When you take your personal injury claim to court, your main purpose is to win your case and collect a monetary award. But contrary to what many people believe, collecting a monetary award isn’t always a windfall. In fact, it’s more likely to be enough to pay for your medical bills, legal fees and have some left over for pain and suffering. Your personal injury attorneys in Wichita discuss three things you should know about monetary rewards in an injury case.
Liability Issues
When discussing a personal injury case, it’s important that there was some liability or negligence that led up to the injury. Did someone forget to clean up a spill on the supermarket floor? Did a dog owner fail to put their dog on a leash and it ended up biting you? Did a driver cause you to be in an accident due to their negligence? All of these are examples of liability. It’s important that you and your attorney can prove liability before taking your case to court. If you can’t prove liability, it may be difficult to get a financial award.
Damages
In addition to liability, you have to prove damages. Damages are the result of another party’s negligence. For example, if you slipped and fell in a supermarket because of a spill that wasn’t cleaned up property, your damages might include medical expenses, lost wages from your job since you were unable to go to work, loss of earning capacity if you become permanently disabled, punitive damages and even court costs. You should work with your personal injury attorneys in Wichita to determine the amount of damages you have incurred. Your attorney can help with the calculations and estimate the amount of monetary award that should be requested in your lawsuit.
Collectability
The third thing you should know about a monetary award in a personal injury lawsuit is the collectability. If your case is successful, you will receive a judgment. This means that the defendant must pay for your damages. However, if the defendant doesn’t have enough money to pay for your damages or if they don’t have proper insurance for these types of claims, it could be difficult to collect. It may take months or even years for you to collect the compensation that you have won in court. At times, it may not even be worth going to court. You should discuss your options with a personal injury attorney to see what the best path is to take in your specific situation.
When you discuss your case with the team at Business Name, we will help you explore all of your options. We won’t give you false hope or bad information. We want to help you make the best decision for your circumstances.
