There is always a winner and a loser in a personal injury lawsuit, though sometimes negotiations can make the loser suffer less financially. If you lose a personal injury lawsuit, what happens next? You have to make some key decisions, especially whether or not you want to go to appeals court.

What is appeals court?
All court cases have the opportunity to go to appeals court for various reasons, sometimes as far as the U.S. Supreme Court. In short, the appeals court is an opportunity to question that the law was followed. If you won, the one you sued for damages may question that the laws were in fact followed. If you lose, you might question that the laws were followed. Note the focus on “laws”: appeals is not about right tor wrong, necessarily, but if laws were followed correctly. If you lose because of weight of evidence,  and the laws were followed, then you likely have no case. If, on the other hand, you believe the decision did not follow government laws, you have a case. This can get complex. If you have a good lawyer he or she can help you decide.

How can you win?
In appeals court you do have the opportunity to question the judges decision. Say for example you were hit by a car, suffered serious injury, and sued for personal injury damages. But somehow liability could not be proven, and you lost. The judge may have not taken into account liability laws, where even if you were partially at fault you deserve damages. In this case, you might appeal based on the interpretation of the law.

Should you retain your lawyer?
If you lost, you may or may not want a different lawyer. This depends on how effective they were, and though that may be obvious, what is not obvious is that losing does not mean the lawyer failed. Sometimes your case is simply not strong enough. On the other hand, if your lawyer seemed confused during the trial, didn’t put enough time into the case, and didn’t communicate well with you, it’s commonsense it consider a new lawyer.

What if all laws were followed?
If all laws were correctly followed, you have no appeals case and you may avoid further costs by accepting that. However, the decision should not be made without a lawyer.

What if the defendant appeals?
If you win, the party you sued, the defendant, can also appeal. In this case, it’s crucial to have proper legal representation. The bigger the settlement is, the more chance the defendant might appeal. However, rarely are settlements reversed.

Who can help?
If you’re unsure of where to go, you should consult with an experienced personal injury lawyer. If you already have a lawyer, and are happy, they are a major asset. Do not make major legal decisions without the guidance of an experienced lawyer. If you are ever unhappy with your lawyer, there is no law saying you must keep him or her.

Winning is not always about money. Winning when you’ve been wronged has much more to do with it than the big check you get. Sometimes it makes a point. Of course, in New York personal injury law, winning is definitely about financial protection. It’s important if you or a loved one has been wronged – whether it’s medical malpractice, a hit and run accident, or many others – to get this financial protection.

Who can help?
First and foremost to winning a New York personal injury lawsuit is who you hire for legal representation. There are thousands of personal injury lawyers just in New York city, and many more outside of it. However, you can narrow the field down quite a bit by years experience, cases won, and price. A lawyer is like a lighthouse ensuring a ship reaches harbor: without it, you may crash and come up with nothing.

How soon must you file a New York personal injury claim?
Each state has different time limits for filing a personal injury claim. In New York, you must file the lawsuit within 3 years of the accident. There are some variations to the laws in other states. Generally you don’t want to rush a lawsuit nor wait too long. If you file too early, and suffer further injuries after not claimed, you stand to lose some financial compensation. Of course, if you wait too long it won’t matter at all. The best policy is to consult with a doctor, then your lawyer, and when the injury affects are clear, to file a claim.

What damages can you get?
States vary again on what kind of damages you can claim, but generally the scope of the laws is very much the same. All common personal injury lawsuits – such as hit and run, brain injury, medical malpractice, traffic accident, etc – can be claimed. However, what many fail to understand is that pain, suffering, and trauma also will be compensated for. If you suffered greatly and your life changed, you may get more from pain and suffering damages than for the actual injury.

How do you prove liability?
Your lawyer’s job is to prove liability and damages. Liability is who’s at fault and why. Sometimes this is quite clear: someone ran a red light and hit you. Calculating damages is different, as you’ll be looking at how the accident affected you both in the short and long term. If you cannot work your job ever again, financial compensation should include loss of work. If you suffered major physical and mental pain, you deserve more. Proving this usually involves a doctor, expert witnesses, actual witnesses to the incident, and if any laws were broken such as running a red light.

