If you believe someone is at fault for your loved one’s death, either through the deliberate actions or negligence of an individual, organization or company, or through a faulty product or service, you may be considering filing a wrongful death lawsuit. Although your grief over your loss may seem overwhelming, it is important to act quickly to determine your state’s statute of limitations on wrongful death personal injury lawsuits. A wrongful death attorney can provide you with valuable assistance.

Statute of Limitations on Wrongful Death Lawsuits
The time limit from the date of the injury to the final date by which a lawsuit must be filed is called the statute of limitations. Regardless of how much evidence you have or how egregious the responsible party’s actions were in causing your loved one’s death, if you do not file within your state’s statute of limitations, you may lose your right to file. Some states permit as little as one year for the statute of limitations on wrongful death cases, while some allow as much as three years.

So, if your spouse was injured and killed in a traffic accident caused by faulty break pads that prevented the car from stopping, you may have as little as one year from the date of the fatal accident to file your wrongful death lawsuit.

Complications in Wrongful Death Lawsuits
Keep in mind that wrongful death lawsuits can be among the most complicated and legally challenging of all personal injury lawsuits.

• Consider a situation in which the accident referenced above seriously injured your spouse but did not result in immediate death; you could file a lawsuit seeking a personal injury settlement. But, in this same situation, imagine that you do not file for a personal injury settlement in the eighteen months before your spouse dies from the injuries sustained in the accident. If your state only allows for a one-year statute of limitations on personal injury cases, you may have forfeited your right to file a wrongful death case. The personal injury statute of limitations would have run out before your spouse’s death occurred.
• In the same accident scenario, if the brake pads were not faulty, but it turned out that the brakes were deliberately tampered with by an individual, you could bring a wrongful death suit against that person. But if the tampering evidence is not discovered until eighteen months after the accident, it is possible that your state’s statute of limitations may start on the day that tampering evidence is discovered. This is often called the “discovery” rule.
• Wrongful death cases can be further complicated by jurisdictional issues. If your loved one lived in Texas, but died in a skiing accident in Colorado while wearing faulty skis manufactured by a company based in Wisconsin, which state’s wrongful death laws would apply to your situation? In which state would you file your suit?

Seek Assistance from a Wrongful Death Attorney
Due to the complications noted above in wrongful death law, as well as the emotional, mental and financial toll that losing a loved one can take, consider immediately contacting a Wrongful Death Lawyer in your area. Your state’s State Bar Association website can provide you with a list of attorneys in your area licensed to practice Personal Injury and Wrongful Death law.

Image via Wikipedia

If you suffer a serious injury in Michigan, you may wonder where to start. Well, first off, you need to get better. Then you need to consult with an experienced Michigan personal injury lawyer. Where do you start when hiring an experienced lawyer? You consult with a good number of them, from 5-10, and then start asking some questions. Now let’s go over what questions you should ask any personal injury lawyer when hurt in a Michigan accident.

What is your background?
This is a basic question to get you started going over the experience of the lawyer. You want to know his or her education, how many cases have been handled, how long the lawyer has practiced law, how many personal injury cases are taken each year, just to get an idea of the lawyers history. This gives you a good idea of how professional they are, how successful, and how they can help you.

What is your court room experience?
Court room experience is always crucial in personal injury cases. True, most personal injury cases end far before court, but you have to be ready to go to court. And an experienced lawyer will be ready. You want to know more than how many cases have been handled: you might also ask how many cases have been won and what kind of deals were made. Also, negotiating experience is important, and will be crucial in getting your case over with before court even occurs. A good negotiator can come up with a settlement so you have no delays in court and can move on.

What is your approach to court room law?
All lawyers have a certain philosophy when it comes to negotiating in and out of court. You want to find this style and see if it’s applicable to your case. You might find out a lawyer is fairly aggressive, or easy to negotiate with, or is a hard sell and wants to go to court to maximize damages. These all have advantages and disadvantages. The only thing that is important is that you win.

Do you have time to spend on this case?
You obviously do not want a lawyer with no experience, but neither do you want a lawyer who has dozens of ongoing cases and barely any time to get started. If a lawyer is overbooked, keep looking. You can often tell in your first meeting. Their schedule is full and they seem overworked. If they have no time to spend on your case, or want to refer it to an assistant, remember there are other lawyers capable of handling your case.

