Unless you’re a personal injury lawyer or you’ve had the unfortunate experience of dealing with one of these cases personally, you’re probably unsure what is categorized as a personal injury and what constitutes a personal injury case. If you’re reading this blog, there’s a good chance that you want to know more about this type of case, as well as what you should look to when it comes time to dealing with a personal injury of your own.
We here at Robert J. DeBry and Associates have come up with a short yet effective guide to personal injury cases to better help you understand exactly what a personal injury is.
Personal Injury Cases Explained
Personal injuries arise when the victim suffers bodily harm due to another party’s recklessness or irresponsibility. For example, if you’re walking through your local grocery store and happen to slip on a puddle that hasn’t been taken care of by the staff or hasn’t been exposed as a danger to the public, you’ve become a victim of a personal injury. For more on what is categorized as a case that a personal injury lawyer would cover, you can read one of our more recent blog posts that discusses just that.
Who’s Responsible? — Determining who the negligent party is can be done through two types of evidence: direct evidence and circumstantial evidence.
Direct evidence — The evidence can be anything that comes from the personal knowledge of witnesses, images, video footage, or actual substances from the accident.
Circumstantial evidence — This evidence requires facts to draw an inference based on any evidence presented.
The Types of Settlements
Personal injury cases can be approached in two different ways, but a personal injury lawyer will tell you that one is more common than the other. The two ways that a personal injury lawsuit can be settled is through a formal lawsuit or through an informal settlement.
Formal Lawsuits — A formal personal injury case starts when a private individual files a civil complaint against another person, business, corporation or government agency. The plaintiff then claims that the defendant acted carelessly in connection with the accident which resulted in their injury; this process is known as “filing a lawsuit.”
Informal Settlement — This is the most common way that a personal injury case is settled. The dispute usually involves a personal injury lawyer, insurance companies and insurers representing both sides. A settlement oftentimes takes place in the form of a negotiation, which is then followed by a written agreement in which both parties forgo a lawsuit, choosing to instead resolve the issue through compensation.
This is a detailed description of what a personal injury case consists of, but if you’re still scratching your head, make sure to contact a personal injury lawyer here at Robert J. DeBry and Associates. Our attorneys have a combined 200 years of legal experience, and we’re ready to take on any case you bring our way.