The Intake Process for Car Accident Litigation

A lawyer that specializes in the area of car accident litigation will help you determine how strong your case is and how the settlement may be worth. But this is only feasible with all the necessary information.

Discovery is the first stage of an auto accident lawsuits accident law firms; more.., accident case. In this phase, attorneys and their teams will exchange documents and ask questions under the oath.

Documentation

Documentation is an integral part of the work in a car accident. This can include evidence like photographs, medical records or witness statements. The more evidence you have, the better your case will be.

A police report is the first piece of paper you should have. Typically, the police officer who arrives at the scene of the accident will prepare an investigation report. This will contain important information about the circumstances of the crash and who was responsible for the incident.

Your lawyer may also utilize the report of a law enforcement officer to pursue additional evidence, if needed. For instance, if the incident occurred at a company, an employee at that area may have recorded video footage of the incident. If this is the case, you should request a copy from the business.

Keep track of any expenses you incur in the aftermath of the accident. This could include medical bills or records of treatment, receipts for medication rental car costs for in-home assistance, care at home transport costs, and many more. Additionally, you must document any lost income because of your accident. This can include old pay stubs as well as tax returns.

You should also obtain the names of witnesses. These witnesses can be important sources of information in your case, especially those who are able to be a witness in a trial. However, it's important to keep in mind that witnesses can change their stories over time and could forget specific details about the incident.

Intake and Investigation

Whether you have filed an insurance company or have started an action against the at-fault driver, the process of obtaining an intake is essential to obtaining full and fair compensation for your injuries from a crash. Your lawyer will begin by looking over your medical records, and obtaining copies accident reports and other evidence. They will also go to and document the accident scene.

This information will allow them to comprehend the severity of your injuries as well as the future and projected costs for your emotional and physical suffering. Then, they will look at your current and future financial losses to determine the worth of your case. Your damages may include not just future and present medical expenses, but also lost income and property damage.

Your lawyer will also conduct an investigation into the incident, including interviewing witnesses and analyzing all available evidence. They will also gather the driver who was at fault and their driving cell phone records to see how they used their vehicle at the time of the accident. This is especially important if there was a collision involving an Uber or Lyft car, or any other evidence that suggests the driver was working on the clock.

Additionally the lawyer may inquire about the defendant's past criminal and traffic-related offenses as part of the discovery process. Generally speaking, these facts are not admissible in court but they could be helpful to undermine the credibility of a defendant during cross-examination.

The process of negotiating a settlement

Once you have received the medical records, you can begin settlement negotiation. The insurance company will often make an initial offer that is less than the amount you demanded in your letter. This is a method to assess the strength of your argument. When you counteroffer, it's essential to highlight the most compelling arguments in your favor. For example, that the insurance company was at fault and that there were serious injuries as well as expensive medical expenses. The process of negotiating back and forth should eventually result in an appropriate and fair amount.

A skilled accident lawyer can effectively argue your claim's merits including presenting evidence to back your losses. This may include photos of the car's damage as well as a police report and witness testimony. We can calculate the various components of your claim, including loss of income along with pain and suffering as well as a police report.

If the insurance company refuses to pay an acceptable amount at this point, we could bring a lawsuit. A trial usually lasts for about two or three days and auto accident law firms is either heard by an individual judge (called a bench trial) or jurors. If your case settles prior to this stage it can take a few months. Your attorney may also be able to file a summary motion to enter judgment. This is a way of presenting all the evidence in your favor and arguing that it's impossible for the opposing side to prevail.

Filing a Lawsuit

In a majority of car accident cases parties can settle their disputes outside of court. Our team will work to help you negotiate an agreement with the insurance company, or directly with the at-fault party. If a settlement isn't reached, our attorneys will file a suit against the defendant. The Complaint outlines your claims and allegations about the auto accident lawsuits and why you are entitled to compensation. The defendant will be served with the Complaint and given a particular amount of time to respond to it.

The discovery phase is the time when our attorneys and the defendant begin to exchange documents and other information and ask questions via interrogatories or depositions. Our team will ask the defendant's attorney questions regarding their interpretation of events, including the circumstances under which they believe the crash took place and what injuries you have suffered. We will also seek experts to back our assertions.

During the discovery stage, your lawyer will prepare legal documents referred to as motions to the court to be decided by the judge. This may include requesting the court to block evidence or to schedule a trial. It could take a year or more to complete the process of discovery and to set a trial date for your case. This is why it's crucial to find a knowledgeable Long Island car accident attorney early in the process.