What do Personal Injury Attorneys Do?

If you’ve been injured in an accident, a personal injury attorney can help you open up a case and collect compensation for your injuries against the negligent party. Many personal injury attorneys are affiliated with car accidents, as seen in television ads. However, there are other personal injury firms that handle other injury cases involving trucking accidents, slip and falls, wrongful death, dog bites, and more. Read on to learn more about what a personal injury attorney does and how they can help you.

Duties of a Personal Injury Attorney

An Atlanta personal injury law firm and other personal injury firms can assist with many duties including:

Identifying the Responsible Individual

Many times it is not possible to hold a specific party negligent. This can vary depending on the circumstances surrounding your case. Sometimes, though, proving negligence can be straightforward, such as those involved in a clear liability accident. It is possible for the other driver to admit fault in certain types of cases.

But for those cases that are not always straightforward, it can be challenging to determine negligence. Fortunately, an experienced personal injury attorney can go over the facts surrounding your case to determine who is responsible.

Launch Investigations

In order to prepare for a settlement or trial, an attorney must conduct an investigation. An investigation can be done on-site by a lawyer. Other times, an attorney may hire investigators to take care of the following:

• Interviewing witnesses
• Creating diagrams
• Taking pictures and video of the accident scene
• Collecting police reports and other relevant records

This process, click here to learn more, is about gathering as much information as possible to help you win your case.

Battle Insurance Company

A personal injury attorney can also take on the negotiations with the insurance companies. If you are involved in a car accident, specifically, both insurance companies will want to speak with you to make a statement. But, you should tread carefully and speak with an attorney prior to communicating with them.

It isn’t always easy to deal with an insurance company and take on handling the claim yourself. Your attorney can help you by telling you what to say and when, taking control of how information is put out, and speaking with the insurance company on your behalf.

File a Lawsuit

If, for some reason, the insurance company and your attorney are unable to come to an agreement on a settlement amount, your lawyer can file a lawsuit. But, this won’t happen until your attorney has all of the information they need to push forward.

Once a lawsuit is filed, the judge will convince both sides to come to an agreement on a settlement amount by recommending conferences and mediation. If these tactics do not work, the case will have to stand trial.

Personal injury trials can last anywhere between one day and a few months, depending on the circumstances surrounding your case.

Furthermore, you should know that the majority of personal injury cases do not make it to trial. Either way, it is highly advised to seek out an attorney that has experience taking cases to trial, in the event your case makes it to this step.