What does “personal injury” mean?
“Personal injury” is a general term that refers to law suits for bodily injury resulting from someone else’s negligence. This may include:
- car and truck accidents
- defective products
- wrongful death
- medical malpractice
- premises liability (dangerous conditions on someone’s property)
- Injury from defective medicines
- worker related injuries
How much will an attorney charge me to represent me in my personal injury case?
Most personal injury cases are handled on what is known as a “contingency basis.” This means that the attorney doesn’t get pain unless he recovers money for you and the attorney is paid a percentage of the recovery as his fee. The fee will vary depending on the type of case and may be more or less depending on when in the process a settlement is achieved. In workers compensation cases, the fee is generally established by statute and is typically 25%. In auto and truck accident cases, the fee is generally between 1/3 and 40%. In product liability and medical malpractice cases the fee may be as much as 45% due to the fact that the amount of the attorney’s time and investment will likely be much more. Fees are generally less the earlier the case can be settled. In addition to the attorney’s fee, the attorneys case costs and expenses will also be reimbursed in the event of a settlement or verdict. Under most attorney’s contingency fee contracts, if there is no settlement or verdict, there is no fee.
How much is my case worth?
The value of your case depends on many factors such as the type and extent of your injuries, the total amount of your medical bills, whether you have lost time from work or will lose income in the future, whether you will require additional medical care in the future, whether your injuries are permanent or temporary. The extent of the defendant’s negligence is also a major issue as is whether or not you have been negligent in any way that contributed to your injuries.
An experienced attorney will weigh all these considerations as well as the venue, or where the case will be tried, in determining the value of your case.