What are your fees?
Money is the bottom line. However, you will find many experienced Michigan personal injury lawyers willing to work on the “no win, no fee” philosophy, where nothing is paid if you lose. If you go to court and fail to gain a settlement, you pay nothing to the lawyer. On the other hand, if you negotiate and win, or win in court, you will have to pay a percentage of the fee to the lawyer. You can also pay on hourly or a flat fee, but the “no win, no fee” philosophy is much better.

If you’ve watched enough movies in your time, you’ve seen stories where insurers are these evil entities trying to make lots of money. Well, they are trying to make money, but they are not always doing so by breaking the law. On the other hand, you have to be careful when you are dealing with an insurer. This how-to post will help you successfully work with an insurer after a personal injury.

What is your injury?
You have to understand what happened to you. That means not rushing this process. You should know the full extent of your injuries, and that takes time. You may have to wait as long as  a year to know the full extent of an injury caused by a car accident, for example. You might not know about another broken bone until the doctor finds it. You may be unaware of emotional trauma until months after the accident. So give this process time.

How much will it cost?
You should also know about all the costs for your injury. If an insurer refuses to pay for your medical expenses, it’s time to start proving fault. But before we get into that, the value of your personal injury claim depends on numerous factors, namely what happened, how bad the injury is, and how your current state is. The more emotional trauma you have, the more compensation. The more damaging the injury, the more compensation. And the more pain and suffering you go through, the more compensation.

Who’s at fault?
In a personal injury claim, to get the process started you have to notify the party at fault prior to making a claim. So you make sure the insurer knows you have been injured and will require compensation. Depending on what happened, fault is not always clear and may require some legal help. Police reports are the final word, but in court witnesses to the accident can also be called. These things can get quite complex, but often fault is obvious and proving it is a formality.

Who can help?
A lawyer can help. Hiring a personal injury lawyer is a big decision. You need someone with personal injury law experience, as this is no time to use a family lawyer. You need someone who you can afford, of course. You need someone with in court experience. You should hire someone who you can also communicate well with; if you can’t communicate with them, the case may fall through.

Personal injury cases need not be like walking through a mine field. If you have no idea of what occurs, your lawyer is your guidepost. Rarely if you have a clear case will the suit even go to court; the insurer will settle.

Personal injury lawsuits can seem like a bitter pill when you have to fill out boxes of paperwork, sit in court, and try to negotiate. They can be much easier if you hire the right personal injury lawyer. This guide can help you do just that.

Look for Multiple Lawyers
Instead of just choosing the first one you find – or the cheapest one you find – why not look for multiple lawyers? You have far more options than the referral you got. You may look online. You might find one at the local state bar. You may have some connections. Try to connect with at least 4-5 lawyers before hiring one.

Pay Nothing Down
When you hire a lawyer, hire one for the “no win, no fee” philosophy, which means you only pay if you win. If you settle your lawsuit out of court – 8 out of 10 do – you may pay 25% of the settlement to your lawyer. If you go to court and win, you may pay more like 35%. If you lose, you pay nothing.

Hire a Specialist
Hire someone who specializes in personal injury law – not the friend, or the family member, or the one who promises winning. There are DUI lawyers, bankruptcy lawyers, immigration lawyers, and a variety of others, but you need a good personal injury lawyer. You need someone who has relevant in court experience.

Hire a Winner
You want someone with court room experience. It can be hard to differentiate from lawyers until you look at their records. The more court room experience they have, the better. You want someone capable of winning, of course, and in order to get that you need to be critical in who you hire.

Communicator
You should be able to communicate well with your lawyer. This is critical part of the process. Why? Some personal injury lawsuits drag on for years. First, the injury occurs, and you typically wait 6 months to a year to get better before filing any claim. Then you file a claim and want, and if you’re denied you have to hire a lawyer, file a lawsuit, and perhaps go to court. This entire process can seem to drag on. If you can hire an experienced lawyer you can communicate well with, you stand to save yourself a lot of headaches. And if you hire one you simply cannot communicate well with, you may consider firing him or her.

Should you fire your lawyer?
Finally, you may consider firing your lawyer on some occasions. Usually you can weed out the bad ones in the hiring process, but not always. There is no rule saying you have to keep on a lawyer you do not like. You can always get a new lawyer. You do have to pay any fees up to that point, so find out as early as possible.

