A personal injury attorney is a lawyer that specializes in an area of law referred to as tort law, which covers civil or private injuries or wrongs, including actions for bad faith breach of contract and defamation. A personal injury attorney, also known as a trial or plaintiff lawyer, is a type of civil litigator. As the litigator, the attorney provides legal representation for the plaintiff alleging psychological or physical injury as a result of negligence or careless acts of an entity, organization, or another person.
The main purpose of tort law is to make the plaintiff whole again and to discourage other parties from committing the same or similar offense. In order to return wholeness to the injured party, personal injury attorneys will work to earn reparations for the plaintiff to compensate for their losses. These losses might include (but are not limited to) pain and suffering, loss of earnings and capacity to make earnings in the future, reasonable medical expenses (to be expected and in the present), loss of companionship or consortium, emotional distresses, as well as legal costs and attorney fees. Personal injury attorneys also play a vital role in preventing the plaintiff from being maltreated or victimized by the legal system or the insurance company of the defendant.
What Does a Personal Injury Attorney Do?
The job of a personal injury attorney is similar to that of most all litigators, in that they handle cases from inception all the way through appeal. Some of the tasks that you might expect your personal injury lawyer to complete include investigating claims; gathering evidence; screening witnesses and evaluating the merits of their case; formulating possible useful theories; researching relevant case law; drafting applicable pleadings, as well as motions and discovery; preparing for trial; advocating in the client’s favor during the trial (should the case make it that far), and counseling the client.
Personal injury law can be very complex. The lawsuits are time-consuming, arduous and can be taxing on the attorneys. For this reason, personal injury lawyers often decide to specialize in niche areas of tort law. For instance, take a personal injury lawyer that routinely litigates automobile accidents, they might decide to specialize in motor vehicle accidents involving semi-trucks or tractor-trailers specifically.
Though the deadlines are often tight and the caseloads heavy, most personal injury attorneys find that the most rewarding part of the job is the ability to help injured victims, as well as their families, seek the justice that they deserve through the legal system.
Common Types of Personal Injury Cases
Any case that involves the mental or physical injury of a party technically falls under the umbrella of personal injury law. Some of the most common types of personal injury cases include:
- Aviation accidents
- Automobile accidents
- Animal bites, attacks or injuries
- Injuries that involve burns
- Boating accidents or injuries
- Bicycle accidents or injuries
- Injuries that involve the brain
- Construction accidents
- Defective products that lead to harm or injury
- Bad faith/insurance
- Motorcycle accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Abuse in nursing homes
- Accidents involving pedestrians
- Slip and fall accidents
- Injuries involving the spinal cord
- Wrongful death
What You Should Know About Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney
Knowing when to hire a personal injury attorney is the first step in receiving the compensation that you deserve from your accident. If you have been seriously hurt or injured in an accident, it is essential that you hire a qualified personal injury attorney to file a lawsuit and negotiate a reasonable settlement on your behalf. First off, you should understand that not all accidents necessitate hiring a personal injury attorney. Whether or not it is worth going through the motions, will depend on the amount at stake and the overall severity of the injuries you sustained.
When it comes down to the act of hiring a personal injury lawyer, the process in itself might seem intimidating. After all, how do you know that you have found a litigator that you can trust? What questions should you ask potential candidates in order to select the best one for your case? How much can you expect to pay for their services? There are so many questions and unknowns that can be very overwhelming, especially during such a difficult time as following an accident.
A good personal injury lawyer will have much to offer you in terms of support and knowledge. The ideal candidate should possess exemplary negotiation and communication skills (both oral and written), the appropriate educational training and experience, proper logical and analytical reasoning abilities, as well as excellent organization and time management skills.
Schulman, Roth and Associates
If you have been a victim in a serious accident and need the help of an experienced and trusted personal injury attorney, then let Schulman, Roth and Associates go to work for you. Deciding whether or not you need to hire a personal injury attorney for your case can be a difficult decision to make. You can count on our honest team to steer you in the right direction when it comes to the actions you should take to receive the compensation that you deserve.