How much will you get?
Personal injury lawsuits in all states can be quite high. It does depend on who you are suing. If you’re suing a major company with a lot of insurance, the damages could be of great value. On the other hand, if you are hit by a truck from a small business, they may have less money to give. Usually these cases need not go to trial. You and your New York lawyer will likely get an offer to cover the damages and stay out of court; this saves you time and money.

If you or a loved one have been affected by a medical mistake, you have rights. That is the first step in getting a medical malpractice settlement. Unfortunately, many make mistakes in personal injury lawsuits, such as accepting initial low offers or hiring no representation. This blog guide walks you through the key steps to getting a medical malpractice settlement.

Step 1, Understand Your Rights
Since you and your family have likely been put through some kind of nightmare, it’s important not to downplay why it happened, who’s responsible, and your rights to compensation. You put your trust in a medical professional or hospital, and they failed. Even minor mistakes such as a mistaken medication filing can have major consequences. All hospitals make mistakes at some point, but that does not mean you have no rights.

Step 2, Get a Lawyer
In medical malpractice cases, hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer is crucial to winning. Yes, your lawyer has a fee, typically 25-35% of your final settlement. But remember, most only get paid if you win, giving them major incentive. And face it, do you really want to plead your case by yourself or with someone with years experience in law and personal injury? A lawyer ensures you get proper compensation for any damages, and that justice is served so you can move on.

Step 3, Be Clear on Mistakes
Initially, you want to be clear on what mistakes were made. The aforementioned mistaken prescription is a good example where proof is very clear. It can also be a botched operation by a doctor or the wrong diagnosis.

Step 4, Proving Liability
Liability in medical malpractice can be complicated. In many instances more than one person or entity can be held responsible and sued. The logical point is that, if someone more competent had been there, would the mistake have still been made? If an experienced doctor had taken your case, would he or she have made the same mistake? That’s how liability is proven in a court of law.

Step 5, Settlement or Winning in Court
Few medical malpractice cases with obvious liability go to court. Hospitals and medical professionals will settle out of court for a number of reasons, namely saving lawyer fees and an embarrassing battle. Rarely will you have to go to court to get your money, but if your case is weak on paper, you may have to fight in court. In both of these, your lawyer is your counsel. Let him or her make key decisions so you can win.

Should you take a settlement offer, or ask for more money, or go to court? These questions are quite important in personal injury lawsuits. Usually, you want to take the settlement offer if it’s fair. There are some points to consider before you make any personal injury lawsuit decisions.

Always Hire a Lawyer
First, do not make this decision alone, or let yourself be intimidated by insurers trying to give you money. Be smart, hire a lawyer, and explain no decision will be made without legal counsel.

Know Your Lawyer Fee
In settlements, a portion of the money is your lawyer’s. This typically goes from 25% to 35%, but usually on the low end for settlements. If your case goes to court, the lawyer will do more work and get a higher amount, closer to 35%. If you settle, and your lawyer spends less time on the lawsuit, it may be around 25%. But it’s important to know how much of your money is going to the lawyer when deciding on the offer.

Income Taxes
This can get complex legally, but a settlement may affect your income taxes, with or without a lump sum payment. It’s wise to consult with a financial expert in order to understand how much you’ll get after taxes.

Insurance
If the defendant has a lot of insurance coverage, that may mean a bigger offer. If they are barely covered, that may mean a smaller offer. Sometimes you can only get so much from the responsible party.

How Much Other Money?
Is the defendant a millionaire or unemployed? Is it a small business or a Fortune 500 company? Just like insurance coverage, how much the defendant earns must be considered in your settlement offer. You don’t want too little money if they have a lot, nor try to force a higher offer from someone lacking a lot of funds.

The Defendant’s Lawyer
Often you can reach a fair settlement, but this is dependent on the defendant’s legal representation. Some lawyers may be more than willing to take counter offers, while others may not. This is mainly a job for your lawyer.

Pain and Suffering Issues
If you’ve suffered severely, it’s your right to get higher damages. You may have been more affected mentally than physically. You may be able to work but suffer through extreme pain. You also deserve more for loss of life enjoyment.

What’s your low offer?
Finally, what is your bare minimum offer? Consider using it if the defendant lacks funds. You want a number you won’t go lower than, just in case. If you are miles apart, it may be best to go to court. That’s where an experienced personal injury lawyer is invaluable.