You may be at a crossroads in your life. If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury, greatly affecting your life, you may wonder what your options are. You deserve compensation, but how do you get it? The initial steps in filing a personal injury claim is seeing if you truly have a case, finding out if the injury is severe enough for compensation, and then finding proper representation.

Who should you hire to help?
Are you a personal injury lawyer? If you aren’t, you need representation. Not necessarily the family friend or the one who has a legal degree: you should hire an experienced lawyer who specializes in personal injury law. If you do that, you are in good hands. How do you choose one? It’s not the end of the world to get the wrong one on the first try, but generally you want to consult with several, look over fees, and see who is willing to work at a fair rate. If you can get a lawyer who is willing to work on the “no win, no fee” philosophy, that is your best option.

What if you get a low offer?
You get a lawyer. That means you’re serious. So what’s next? Before this, you will have filed a claim with the insurer. If they rejected your claim for help, which does happen, getting a lawyer indeed shows you intend to seriously pursue this. You may then get some offers before you even file with the court. If liability is clear, the insurer will want to settle early. They may give you what you think is a high offer, but find it’s not enough to cover expenses after medical costs, like lost wages. It’s not uncommon to get a low offer to start, and to then get a better one. So make no decisions until you negotiate, as you can always go back to the initial offer.

What if you get a high offer?
What really is a high compensation offer? This all depends on the nature of your injury. The greater the value of the claim, the more important a lawyer is. You may, again, think an offer is rather high, and it may be, but the question may be why they are offering this. Insurers do not want to go to court. If you can settle before court, on the other hand, that saves you legal fees too.

Should you go to court?
You should go to court if your lawyer advises you to do so. Make no decisions alone. And don’t be afraid to fight for more money; if the evidence is clearly on your side, you stand to get compensated for any physical and emotional problems, along with other points such as lost wages.

How much can you get?
Valuing a personal injury claim is never easy. You should factor in any expenses you incurred, such as medical and damages. You should factor in lost wages, no matter if you missed days or months. You should factor in your emotional trauma, any lasting effects you have, because this can greatly increase your compensation. The worse the injury, the more liability is clear, and the sooner you get representation, the higher the offer should be.

How much is your personal injury claim worth? It depends on what happened, the company you deal with, and on who you hire to represent you. It depends on if you settle out of court or go to court. It depends on fault, too, among many other points. Dealing with an insurance company, which may sometimes be simple and other times difficult, requires some skill. This blog guide points you in the right direction.

Know Your Full Injury
Before you take any legal steps, it’s time to get better, to focus on your physical and psychological health. If it appears you, or your spouse, will have a long recovery process, it’s time to find out what compensation you can get and how soon.

Hire an Experienced Lawyer
If you are just trying to get better, it can be difficult to find an experienced lawyer. Where do you find one? Online, at your local state bar, or based on recommendations. Generally online is easiest, as you can go the state bar of your state, find a lawyer, go over his or her experience, and make a quick phone call. A lawyer is invaluable no matter if you’re stuck in bed or trying to handle your health. It’s your lawyer’s job to ensure you get proper compensation from the insurance company.

Notify
You want to be sure to notify the party at fault that you have been hurt and will file a claim. This may seem minor – letting them know you are injured – but if you fail to make contact, and then file a claim, you may run into some problems.

Who’s At Fault?
Evidence, such as witnesses, experts on this type of problem, and a police report are often the deciding factors in personal injury claims. If your lawyer can prove to the insurer you were clearly not at fault, you should get a nice offer. If not, your lawyer can prove fault in court and potentially get even more compensation. Most often, you notify, find evidence, prove who is at fault, and settle. If the insurer becomes difficult, you have legal rights.

What is your claim worth?
This is an open ended question, as there is no immediate answer. Much like no two accidents are exactly alike, no two personal injury claims will have the exact same compensation for certain injuries. However, you can expect, if you get an experienced lawyer and fault is clear, to be compensated for points like lost wages, medical bills, and any property damage. If you go through much pain and suffering, this can greatly increase your claim.

The Demand Letter
Once you figure out a fair number for your claim, you submit a demand letter to the insurer of the person at fault. Decisions will be made, you’ll often be negotiating, and quite often you will get fair compensation.

The Ending
How does this end? Well, the final point is that compensation is your legal right. The ending should be one where you are not in severe pain or going through financial turmoil because you cannot work. With the right game plan, the ending can be a good one.

