The following information answers frequently asked questions regarding
personal injury law. This information will not address your specific needs because each injury case is different. Please contact
Kelly Anderson, P.C. at (800) 637-6622 or complete the contact form on this website for answers regarding the unique issues
of your case.
What is personal injury?
What financial compensation can I recover in a personal injury case?
How do I know if I need an attorney?
What is a contingency fee?
If I have a personal injury case do I have to go to court?
What is Personal Injury?
"Personal Injury"
is any physical or mental injury or death that is the result of another person's negligent or harmful act. Personal Injury
law involves "civil courts" that award "money damages," as distinguished from "criminal courts" that determine jail or imprisonment.
Personal injury is often referred to as "Bodily Injury," and can occur in a wide variety of circumstances, including vehicle
collisions of all kinds, dangerous and defective products, concealed hazards on premises, medical or legal or other professional
malpractice, sexual abuse, and elder abuse, to name a few.
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What financial compensation can I recover in a personal injury
claim?
Personal injury victims are entitled to recover money damages for losses and expenses they have suffered.
Depending upon the particular circumstances of the case, damages may include recovery for any of the following:
- Medical bills
- Lost Wages
- Lost Profits
- Incidental Expenses
- Pain & Suffering
- Physical Disability
- Disfigurement
- Emotional Trauma
- Mental Disability
- Property Damage
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How do I know if I need an attorney?
If you
have been seriously injured, an experienced personal injury attorney should be consulted before you give any statements or
sign any papers. In all cases important time deadlines apply. If a state or local government agency is at fault, a "tort notice"
must be given to the agency within a certain number of days. "Statutes of limitation" are deadlines for filing a case in court.
The deadline is not the same for all cases. If you violate such a deadline, your claim will become time-barred and worthless.
The law firm of Kelly L. Andersen, P.C. can advise you on the applicable time deadlines for your injury case.
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What is a Contingency Fee?
A "contingency
fee" means that a fee is only owed if the lawyer is successful in handling your case, and no fee is owed until the successful
end of the case. Such a fee is often referred to as "the poor man's key to the courthouse." Insurance companies are well funded
and are able to retain some of the best lawyers to defend their interests. Without a contingency fee, many injury victims
would have no remedy.
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If I have a personal injury case do I have to go to court?
The
majority of personal injury cases are resolved through informal negotiations without filing a lawsuit. Even when a lawsuit
must be filed, most cases will still be resolved very successfully through continued negotiations, or through mediation or
arbitration. Only a very small percentage of personal injury cases will go all the way to a jury trial. However, the lawyer
must prepare every case as if it were going to trial because that is the only way to get the highest value for the case.
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