Whether negotiating a compensation settlement with the liable party’s insurance company or arguing the merits of a personal injury lawsuit before a judge, a knowledgeable attorney can fight for maximum compensation. Their legal experience enables them to find and use the evidence and documentation that make a strong case.
A serious injury endangers not only your health but also your family’s finances and future. Recovering fair compensation can mean the difference between struggling and thriving in the years ahead. A Jacksonville personal injury lawyer can work with you to build a compensation claim that protects your rights and produces the best possible outcome.
What Evidence Can My Jacksonville Personal Injury Attorney Gather to Prove My Damages?
If you were injured because of another’s negligent or wrongful act, you may be able to recover compensation for your losses. Because each accident and each injury victim is unique, a personal injury attorney can’t estimate how much compensation you deserve until their investigation is complete.
Generally, a lawyer focused on maximizing your compensation may look to support your claim by collecting and preserving evidence and documentation of the following:
Medical Expenses
Your lawyer can gather medical records, medical bills, and expert opinions to confirm:
- The accident directly caused your injuries
- You have attended all of your medical appointments
- The costs of your medical care to date
- Your healthcare team’s estimation of your future medical costs
Property Loss
Your attorney will collect receipts and invoices to prove the costs of repairing or replacing your car, clothing, electronics, or other property damaged due to someone else’s negligence.
Out-Of-Pocket Expenses
Your personal injury lawyer can gather documentation to prove your other out-of-pocket expenses related to your injuries, such as:
- Assistance with childcare, home maintenance, errands, and everyday chores you cannot perform while injured
- Modifications of your home and vehicle to adapt to your current needs
Lost Income
Your employment records and paystubs can prove all wages, bonuses, and benefits you have lost during recovery, as well as your loss of future earnings if you can’t return to work or have a diminished earning capacity because of your injuries.
Non-Economic Losses
An injury can force you to sustain subjective losses that require more than copies of paid receipts to prove damages. A Jacksonville injury lawyer can emphasize these types of losses with evidence coming in the form of:
- Testimony from medical and psychological experts
- Mental health diagnoses
- Personal diaries
- Accounts from your family and friends explaining the extent of your suffering
Types of non-economic damages you may qualify for include:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Mental anguish
- Loss of companionship
- The daily emotional and physical impact of a disability or disfigurement
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of quality of life
How Could Modified Comparative Negligence Affect Your Compensation Settlement Or Judgment?
If you are partially at fault for the accident that caused your injury, you may still recover some financial compensation for your damages.
Per Florida Statutes § 768.81, Florida’s modified comparative negligence law bars you from collecting compensation if you were more than 50% at fault for an accident. If you were 50% or less to blame, you may recover compensation after deducting your portion of fault.
For example, evidence indicating you were 30% to blame for an accident means you would only be allowed to collect 70% of your losses. Your Jacksonville injury attorney can work to minimize or eliminate your percentage of fault so you receive as much compensation as possible.
Which is Better: Negotiating a Settlement or Going to Trial?
There are benefits and drawbacks to both approaches when pursuing maximum compensation for a severe injury.
Negotiations
Most personal injury claims reach a settlement through negotiations between the injury victim’s attorney and the at-fault party’s insurance company. Your injury lawyer will complete and file your insurance claim and then negotiate with the insurance adjuster to reach a fair value for that claim.
Negotiating a compensation settlement puts you and the insurer in charge of how much the settlement amount will be. You can say no and go to trial if you feel the other side is not negotiating in good faith. The negotiation process is usually faster and less expensive than a trial.
Trials
Trials are more expensive than settlement negotiations and can take longer due to pre-trial discovery, appeals, and other factors related to the lgal process. Because the judgment or verdict is out of your hands, the stress of going through a trial and not knowing how it will end can also be difficult.
Going to court is generally a last resort if your Jacksonville injury lawyer cannot collect a fair settlement from the responsible party’s insurance provider. While this outcome is rare, you can rest assured that if your case reaches this point, your attorney will present your case to a judge and jury and fight for every dime you deserve.
What You Can Do to Improve Your Personal Injury Compensation Settlement Or Judgment
A personal injury law firm will help you fight for the justice you deserve. The following are steps you can take along the way that may benefit your claim:
- Seek medical attention immediately after the accident. You may be hurt and not realize it, and it’s important to establish a direct connection between the accident and your injury.
- Report the accident to the police. When speaking of the accident and your injury, be brief and answer questions honestly. Do not assume blame or apologize for the accident.
- Speak with a Jacksonville personal injury attorney before accepting a settlement from an insurer. Dealing with negotiations and administrative details becomes burdensome when you’re suffering, and it’s tempting to take the first offer, but it will likely not cover all your losses.
- Keep a personal journal of your medical care and the impact of your injury on your daily life. Supplement your written thoughts with photographs of any visible injuries as you progress through treatment.
Our Injury Attorneys Here to Help—Contact Our Jacksonville Legal Team Today
At the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine, we offer accident victims a free, no-obligation case consultation. If we take on your case, you pay no fees unless we win compensation for you. You worry about getting better, and we’ll take care of everything else.
Whether you were injured in a car accident, truck accident, motorcycle accident, pedestrian accident, defective product accident, slip and fall accident, or another type of personal injury accident, our experienced attorneys are here to help. Contact us today to learn more about the benefits of securing legal representation with our Jacksonville personal injury lawyers for assistance with your claim.
