An injury lawyer is a legal professional that helps injured people with claims against negligent individuals, companies, or government agencies. They will guide you through the process of proving that someone else caused your injuries and that they were therefore responsible for paying you damages for your losses.
Most Manhattan personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis, meaning that they don’t charge you any fees at all to take your case unless they win compensation for you in the form of a verdict or settlement. However, different attorneys follow their own billing practices, so be sure to ask for a detailed explanation of how they bill their clients before hiring one.
Injuries can be very expensive. You might have medical bills to pay, lost wages from missing work because of your injury, and property damage that can’t be repaired or replaced. You may also be suffering emotional distress and loss of consortium because of your injury. The amount of damages you can recover depends on a number of factors, including the severity of your injuries, the impact that it has had on your life, and the availability of insurance coverage.
You will need to establish that the defendant’s negligence or intentional actions were a direct cause of your injury. This is known as “actual causation,” and it is proven through credible evidence. You will also have to establish proximate causation, which is proven through the law of causality by showing that your injury was directly related to the defendant’s conduct.
When you have an injury due to another party’s actions, it is natural to feel that you should take some of the blame. However, doing so could hurt your claim, especially if you were only partially responsible for the accident. An experienced attorney will help you understand how New York law addresses shared fault and can negotiate with the insurance company to maximize your recovery.
An important part of your injury lawyer job is to handle all the details of your case so that you can focus on getting well. This includes filing paperwork, obtaining medical records and bills, communicating with insurance adjusters throughout the process, and ensuring that you comply with all relevant legal obligations.
The other party and/or their insurance company want to pay as little as possible for your injuries, so they will look for any way that they can avoid responsibility for your losses. They may attempt to prove that you were partially to blame for the accident and reduce their overall liability, or they might try to prove that your injuries were not caused by their actions. An experienced injury lawyer will be able to spot these attempts and defend you. They will also be able to negotiate with the insurer and fight for you in court if necessary. In the end, they will either settle or get a verdict in your favor. They will be able to explain the value of your injuries and how much you should expect to recover.