Suffering a personal injury can turn your life completely upside down. You will likely find yourself in a difficult financial situation with expensive medical bills and potentially lost wages. Recovering compensation from the liable party can be essential in keeping your head above water after an accident.
At Pacific West Injury Law, we are dedicated to ensuring that all accident victims have access to legal counsel upon which they can depend. Our team of experienced personal injury attorneys in Sunrise Manor has a long track record of helping those who have been injured recover the money they need and deserve.
Determining Who Is at Fault for Your Personal Injury
Before you can begin to pursue compensation for your personal injury, you must first determine who is liable for your damages. In some cases, assigning liability is simple and straightforward. However, this can often be a challenging task with many parties potentially holding a level of liability. Fortunately, an experienced personal injury lawyer can help you sort everything out.
Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit
There are many steps that must be taken between hiring a personal injury attorney and recovering compensation. One of the first things your lawyer will do will be to investigate your case with the dual purpose of proving liability and collecting evidence to support your claim.
After that, your lawyer will evaluate your damages to determine how much your personal injury claim is worth.
The next step will be to draw up all the required paperwork and file your lawsuit with the court. After the target of your lawsuit has been notified, the pretrial process will begin. Steps in the pretrial process include:
- Discovery
- Depositions
- Mediation
Discovery
During discovery, the two sides will exchange all the evidence they have collected about the case. This stage of the pretrial process is critical for ensuring a fair trial, as it gives both sides the chance to review all the evidence that will be presented in court and build their respective cases accordingly.
Depositions
Depositions are taken at the end of the discovery phase. A deposition is a testimony given by a witness or a party involved in the incident outside the courtroom. During depositions, a court stenographer will be present to record the proceedings while the two sides ask questions of the deponents. Testimony given in depositions can potentially be used in a trial.
Mediation
Mediation is the final stage of the pretrial process. During mediation, both parties will meet at a neutral location. An independent third party will be present to oversee proceedings and attempt to help the two parties resolve their dispute and come to terms on a mutually acceptable settlement deal.
Mediation will not be the first time your lawyer and opposing counsel attempt to settle your case. From the very beginning of your case, your lawyer will be in contact with opposing counsel, attempting to reach a settlement agreement. If a settlement can not be reached by the end of mediation, your case will proceed to trial.
Personal Injury Lawyers Get Paid Based on Results
Often people neglect to hire an attorney because they are worried they will not be able to afford to pay their fees. While this can certainly be a legitimate concern with many lawyers who charge a high hourly rate, you should never have to worry about cost when it comes to hiring a personal injury attorney.
Personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. That means they only collect a fee for their services if they secure compensation for you. The only payment your attorney will receive will be a fixed percentage of the compensation you recover from the liable party. If you don’t get money for your damages, your lawyer works for free.
Recovering Damages After a Personal Injury
After suffering a personal injury, you will likely be eligible to recover a variety of different types of damages. All of these damages can be split into three primary categories.
Economic Damages
Any losses resulting from your personal injury that have a direct impact on your finances are considered economic damages. Common economic damages include:
- Lost wages
- Diminished earning ability
- Property damage
- Modifications to your home or vehicle needed for accommodating a disability
- Medical expenses
- Future medical bills
Non-Economic Damages
All the rest of the losses you incur as a result of your personal injury are categorized as non-economic damages. Common non-economic damages include:
- Mental anguish
- Permanent disability
- Decreased quality of life
- Loss of consortium
- Pain and suffering
- Scarring and other disfigurements
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are only awarded in a small percentage of personal injury cases. Punitive damages differ from the compensatory damages listed above in that they do not focus on the losses sustained by accident victims. Instead, the focus of punitive damages is on punishing the liable party for their actions.
Punitive damages are only awarded when the actions of the at-fault party are deemed to have been criminally negligent.
Statute of Limitations for Filing a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Sunrise Manor
Under Nevada law, personal injury victims have two years to file a lawsuit against the liable party. Failure to file within this time frame can result in the loss of your right to recover compensation. However, you must understand that there are many exceptions to this rule. The particulars of your case could end up altering your available time frame for filing a lawsuit.
It could turn out that you are still eligible to file, even after two years have passed. Alternatively, you could find that you have mere months rather than years to submit your lawsuit to the court. By hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer shortly after you get hurt, you can ensure that all deadlines will be met, and your right to recover compensation will be protected.
Talk to a Personal Injury Attorney in Sunrise Manor Today
At Pacific West Injury Law, we are ready to help you get the money you need after an accident. Our team of experienced personal injury attorneys in Sunrise Manor has a long history of obtaining significant settlements for our clients. Give us a call or fill out our online contact form today to schedule a free case review with a member of our team.