If you fall on a wet spot in a restaurant, if you fall in on an unsafe piece of property and break a leg, or if you fall in an apartment complex stair, you might wonder what happens next. There are numerous more examples where you may be able to claim liability.

This can be quite complex to go over, so let’s make it clear. You have rights in any accident, but not always the right to sue. This all depends on the nature of the accident. Your rights include damages because of unsafe “premises” (as a building or property privately or commercially owned). That means if you fall in the restaurant because of a clear mistake, if you fall in a parking lot hole, if you fall down some bad apartment stairs, you can claim damages.

How do you prove this? Let’s ask some basic questions and go over the answers.

What Problem?
First, if an accident is caused, you must be able to prove it’s because of defective or dangerous property. This is called “premises liability” where an accident is caused because of an error on the owner of the premises. You can claim damages for both commercial buildings and for private properties.

Using the above examples, if you fall on a wet floor, you must prove the accident wasn’t your fault and the restaurant was negligent (more than possible). If you fall in a parking lot hole, sprain an ankle or break a leg, again that likely can be claimed for damages because the parking lot premises were not maintained. Our final example, where you fall down a stair, is quite dangerous and may be the most obvious example where fault is clear and liability can be proven.

Who can you sue?
First, you have to be able to prove two things: the premises have been mismanaged and you made no key mistakes. In other words, if the stairs are falling apart, you walk up them normally, and you fall, you have a claim. If on the other hand you try jumping down ten steps, you are making a mistake and liability is your own.

You can sue either the owner of the property or the management. This can get quite technical. The important thing is to know you can sue, it is your right. If liability is clear, your layer can worry about who to file the suit against.

What can you get?
Personal injury damages can be quite high, but without proper legal representation it won’t matter. The more negative affects the injury has on you, the higher the claim may be worth. Most personal injury cases do not go to court, being settled instead.

Where can you get legal help?
Legal representation is quite important. In cases like premises liability, the laws vary and it can be hard to find who’s at fault and why. That makes it important to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer. He or she can handle the legal end. You can find many online via law directories and blogs. Query a good number of professional personal injury lawyers, and remember they do get a cut if you win (and that’s more than worth it).

Want a personal injury lawyer who charges “super low” rates and puts little to no effort into your case? Or do you want an experienced lawyer who can help you win?

Well, it’s not always as obvious as that, but many put money on lawyers – sometimes a lot of money – who lack the experience to actually handle a complex personal injury lawsuit. First, most experienced personal injury lawyers will only take your case if you have a winner. And second, they do this because they typically only ask for a percentage, from 25% to 35%, of the damages. But you need one with experience. Why?

Do you have a claim?
How do you know if you have a claim? If a good lawyer is willing to take it, you might have a strong claim. If you’re getting offers to take your case for a fee and/or you’re getting turned down a lot, you may not have a winner. A lawyer is your best adviser on whether you have a right to compensation for an injury or not.

Settlement Offers
On the other hand, you might know you have a case before even looking for a lawyer. Why? The insurer offers a settlement; in other words paying you money not to sue them in court. However, these offers, though they may seem quite high at the time, are typically not in your ballpark. No, you likely deserve much more. But you won’t know without an experienced lawyer.

Experience in Handling Out of Court Processes
Beyond settlements, your lawyer has other things to do outside of court. This includes getting witnesses, if any; getting experts willing to testify; getting any police reports or other documents; and also getting doctor evaluations on your injury. A personal injury case is not a race; it’s a sprint. It may take over a year to finalize. But most settle before court.

In Court Experience
If you and your lawyer decide to go to court, experience in the court process is invaluable. This is where your lawyer will earn his or her fee.

Winning
Why do you need an experienced personal injury lawyer? The bottom line is to win, to get you proper compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering issues, emotional distress, and much more. If your lawyer has won cases before and takes on your case, you are in good hands.

You Get Money
How much money can you get? This does depend on your lawyer. Some will try to avoid going to court, save themselves time, and take a quick settlement. This is a sign of inexperience, if not laziness. An experienced personal injury lawyer maximizes your damages, giving you the most money. After all, a good one is willing to go to court to help you win, but he or she will get compensated fairly too.

