Most people agree that baseball is a game of firsts. If a pitcher gets the first strike on a batter, a team gets the first out of an inning, and scores the first run of a game, that team will probably win most of its contests. That is especially true if a team confronts a tough opponent. Personal injury victims are up against tough opponents. Insurance companies have almost unlimited resources, they earn over $1 trillion a year. So, it is important to get off to a fast start.
Generally, because of head injuries and other serious wounds, many victims are not thinking clearly in the immediate wake of an injury. Therefore, they often do or don’t do some things that cripple their injury claims later.
Comeback wins are nothing out of the ordinary for Wisconsin personal injury lawyers. No matter how a victim unintentionally harms a personal injury case, the maximum compensation is usually available. This compensation usually includes money for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering.
Motor vehicle collisions, falls, and unintentional poisonings are the most common kinds of personal injuries in Wisconsin.
Every year, motor vehicle crashes in the United States kill or seriously injure millions of Americans. Many of these injuries, like head injuries and broken bones, are permanent, at least to an extent. Although doctors and physical therapists can address brain injury symptoms, once brain cells die, they never regenerate. Broken bones usually never entirely heal. These victims usually suffer permanent loss of function, like the lost range of motion in a shoulder.
Most vehicle drivers have a duty of reasonable care. They must avoid crashes when possible and drive defensively. Therefore, negligence causes almost all vehicle collisions. If that is the case, the aforementioned compensation is available.
A similar duty of care protects most fall injury victims. Generally, property owners must ensure their guests, whether they are commercial or social guests, are reasonably safe. Additionally, owners must conduct frequent safety inspections and immediately address fall hazards.
Fall injuries are similar to motor vehicle crash cases, although vehicle speed and weight are not a factor in falls. However, various restraint systems and engineering improvements protect vehicle occupants during crashes. Fall injury victims have no such protections.
Of all the personal injury cases that our Wisconsin personal injury lawyers handle, unintentional poisonings might be the most complex. Overdose deaths often have multiple causes. Obviously, the individuals bear some responsibility. Other responsible parties could include the property owner who provided a place to use the drugs, the shipping company who delivered the drugs, and the doctor who prescribed them.
On a related note, medical malpractice injuries are also common. Specific incidents include misdiagnosis, surgical mistakes, and birth injuries.
Failure to see a doctor and, quite bluntly, failure to keep quiet are the two most common ways victims unintentionally harm their personal injury claims.
Most injury victims do not “feel” hurt. Adrenaline masks pain. Additionally, as for head injuries, the brain conceals its injuries. That is why concussed athletes usually ask their coaches to immediately put them back into the game.
Just like only a Wisconsin personal injury attorney can evaluate the legal aspects of your case, only a doctor can evaluate your medical status. Not just any doctor will do. This physician should focus on injury-related conditions.
There is a legal aspect as well. If a victim does not immediately see a doctor, an insurance company lawyer may later claim the victim’s injuries were not too severe.
Additionally, victims should never give statements to the other party’s insurance company or give voluntary statements to anyone.
Insurance company TV commercials imply that adjusters are “on your side” and ready to do the right thing. That is simply not true. Insurance company telephone adjusters are trained to extract damaging information from people who, as mentioned, often are not thinking clearly.
The other insurance company eventually needs to hear your side of the story. But let your attorney handle this chore at a later date.
Also, be very careful when it comes to statements. Listen as closely as possible to emergency responder questions and answer them as narrowly as possible. Victims also should not apologize to the other drivers. We usually apologize to express sympathy. But in court, a lawyer could twist an apology into a liability admission.
Doing the opposite of these things greatly helps your personal injury case. Therefore, a Wisconsin personal injury attorney has an easier time obtaining maximum compensation.
A qualified doctor can diagnose and treat injury-related conditions, like whiplash. If not properly and promptly treated, this head-neck injury could cause paralysis. Moreover, a qualified doctor makes notes about the victim’s pain. These notes are usually admissible, and vital, in a civil proceeding.
The Fifth Amendment does not apply in civil cases. So, if a victim makes a damaging admission, there may be no way to retract it later.
Above all, see a lawyer as soon as possible. Even if an emergency responder or insurance adjuster said you were partially, or mostly, at fault for the accident, substantial compensation may still be available.
Not harming your case is only part of the battle. A Wisconsin personal injury attorney must also collect sufficient evidence to prove negligence, or a lack of care, by a preponderance of the evidence, or more likely than not.
We mentioned medical bills above. Due to privacy laws, individuals often have a hard time obtaining specific records. But for a lawyer, it usually only takes one phone call. Additionally, medical bills are hard to authenticate in court. But for an experienced lawyer, this process is straightforward.
Other evidence includes the police accident report and witness statements. The police report is especially useful if multiple agencies contributed to it. Witness statements might be even more important. Something almost mystical happens when disinterested witnesses take the stand and tell jurors what they saw and heard.
Accident victims may be entitled to substantial compensation, but they should not go it alone. For a free consultation with an experienced Milwaukee County personal injury lawyer, contact Martin Law Office, S.C. by calling 414-856-4010.
