Considering hiring a personal injury attorney to help with an injury lawsuit? This post provides an easy to understand beginners guide for filing an injury lawsuit.
Introduction
If you’re lucky, you will never need a Colorado Springs personal injury attorney. You’ll never suffer injuries and losses because of someone else’s negligence, never require ongoing medical care and treatment, and never miss out on weeks, months, years of work.
If you’re lucky, you’ll never need to file a personal injury lawsuit to get you the resources and compensation you deserve and need. Unfortunately, not everyone is so fortunate. That’s why individuals in Colorado Springs and throughout the country file personal injury lawsuits every single day.
Guide to Colorado Injury Lawsuits and Insurance
For many if not most Colorado Springs injury victims who want to get compensation for their injuries, this will be their first time meeting with a lawyer and first experience with lawsuits and courtrooms.
If you suffered injuries in a car wreck or other incident involving another person’s negligence, you might be one of those folks who doesn’t know what to expect as you begin the personal injury legal process.
That’s why we’ve put together this quick and easy beginner’s guide to Colorado Springs injury lawsuits. Every accident, injury, and injury lawsuit is different, of course, and how your matter is going to proceed will depend on the unique facts and circumstances of your case.
What are Injury Lawsuits?
Personal injury lawsuits are cases in which an injured person sues one or more people or companies to recover compensation for injuries, financial losses, and other damages.
While the named defendant in the suit is the negligent party, it is often that person’s insurance company which handles the defense of the claim, negotiates with the plaintiff’s attorney, and pays out any settlement or judgment in favor of the plaintiff.
Not all personal injury claims lead to injury lawsuits. Sometimes, an injury victim and their Colorado Springs personal injury lawyer can settle the matter directly with the insurance company without needing to file a lawsuit.
The problem is that insurance companies want to pay out as little as possible on claims and will do everything they can to deny responsibility. That is why you should never negotiate with an insurance company without a personal injury attorney and why injury lawsuits are so often necessary.
Injury cases can be very complicated. It can take months – and sometimes years – before an injury plaintiff receives compensation for their injuries if they obtain compensation at all.
Filing the Complaint
Choosing a talented and experienced personal injury attorney is the most critical decision you can make after an injury.
Your injury lawyer will answer your questions and advise you of your options and prospects. He or she will gather all the facts, secure evidence and statements from witnesses, and help you obtain necessary medical care.
If your attorney determines that an injury lawsuit is advisable, the case begins with the preparation and filing of a complaint with the local Colorado Springs court clerk’s office.
The defendant will then file an answer or challenge the complaint, and the lawsuit will move forward from there.
Discovery
“Discovery” is how the parties exchange information and learn all there is to know about the accident and injuries. Discovery is how the injury lawyers in Colorado Springs gather the evidence they need to put on or defend the lawsuit.
The injury lawyers exchange and answer written questions (“interrogatories”) and requests for documents. They will take the depositions of the parties and any witnesses, treating doctors, and expert witnesses.
Sometimes, the parties will argue about whether questions or requests were proper or whether a party fully disclosed everything they needed to. A Colorado Springs judge will resolve such disputes if the attorneys can’t work it out themselves.
Once discovery concludes, one side may believe that the evidence requires a verdict in their favor as a matter of law and ask the judge to enter a summary judgment. If a judge grants a defendant’s request for summary judgment, that effectively ends the lawsuit, other than an appeal.
Settlement Discussions
Over 90% of personal injury lawsuits end with a settlement rather than trial. Parties often settle after discovery when they have a complete picture of the evidence that each side will present. Keep in mind the parties can engage in settlement discussions at any time.
Related: My personal injury law firm recommends we settle? What does that mean?
The Trial
If the parties fail to settle and the judge has not otherwise resolved the case, the case will go to trial. The trial can be before a local Colorado Springs judge and jury or just a judge.
Lawyers make opening statements, call witnesses and present evidence, make objections and argue about various points of law or rules of evidence, and deliver closing arguments.
At the trial’s conclusion, the judge or jury renders a judgment. If the judge’s decision is in the plaintiff’s favor, the judgment will set forth a specific sum of money as damages.
Receipt of Compensation
After a settlement or an award of damages after a trial (and the defendant doesn’t appeal the judgment), the defendant or their insurance company will issue a check in the designated amount.
After paying for all costs incurred in the case as well as any outstanding amounts due to treating physicians and other medical providers, your personal injury attorney receives the percentage of proceeds outlined in your retainer agreement. You will receive a check for the net amount remaining.
Summary
If this sounds like a long and involved process, it is. But that is why you hire an experienced Colorado Springs personal injury lawyer to handle all of this for you.
It is your injury attorney’s job to fight for you at every step of the injury lawsuit process and take care of everything for you so you can focus on recovering from your injuries.
Consultations with a Personal Injury Attorney are Free
The good news is that, if you want to work with a personal injury lawyer, you’ll pay nothing in fees until you get compensation. This is called a contingency fee, and you will only pay the contingency fee from money received from the at-fault party in the personal injury lawsuit. Contingency fees are the standard pay structure for Colorado personal injury lawyers.
King & Beaty specializes in personal injury lawsuits. Contact us to schedule your free Colorado Springs personal injury consultation to determine if you have a case.
Call (719) 505-9999
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