If you are considering filing bankruptcy, and you have an ongoing or settled personal injury case, you likely have some questions. Hopefully this blog guide will answer them.

First and foremost, consult with both a bankruptcy and a personal injury attorney. An attorney is a must in this situation. You need to know if your personal injury settlement will be exempt from the bankruptcy. Say you just received an offer for $20,000 to settle a personal injury lawsuit, but you have an ongoing bankruptcy. In this complex legal situation, a lawyer is crucial. Will the the trustee take your settlement money as part of the bankruptcy? You can potentially save this money by filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. If you file Chapter 7, it may lead to the trustee taking the money.

Second, find out if your settlement or compensation will be exempt. You may not lose any money to the trustee. Usually you can list about $15,000 to be exempt when filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Remember, if you file Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you are paying on debts – not eliminating them – which means you may have a better opportunity to protect your money. With so many differing state and federal laws, be sure to do some research and get a lawyer’s help.

Third, know your rights. You can fight certain things.  You do not have to just watch the trustee take your money. As is often the case, most bankruptcy filers lose nothing – including your home, car, and any settlements you have ongoing.  You can appeal that this money is necessary, and that it being taken would be a hardship. If this money is supposed to feed your family for 3 months, you might appeal. Once again, a lawyer is essential here.

Fourth, consider Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Chapter 13 allows you to discharge your debt, but by paying on it over 3-5 years. A lot can change in 3-5 years. You might get a better job, get a raise, get new medical coverage, pay off all your other debts, etc. You will almost always be in a better situation. And though you do have to pay on debts, you stand to protect your home, car, other assets, and any settlements from being taken.

Finally, start doing your own research. This research can and should be done with some lawyers. How will you afford all the legal fees? Typically your personal injury lawyer only takes his or her cut if you win. And bankruptcy lawyers are often very reasonable, understanding you likely need bankruptcy to save money, not spend it.

If you want those responsible for your injury to be forced to pay, you need to understand your legal rights. You have a right to prosecute someone for a clear mistake, negligence, or incompetence. While you may understandably be very angry for what happened, you have to think legally. Whether it was an accident or a medicine mix up or an on-the-job accident, be prepared for a fight.

A fight does not mean you’ll be going into a twelve round boxing match. You may think the first offer you get is very fair, that you should settle fast and be done. Or, you may consider going to court to maximize your damages and punishing those responsible in a court of law.

The “settle fast” idea is flawed simply because you can almost always get more than a first offer. There is nothing wrong with reaching a settlement, but don’t give up once you see the number. Be aware that you might be able to get much more. And this first offer is rarely off the table during the negotiation. At this stage, you definitely need to consult with a lawyer. If the insurer has tried contacting you and settling before you even have a lawyer, they are likely hoping to settle early for less than the value of your injury.

Settling early can also be bad if you do not know the full scope of an injury. Say your spouse was injured in an accident, has a broken leg and bruised rib, and will miss work for six months. She then gets an offer from the insurer, prior to a fully understanding the injury. It can take months to understand the full effects of something like a car accident. If you take this offer – and it turns out she suffered trauma or has another undocumented injury – you may be out of luck.

Going to court has some flaws too. This is a personal injury blog, but let’s be honest: you want proper compensation for you, not your lawyer. If you go to court, you stand to pay your lawyer more money. If you get a reasonable offer, remember that most lawsuits are settled before court. You may get somewhat less, but you get the money immediately and your lawyer gets less of a cut. If you go to court, you can expect to pay 10-15% more of the compensation to your lawyer.

Going to court can be good if you are not getting fair offers. Trust your lawyer here. If you are just being compensated for the injury and lost work time – and not any emotional trauma or pain and suffering – you stand to get much more going to court. If you go through pain and suffering, for example, this can swing the case decidedly in your favor and mean much better compensation. If you’ve been in pain for weeks if not months because of the car accident injury, you stand to double if not triple your compensation.

It can be hard to think with a  clear head when you or a loved one is going through an injury. The important thing is not to rush this process, to focus on getting better, to fully grasp your mental effects, and to listen to your lawyer. Hire a good lawyer too, one who can explain your options, increase your compensation, and fight for your rights. It’s more than worth it.

