Personal injury lawyers help people who are injured to recover benefits and damages that they are entitled to. This financial compensation can be a huge help to victims and their families who are not only dealing with the loss of physical ability, but are often under considerable financial stress due to lost income, medical costs and other expenses that have arisen as a result of the injury.
Your lawyer will guide you through the process, helping you to know what your rights are and what to expect. Whether your case involves dealing with insurance companies only, going to mediation or actually going to court, it will be important for your lawyer to collect as many details about the accident and your injuries as possible in order to build your case.
Question: What information will my lawyer ask for?
In order to start building your case, personal injury lawyers will often ask for a number reports and other evidence. This might include some or all of the following:
- Medical examination documents and records – In order to fully understand how much compensation you may be entitled to, it is important for your lawyer to have access to your medical records and documents. Your lawyer needs to have a good idea as to what future expenses and losses you might incur because of your injuries.
- Medical receipts – This one is fairly straightforward. Your lawyer will want to ensure that you get compensated for any medical expenses that you incurred as a direct result of your injury.
- Photographs of your injuries – These may be used to help you with insurance companies or in a lawsuit against another party.
- Photographs of the accident site – These can help to establish who is at fault and make it easier to prove your case.
- Police and witness reports – Again, these may be important in establishing who was to blame for the accident.
The above list is only a sample of the items that your lawyer might request to start building your case. Depending on the specific circumstances of your case, there may be other things that they ask for as well.
Question: What if I don’t have everything that my lawyer is asking for?
Do not worry if you don’t have everything that your lawyer needs to build your case. For example, if you were involved in a serious accident you may not have had the presence of mind (or even the ability) to take photos or collect other evidence at the scene. Your lawyer will work with you to compile evidence, but they will also work with others such as your health care providers, police officers and witnesses to put together the missing parts of the puzzle. It is helpful if you can provide your lawyer with as many details as possible, but you also shouldn’t stress over the fact that you are not able to provide everything. Personal injury lawyers are experienced in helping their clients get the compensation that they need to recover and get on with their lives – and to accomplish this they know what sources they will need to access to build your case.