use a wide range of methods to determine who assumes fault for an accident. Typically, the other party must be careless or negligent in their actions for the court to assign fault. In cases where multiple parties are potentially at fault, the court may assign a percentage of liability to each party. These calculations are then used to determine how much each party must pay for a personal injury claim. In some cases, the person who sustains the injury is also at fault. In these cases, the injured person is liable for their own expenses.
3. Amount of Evidence in the Case
In the courtroom, it all comes down to documentation. Your lawyer’s job is to prove that the other party was negligent and that their carelessness led to an injury with measurable damages. While your attorney collects evidence that the other party is responsible, the other side aims to show that they did everything possible to prevent damage or injury.
When it comes to damages, the court looks at medical bills, loss of income, potential long-term loss of earnings, rehabilitation expenses, and other documents to assess the extent of the costs incurred as a result of the accident. It’s important to note that many personal injury cases never make it to court, since they are settled in advance of the court date. Evidence is still essential, however since it demonstrates to the responsible party that you have a strong case and that settling is in their best interest.
Many other factors can affect your personal injury case, including the number of victims in the accident, precedence in similar cases, exposure, special damages, and limitations on a victim’s activities as a result of the accident. A skilled personal injury lawyer can take all of these considerations into account while building your case.
Get Help with Your Personal Injury Case
Negotiating with insurance companies is exceptionally stressful when you’re trying to recover from a serious accident injury. Turn your case over to Schnipper Law, P.C. and let us handle the financial and legal side of things. Call us at (404) 983-6051 for a free case evaluation.
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