How a Lawyer Can Make Your Injury Case Less Stressful

The personal injury claim or litigation process may seem easy on paper, but it is complex in practice. The process is complex and stressful for those without legal backgrounds. According to Nolo, about 91% of injury victims with legal representation receive settlements or awards compared with only 51% for those without legal representation.

Below are the ways a lawyer can simplify your injury case and make it less stressful.

Calculating Noneconomic Damages

Economic losses (such as medical bills) are relatively easier to calculate than noneconomic damages (such as pain and suffering). Don't forget that noneconomic damages can be objective. For example, the pain you feel after an accident is not necessarily the same as another person with a similar injury may feel.

Injury lawyers know how to account for and calculate all damages. They know how courts and insurance companies view and estimate noneconomic damages. They know the techniques, such as using expert witnesses, to prove noneconomic damages. A good lawyer will do all these and relieve you of the stress of calculating damages. 

Hiring and Managing Professionals

Apart from your lawyer, you may need other professionals to get your injury award. For example, you may need expert witnesses, such as engineers and health professionals, to help the court understand complex or technical issues the average person might not understand. You may also need a private investigator to learn more about the defendant and their past.

You don't have to go through the stress of locating and vetting such professionals if you have a lawyer. Injury lawyers have pre-vetted professionals they have worked with in the past, so they can easily reach out to those that match your case requirements.

Conducting Research

You may have to conduct considerable research if you decide to handle your injury case alone. For example, you need to know:

• The legal theory that best fits your case
• The deadlines for different aspects of your case, such as the statute of limitations
• The decisions courts have made on similar cases in the past
• How recent law reviews and court judgments affect your case

An injury lawyer would have an easier time researching your case than you would. For one, an experienced lawyer knows the answers to some of these queries. Secondly, law firms have staff, such as paralegals, that help with research. Lawyers also have the resources, such as subscriptions to legal journals, with reliable and up-to-date information. All these things will make the research quicker and more accurate.

Negotiating the Settlement

Typically, negotiating a personal injury case involves dealing with an insurance adjuster. Insurance adjusters are experienced negotiators with multiple tactics an average person might not know. An adjuster can frustrate you by:

• Making low offers
• Downplaying your injuries and damages
• Delaying the negotiation process
• Requesting unnecessary documents

Avoid all these frustrations by using an injury lawyer who understands these tactics and knows how to deal with them.

Funding the Lawsuit

Many injury cases settle before trial, but some go through litigation. The cost of your injury lawsuit increases considerably if you have to litigate it. Depending on your case, you have to pay:

• The expert witnesses
• Court filing fees
• Travel expenses
• Administrative fees, such as document production costs

Coming up with such funds can stress you if you don't have a lawyer. Once you have a lawyer, they pay all the upfront costs and deduct their sum from your settlement or award. Lawyers refer to the arrangement as a contingency fee arrangement.

Contact Frank Penney Injury Lawyers for all your personal injury cases. We understand how stressful injury cases are and promise to do everything possible to lessen the stress.