You’ve been injured. You suffer a severe injury in an accident where someone else made a  mistake. It might have been turning on a red light … giving you the wrong prescription … letting a damaged property stay open to visitors … even slipping and falling in a store parking lot. If you suffered injury, you deserve some help. Almost in every case, you should hire an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Why hire a lawyer?
Well, there are numerous reasons. You get more compensation. You get legal protection. You get the chance to prove, in court, that mistakes were made. You can right a wrong. You can get the insurance coverage you paid for. Your lost income can be covered. Your relationship with your spouse can get help. There are more reasons for both hiring a lawyer and filing a lawsuit, but let’s leave it at that.

When Not to Hire a Lawyer
When you have a minor claim. If you slip and fall, sprain an ankle, ice it for a few days, and are back to normal in a week, is filing a claim really worth it? If you get hit while driving, and you suffer a minor injury, something which gets you in and out of the hospital in hours, you again don’t always need a lawsuit. While there is room in personal injury law for certain kinds of claims, if the injury is minor, if little harm was done, it may be a waste of time. Make this decision with a lawyer, even if it’s only a few consultations.

Dangers of Settling Early
If you do suffer injury and liability is clear, in the majority of cases the lawsuit is settled. This is because it saves the insurer – or person who made the mistake – a long, drawn out legal battle which can cost even more. However, they might visit you in the hospital, or give you a call, trying to negotiate a settlement when you have no legal representation. You can usually see right through it; say nothing. If they want to settle before you get a lawyer, ask yourself why, why are they afraid? If you get a lawyer, it boosts your injury claim considerably. That shows you’re serious.

Dangers of Court
You can’t win in court without a lawyer. What many insurers and defendants are afraid of is proof, witnesses, and experts. Therefore, they will do their best to avoid court, where a settlement and added legal fees can bankrupt them. Remember, if you hire a lawyer correctly – by using the pay if you win philosophy – going to court won’t be a worry. If you go into court without a lawyer, you are making a critical mistake. Ask yourself if you know the first thing about what happens in a court room for a injury claim.

Settling on a Lawyer
Setting goals for what you want for personal injury compensation is good, as are your goals for hiring a lawyer. Since the personal injury process can take many months if not years – until you get better from your injury, or when the full scope of the injury is confirmed – you need not rush into hiring a lawyer. Be critical, look for experience, try negotiating, and start taking steps when you are ready.

What kind of claims call for a personal injury lawsuit? More than you might think. And you may be wondering why you have options when injured, or what your rights mean when you walk into a court room. This blog guide can help.

Do you have a claim?
A useful legal resource for lawyers, experts, and “newbies” is Nolo.com, who recommend you file a claim in four scenarios. You suffer a permanent injury. You or a loved one may be incapable of walking correctly for six months to permanently. You suffer from medical malpractice. An incompetent doctor or hospital makes crucial mistakes and it costs you. You suffer a severe injury, such as loss of sight, because of a car accident or fire which should not have occurred. Finally, in a world full of science and technology, sometimes “toxic” problems, such as dangerous gases or some other contaminate, can lead to major injury or death. In all of these examples, there is room for discussion on when a claim is worth pursuing. You should never make this decision alone; get a lawyer’s help.

You Have Rights
As a citizen of the U.S., as a worker, as a parent, as a safe driver, as someone who puts trust in a hospital, you have rights and they must be protected. It may sound like the Bill of Rights, but the point is that you have rights and sometimes you have to protect them. Often enough, it will be you, not someone else, making the decision for a lawsuit. You should make an educated decision by reading pieces like this one and consulting with a lawyer.

Who should you hire?
You have the option of literally thousands of lawyers pretty much anywhere in the country. Your options are many, but they are not all equal. Not all lawyers are capable of helping you. You want someone who specializes in personal injury, perhaps even has direct experience in your situation – if you were in a car accident, accident law is important. You need someone who has the time to help you, not a lawyer who passes the ball to his or her second. And you want someone who is willing to work on the “no win, no fee” philosophy, where if they lose, they get nothing, and if they win, they get something.

How much?
How much can you expect from your personal injury settlement? It’s a critical question, one we’ve went over before. This depends on how you act legally. If you settle out of court, it may be a “win, win” situation, where you can avoid a long legal battle. On the other hand, you may get more in court. Most lawsuits are settled out of court, and if you get the opportunity, consider it a gift. However, make no legal decisions without an experienced lawyer. There is always room for negotiation.