So you are injured in an accident. You surf the net and see 5 different lawyers who have great websites. You feel that you have been wronged, you went to the hospital, sustained serious injuries and are damaged. The one question you need to know is"WHAT IS MY CASE WORTH?"
After calling all 5 lawyers and explaining to them your injuries and the facts of the case every lawyer tells you that "I don't know" or "it depends" or "it is too early to tell." Why are they telling you this and what does it mean?
For starters personal injury attorneys are not supposed to make any guarantees. In fact, in most retainers attorneys will tell you that there are no guarantees in litigation. No attorney can tell you how much your case will settle for or what a claims examiner will pay for your case or what a jury will decide.
There are a myriad of factors that may change the value of your case. They include the defendant's insurance limits, the venue, the type of defendant you are suing, your injuries and liability.
INSURANCE LIMITS
One of the most important questions is whether the defendant is insured. If the defendant is not insured most attorneys will not take the case. This is because the defendant will have to pay a judgment out of their own pocket and they may not have deep pockets. If the defendant has insurance, how much insurance do they have. Generally speaking, the limits of insurance is the highest amount that a case is worth. For instance if you were rear-ended by a car with a $25,000 insurance limit. $25,000 may be all that you can recover for your injuries (there are exceptions if you have SUM coverage that exceeds the defendants insurance limits). If the defendant has $500,000 in insurance limits you may be able to recover more.
VENUE
Venue is an important question in evaluating a case. Not all venues are the same. Some venues such as Bronx County are known to be plaintiff friendly jurisdictions where jurors have been known to give plaintff's higher verdicts. Other venues such as Westhcester County are known to be more conservative and jurors have been known to find in favor of defendants more often and give lower plaintiff's verdicts.
YOUR DEFENDANT
Some defendants have a reputation for fighting harder than others. Some insurance companies have a reputation for litigating the case to trial while others prefer to settle. Some defendants have a better reputation in the community while others have a bad reputation. The type of defendant that you are suing factors into the value of your case.
YOUR INJURIES
Probably the biggest factor when determining the value of your case is your injuries. Do you have a serious injury? Did you undergo surgery? How long did you treat with a doctor? Have you made a full recovery?
The more serious your injuries are and the more medical treatment that you went through have a direct correlation with the value of your case.
LIABILITY
Another important factor is liability. In other words, who is at fault for your injuries? Was it all the defendant's fault? Was it partially your fault? Were you wearing a seatbelt when the accident occurred? Were you drunk when you slipped and fell on the stairs? Did the defendant make an illegal right turn? Did the doctor commit malpractice or was what happened to you a risk of the procedure.
All of these factors are important when determining the value of your case. In most cases, it may not be until the end of discovery or immediately before trial until your attorney can determine the value of your case.
If you would like to speak to an attorney about your case, call the LAW OFFICES OF JASON B. KESSLER at 1-800-346-6254. We would be glad to talk to you about your case and what you can expect from the litigation process.