LAW OFFICES OF THOMAS W. DREXLER
Personal Injury refers to the type of legal case where a person sustains a physical (and/or mental) injury through the negligent (or reckless or intentional) act of another.
Personal Injury cases include injuries arising out of automobile collisions, defective products, animal bites, construction site accidents, on the job injuries (workers compensation) and various others.
Whether you are entilted to recover money for your injury can vary significantly from case to case depending on different laws which apply in different situations. For example, in a typical workers compensation case, a lawyer does not have to prove that the employer did anything wrong to cause the injury of the employee, only that the employee was injured while performing his job. in automobile accidents, to recover money a lawyer must generally prove that the other driver (or your own driver if you were a passenger) was at least partially at fault in causing the collision.
Assuming the other party is legally responsible for the injury, the personal injury claimant can, depending on the laws that apply, present a claim for their medical bills and treatments (including bills and treatments expected in the future for the injury), lost income or wages due to the injury, compensation for their pain and suffering, compensation for future expected pain and suffering, compensation for any disfigurement and for any disabilty arising from the injury (whether temporary or permanent), and any other out of pocket expenses.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions):
I don't have money to hire a lawyer for my case. How do I proceed?
In general, injury cases will be handled on a contingency fee arrangement. This means the attorney will not receive payment on your case until a settlement or verdict is obtained, and then he will take a percentage of the recover plus expenses.
What percentage does the lawyer charge on a case?
The usual contingency fee in injury case is one-third, but this may vary in individual cases, and some types of cases have the percentage set by Illinois statute (workers compensation cases, for example, are fixed at 20% of the award or settlement).
I spoke to a lawyer and he did not want my case. Why?
When a lawyer takes a case on a contingency basis, he takes the risk that he may work on your case but be unable to get paid if the other side turns out to be not legally responsible or if money for some reason cannot be collected. Attorneys also will sometimes decline a case where the injury is not that great or the expenses not that high, as such small cases may not bring in enough money to be worthwhile. Nonetheless, attorneys will often have different opinions on a case, and just because your case is turned down by one lawyer doesn't mean it won't be accepted by another.
I have been advised by my attorney not to speak to anyone about my case. Why ?
Whenever you speak to someone about your case, other than your own lawyer, that person becomes a potential witness and can be brought in to court to testify about the conversation. For instance, If you describe the accident to three different people, it is unlikely that you will explain it exactly the same way each time, and even if you did, people will tend to remember things differently, and may forget or misquote what you said. When these people are later interviewed, the differences in what they say may very well be considered inconsistencies in your story.
What is the statute of limitations?
In general, if you don't file your case in court within a certain period of time you can be barred or prevented from recovering on your claim. Different types of cases have different time periods and notice requirements, so it is always best to see an attorney as soon as possible after your claim arises to get appropriate advice.
