What you do in the moments immediately after an accident can affect your chances of receiving fair compensation through the injury claim you file later.
Following an injury:
Speak with a Chicago personal injury lawyer as soon as you can. We are well-versed with Illinois’s liability laws, as well as how courts, juries, insurance companies, and other parties all tend to operate within the city and Cook County.
An injury suffered because of another person’s (or company’s) carelessness is the basis of a personal injury claim. In legal terms, their negligence caused your injury. Some acts of negligence can seem relatively harmless while others can cause permanent changes to the quality of life of you and your loved ones.
The elements that must be present in a personal injury claim include:
An injury alone is not enough to qualify for a personal injury lawsuit. You must have suffered some sort of loss or harm from your injuries. This extra caveat is meant to keep “frivolous” lawsuits out of the court system. The compensation awarded for these losses is called “damages.”
Typical damages in a personal injury lawsuit can include:
If you have been injured by the negligence of someone else, then your next step should be to contact our Chicago personal injury lawyers to schedule a consultation.
During your consultation, we will listen to the details of your case and determine whether you should move forward with a personal injury claim. You don’t pay unless we win.
Don’t wait. Call today. We can help.
Illinois uses a comparative fault system for personal injury claims, which basically means each person in an accident will be assigned a percentage of liability. Based on what happened, your liability can be anywhere between 0% and 100%. Any compensation you recover from the other parties will be reduced by your own liability percentage. For example, if you were 25% liable for your injuries, then you can receive 75% of the damages demanded in your claim.
No, personal injuries can be psychological and even emotional. For example, if you are paralyzed in a car accident, then you will undoubtedly experience extreme psychological duress due to your new limitations. In your claim, you can cite your psychological harm as damage.
You can typically demand damages in your personal injury claim that include lost wages, diminished earning capacity, medical bills, disability accommodations, lowered quality of life, pain & suffering, and loss of companionship if you are filing a wrongful death claim.
Anxiety, depression, fear or paranoia, insecurity, and embarrassment are all examples of emotional pains that can be triggered after a violent accident. Suffering can be defined as any sort of pain you feel due to your physical injuries, including pain in the moment of the accident and pain that lingers for days, weeks, months, or years after. Essentially, if you are feeling hurt or frustrated because of the consequences of an accident you did not cause, then you are experiencing emotional pain and suffering that can be included in your damages.
After an accident that causes you or a loved one to suffer a serious injury, you should call a Chicago personal injury lawyer. The same is true for any accident that causes significant property loss. Please keep in mind that our initial consultations are free, so you can request one without paying anything out of your pocket.
Insurance companies like to throw lowball settlement offers at claimants to try to quickly close cases and protect their finances. With this in mind, you should never accept a settlement offer without first allowing your lawyer to review it.
Insurance policies are written to be difficult to understand, so you might not know if your injuries are covered by anyone’s insurance after your accident. Allowing an attorney to review your policy can help sort through the fine details.
In order for your Chicago personal injury lawyer to be proactive in your case, you may need to provide supplementary reports from varying physicians, consult with investigators, and generally remain involved in your case until it’s closed.
Wisconsin
959 N Mayfair Rd
Milwaukee, WI 53226
(414) 800-0000
Chicago
33 N LaSalle St.
#2700 Chicago, IL 60602
312.410.8496
Arizona
20 East Thomas Road
Suite 2200 Phoenix, AZ 85012-3133
480.508.8800
33 N LaSalle St.
#2700 Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 410-8496
20 E Thomas Rd
#2200 Phoenix, AZ 85012
(480) 508-8800
959 N Mayfair Rd
Milwaukee, WI 53226
(414) 800-0000
The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.