The most important point to remember in any personal injury case is that you have a right to proper compensation if you were not at fault. And even if you are partially at fault, you still have a right to a claim. If you are hit by a car, shatter a bone and are in the hospital for months, your life has changed. Certainly you deserve far more than just having your hospital bill paid for. Yet many misunderstand their rights in personal injury claims. You might get offered a big check, at a value half what you deserve. Including in this claim would be your inability to work.

This guide gives solutions for your personal injury claims. We will focus on:
Your inability to work.
If you will ever be able to work again.
If you were not at fault.
If your life has changed greatly.

You Cannot Work
Even missing 3 months of work can set you back thousands of dollars. This should be properly compensated for. You deserve far more than your hospital bill to be covered. Of course, there is far more to being off work than just losing money. You often lose opportunities and may not be able to work this type of job again.

If You Can’t Work This Job, Or Any Job
If you can no longer do physical labor and you have worked a construction job for 10 years, which you are trained for, you deserve compensation. Often insurers will try to cut corners in initial offers. Being unable to perform the same job is a life changing event. If you can no longer work any job, you likely deserve additional pain and suffering damages. If this happens to a loved one, it can also severely hurt the relationship. There are many laws involved and you need to consult with a personal injury attorney immediately.

You Weren’t At Fault
If you get into an accident and someone else is to blame, obviously you deserve damages. But don’t mistake your involvement. If you had a part in the accident, say walked in front of a car speeding, that does not mean your damages are significantly less. They can be lowered if it’s found both are at fault, but the person most at fault and who caused the injury still has to pay.

Your Life Has Changed
Finally, being unable to work your job is a life changing event. Many of us take pride in working every day. Being incapable of working changes your life greatly. Because your life has changed, other issues may present themselves. If you suffer through mental anguish this falls under pain and suffering issues, you need to be compensated.

Some of these points may sound very obvious. Because many of these cases are settled out of court, it’s important to note that personal injury settlements should cover more than medical expenses and work changes: they should also cover life changes.

If you have been hurt, you need to get better. If someone has hurt you, you need to know your legal rights. In personal injury claims, while no two cases are exactly alike, there are some parts which merit going over in detail. Namely, pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment, and other ways where your settlement may be higher than you think.

Why is it important to know these things? Aren’t injury, economic loss, and medical costs more important? You may be surprised to find your claim doubling in value simply because you went through or are going through extreme pain or emotional suffering.

Why Pain and Suffering Issues Make Claims Higher
Pain and suffering is not something you can quantify easily in legal terms, but that does not make it any less important. While your doctor may know the cause of the pain, he or she may have trouble actually stopping it. Not surprisingly, in personal injury lawsuits with extreme pain and suffering issues you can and should be compensated. If you suffer through this, it needs to stop, and those at fault must at the least make financial restitution.

What We Mean by Emotional Distress
You may go through a serious depression after you find out you’re ability to run will be gone, or you can barely walk, or that you will suffer through certain conditions the rest of your life. Perhaps you may suffer trauma from the accident. If you suffer emotionally, you need to be compensated.

Loss of Life Enjoyment
If you can’t walk, as an example, that is a loss of life enjoyment, and a great one. If you cannot do the same things you’ve been doing all your life, it can cause a great impact on your life. Therefore, proper compensation is needed.

Loss of Love
If you suffer through sexual problems –  not being able to have any relations with your spouse – this too is a major change in your life. Also, if you’re relationship with others in the family, such as your son or daughter, is greatly affected by your injury, this can be considered in a claim.

How to Value Your Claim
A personal injury claim is about far more than who’s at fault, why they’re at fault, and a hospital bill. Your claim can likely be valued much higher if you suffer beyond the injury. In any case, a professional personal injury lawyer is required. Quite often you’ll be getting offers from insurers; until they make due on the emotional and other damages, you and your lawyer should be prepared to make counter offers.

Pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of happiness and love – these things can be difficult to prove. However, an experienced lawyer can get you proper compensation for your losses. While money isn’t the answer for everything, it is important.

Since most lawsuits never go to trial, especially personal injury lawsuits, this guide focuses on how settlements work. What shouyou factor in for settlements? How does your injury affect the case? What should you and your lawyer consider? We’ll be going over these questions and more.

Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer
Hiring a lawyer is a key element in getting a better settlement offer. For example, you may get an early offer from the insurer, and even though it’s low, you consider it. In this case, you are in great danger of making a critical mistake. You always want legal counsel to look over the offer, even if this means a few hours of consultation with a lawyer. Usually you can get a much better offer by hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Expenses and Costs
Does the settlement offer even meet your main expenses and costs? Hospital bills can run into the thousands, as can lost wages. If you are unable to work a job for a year which pays you $40,000 a year, those lost wages need to be covered. There are other costs and expenses too, but the important thing is to have a number you must reach. And usually you want much more than simple expenses and costs.

Pain and Suffering
What surprises many who file personal injury lawsuits is that you can actually get far more compensation from pain and suffering issues than actual medical bills and lost wages. Judges are apt to give you a high amount because, let’s face it, an injury can cause severe physical pain, mental anguish such as depression, and often completely changes your life. It’s justice to get proper compensation for these affects, and with the right lawyer you can get it. If you get a settlement offer that does not consider pain and suffering issues, you should negotiate.

Who Are You Suing?
How big is the defendant’s pocket book? For example, in a medical malpractice case you have a lot of room for damages. This is not just about getting money from them; it’s about getting proper help. However, knowing who you are suing and what kind of settlement offer they can make makes the process easier.

What Does Your Lawyer Think?
You may think you have a minor case, until your lawyer finds out a similar case was settled for twice what you were offered. This is where a lawyer can be invaluable: it’s his or her job to ensure you get proper compensation. Of course, not all lawyers are equally capable of giving you this information. If you get an experienced one, you should trust their judgment on the value of your case.

Similar Personal Injury Settlements
Finally, we mentioned this last element, that you should consider what similar cases have been settled for. But you should also have a minimum amount you take if the defendant can go no higher. This process can be like dancing. But if you know how much you really want and need, it can help. If you know that another case has settled for this amount, it’s a good goal to have.

Remember that personal injury lawsuits take time. If you go to court, it may takes months to years. Settlements save everyone time and money, but don’t be afraid to take this all the way to court.

There is more to personal injury claims than just getting into an accident. Yes, accident law is the most common, but you can make a personal injury claim after assault and/or battery.

Just what is assault? What is battery? What kind of claim can you make? And how much is your  lawsuit worth?

Assault and Personal Injury
For our purposes, consider that assault is not always striking someone, such as punching them or hitting them with a bat. It is that, of course, but threatening to beat someone with a bat, threatening with a weapon (real or not; loaded or not) can also be constituted as an assault.

The site NOLO has a useful article on this subject. They point out examples where no physical assault was committed, but where there were actions constituting assaults. One example is where a man threatens to punch another in his face, saying so verbally. This is assault. You can file a suit if someone does threaten you.

Battery is when the assault is no longer a threat and that an action has taken place. If they threaten to hit you but don’t, that’s assault. If they threaten to hit you, and do, that’s battery.

Battery and Personal Injury Claims
State laws differ on how battery is made, but it’s pretty much summed up above: there was contact made, either intentional or not. If someone threatens to hit you with a car, tries to stop, and hits you, that’s battery. You need not break a leg or suffer a concussion to sue on battery charges for this. If there was contact made, and it’s dangerous, you have a case for battery.

So you know that assault is more of a threat, and battery is an actual attack.

What kind of claim can you make?
First, if the assault or battery were minor, you may not want to file a lawsuit. Yes, it can make a point, but the actual damages can be quite minor. If someone threatens to hit you, you can sue them, but it won’t turn into some huge settlement and may cost you too much. On the other hand, if battery did occur, or the assault is very serious, you can get some damages. This can go beyond simple injury: in some cases you can be mentally affected.

You can find out the general rate for personal injury claims made for assault and battery depending on what happened. This is where a lawyer can be invaluable.

How a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help
You’ll know you have a winner if an experienced personal injury lawyer takes your case for a portion of the settlement. Few lawyers will take single assault personal injury claims simply because the time involved is too big and damages given too small.  But you really don’t know until you consult with a lawyer. If you intend to win, it’s almost required to hire legal counsel. He or she can prove the assault and/or batter occurred, ensure you get proper damages, and help you make the defendant pay.