Did you know that over 39 million personal injury cases in the United States require medical attention every year?
There are a lot of crazy statistics revolving around personal injury cases, and you may not even know where to start if you find yourself in one.
You may be wondering what happens next. Are you going to go through a settlement? Will you go to court?
Here’s what you need to know about a personal injury lawsuit.
Personal Injury Settlement
If you find yourself in a personal injury case, you most likely want to be part of a settlement rather than go to trial.
This is because a settlement is a written agreement. In this case, the defendant will have to pay the claim, but it is written out, so they have to. If you do not receive payment, you can create a contract lawsuit to get the compensation you deserve.
But how does this work?
Here are the steps to a settlement during a personal injury lawsuit:
- A lawyer will send a demand letter
- Defendant/insurance company will review the letter and send a counteroffer
- Negotiations ensue
- Reach an agreement in writing
When there is an agreement in writing, the settlement will occur. Otherwise, there will be a court date set.
Going to Trial
If you cannot reach an agreement, then the trial is what will determine the fate of the lawsuit.
However, this is not that common in the case of a personal injury lawsuit in the United States, as more are settled beforehand. Only about 5% will go to court.
But what happens during this process? What does a trial mean?
If your case ends up going to court, a jury will be selected. There will be extensive pretrial preparation that can take quite some time. Once you are in the courtroom, there will be opening statements, a testimony, an examination, a cross-examination, and closing arguments. Finally, the jury will deliberate amongst themselves, and then there will be a final verdict for the case.
Although the trial is not something you’ll want to deal with because of the time and money spent when this occurs, there are a few positives.
If you go to trial, you could end up with more money than you wanted in the first place. You could also get a sense of closure that you may not otherwise get with a simple settlement.
To go to Court or Not?
Now that you know more personal injury cases do not make it to court, you know the answer to this question.
However, if you do happen to go to court, you are now aware of the pros and cons of this happening.
If you find yourself in this situation, you will want to get the help you deserve to increase your odds of a higher settlement, whether outside of court or not. You can contact us at WestLoop Law to help you.