July 09, 2013

A Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyer Helps People Obtain Settlements and Verdicts in Personal Injury Cases

In personal injury cases, there is a difference between a verdict and a settlement. It is important to understand each of these terms, in order to fully understand how filing a personal injury case works. You first step is to retain a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer and meet with them for your initial consultation. During this meeting, you should bring along police reports, hospital reports, medical bills, and any other documentation relating to your accident. The attorney will use this information, along with your verbal account of the accident, to determine whether there are grounds for filing a claim and the amount of negligence contributed by the other party.

Once a claim has been filed, it is normal to allow the insurance company and other party the opportunity to file a response and present a settlement offer. If the proposed amount is agreeable, and your attorney instructs you it is a fair monetary amount, then you accept it, and the claim is closed. On the other hand, if the proposal is not acceptable, your attorney might meet with you and discuss making a counter offer, in order to avoid going to court. In the event you are unable to come to a mutually acceptable agreement, the next step is to take your case before a court of law. Your Los Angeles personal injury lawyer will give you their honest opinion about taking your case to court and whether they feel there are sufficient grounds for winning your case. During the court proceedings, a judge or jury may determine the outcome. Their findings are entered as a verdict, either in your favor, or in favor of the other party.