Do I Need to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer for My Accident Claim?

Although it is not required by law to hire a personal injury lawyer to represent an accident claim, in almost all cases, it is the best choice. Continue reading to learn why it is important to retain a seasoned attorney after being injured in an accident that was not your fault.

Personal Injury Attorney Law Firm 317-881-2700
Personal Injury Attorney Law Firm 317-881-2700

Always Hire an Attorney

When it comes to obtaining the best possible outcome for your accident claim, the most effective course of action, both practically and financially, is to hire a personal injury lawyer. We have the knowledge, resources, and experience to fully comprehend the law surrounding your case which in turn helps protect your right to a full and fair settlement  or verdict. You may be entitled to certain compensation to cover your damages and losses that result from your accident and injuries, including medical expenses, hospital bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and much more.

The Consequences of Having No Lawyer

Representing yourself in a personal injury case is referred to as “pro se” in most states. This legal route is extremely risky because, in most cases, it usually costs plaintiffs more money in the long run and renders less of a settlement. The only time it might be acceptable to represent yourself in a personal injury claim would be if the case was worth a very low amount and the plaintiff filed suit in small claims court.  However, numerous personal injury lawsuits are high-value claims, making this possibility a very rare one.

Get an Attorney With Injury Experience

Not only should you not enter a personal injury claim without a lawyer representing your best interests, you do not want to hire simply any general practice lawyer. It is vital to hire an attorney who specializes solely in accident law to get the best possible outcome for your settlement. After all, you wouldn’t go to your family doctor to have them do surgery, you would go see a doctor who is a surgeon. The same principle applies when it comes time to hiring a legal professional. Be sure to choose a personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims that were injured in the same type of accident you were injured in.

Defendant’s Insurance Companies Have Attorneys

The insurance company for the at-fault driver will have an attorney, usually an in-house attorney, that works directly for the insurance company and who is paid by the insurance company to defend the at-fault driver.  In bigger cases, an attorney is brought in immediately after the at-fault driver calls their insurance company to advise them of the collision or incident.  Because the defendant’s insurance company has an attorney working on the case from day one, so should you.

Get a Free Initial Consultation With a Trusted Indianapolis Accident Lawyer

The Law Office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. provides prompt, personalized, and responsive legal services for victims injured in Indianapolis, Indiana. Contact our law office today at 317-881-2700 and schedule a free initial consultation with a practiced Indianapolis injury attorney to find out if your injuries entitle you to legal compensation.  We represent injured people throughout the State of Indiana.

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700
Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Are Personal Injury Lawyers Expensive?

If you are a recent victim of an accident, do not let your income or cash availability stop you from hiring a personal injury lawyer to represent you in your claim for fair compensation. Regardless of employment, income, and cash availability, anyone can afford to retain the services of a personal injury law firm. Furthermore, virtually all personal injury offices offer free, first-time consultations in order to have your case reviewed by a licensed accident attorney.

Continue reading to learn more about paying for a personal injury lawyer, including how much they collect for attorney fees and most importantly, how to get started as soon as today!

Indiana Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700
Indiana Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Lawyer Fees

Here in the United States, the most common payment arrangements used by law firms include hourly fees, flat fees, fee retainers, and contingency fees. When it comes to personal injury representation, the contingency fee is the most common fee arrangement used. Under a contingency-fee basis, a client does not pay anything upfront in terms of lawyer fees. Instead, clients only have to pay if a settlement is recovered for them. This is a great advantage for clients since they normally do not have the cash available, to pay the attorney fees, especially after a fall when a person is incurring medical bills and may be off work for a time.

Upon recovering a settlement or judgment for a client, a personal injury lawyer will collect a prearranged percentage previously agreed upon in the signing of the client-attorney contract. Commonly, lawyers retain around 1/3rd of the total settlement, but this percentage varies among firms. Always ask your personal injury lawyer about their payment arrangements and price tiers at your initial consultation. In fact, read our blog, “The First Questions You Should Ask About Your Personal Injury” to learn how to prepare for your first meeting.

What You Might Have to Pay For Yourself

Although personal injury lawyers work on a contingent basis, you might be obligated to pay additional fees related to your case. Such fees may include court costs, witness testimonies, expert panelists, filing fees, private investigation costs, background checks, and more. Most law firms will front these costs for a client until the time of settlement, at which point those fees/expenses would be paid out of the total settlement.  Fortunately, these costs usually do not amount to a lot, and tend to stay within an affordable price range; especially when you consider the settlement you are potentially recovering for your total damages and losses that resulted from your accident. 

How to Get Started on a Personal Injury Claim

Call the Law Office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. at 317-881-2700 to schedule a free initial consultation with a licensed personal injury attorney in Indianapolis, Indiana. Seasoned lawyers, Daniel Craven, Ralph Hoover, and Keith Blazek, are motivated to help you recover the full and fair compensation you deserve after being injured in a serious accident. Best of all, we only collect lawyer fees if we obtain a settlement for you!

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700
Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Do You Want to Sue for a Broken Nose?

Personal Injury Lawyers Indiana 317-881-2700

Personal Injury Lawyers Indiana 317-881-2700

A broken nose is a very painful injury. In fact, it’s one the most painful injuries you can receive to the middle of your face. In extreme cases, a broken nose requires corrective or reconstructive surgery. Not only can a broken nose be extremely painful and inconvenient, it can cost quite a bit of money, including lost wages, hospital bills, medical expenses, and more.

If you were recently struck in the face by another person or thing, and suffered a broken nose, you might want to consider filing a claim against the negligent party in order to compensate for your damages and losses.

Continue reading to learn more about suing for a broken nose, and how to determine whether or not you have a valid case.

Broken Nose Lawsuits

A broken nose can happen as a result of intention or by accident. Regardless of how a broken nose happens, you may have a valid claim against the negligent party who caused your injuries. If you are beat up by someone, and suffered injuries like a broken nose, you may be able to sue your aggressor for battery. Keep in mind that laws vary from state to state, so depending on where you live, the process for filing a lawsuit against a person for battery may differ as well. But in general, in order to sue someone for battery, you must be able improve four elements in your case:

Intent – First, you must be able to prove that your aggressor intentionally committed an act of unwanted contact, either towards you are another party.

Contact – Next, you must be able to prove that actual contact was made; either to your body or to your “extended personality”, such as a necklace, clothing, purse, or similar item attached to your body.

Injury – You must then prove that the manner of contact was harmful or offensive.

Damages – Last, you must prove that the manner of contact was the direct cause of your damages and losses, and that your damages and losses can be compensated with money.

If you suffered a broken nose as a result of an accident, you may still be able to pursue a lawsuit against the negligent party. Personal injury lawsuits, such as a broken nose, are mostly cases of negligence, which are also based on four elements that must be proven in order to win your claim. These elements include:

Duty of Care – You must be able to prove that the negligent party owed you a duty of care, such as keeping a hazard-free premise or driving carefully.

Breach of Duty – You must then prove that the negligent party breached the duty they owed you by not exercising reasonable care.

Causation – You must prove that their breach of duty was a direct cause of your injuries, and that they should have or could have foreseen that an accident would occur.

Damages – Just like a battery case, you must be able to prove that your damages and losses can be sufficiently compensated by money.

It is very complicated to prove each element of negligence in a personal injury case, and even more challenging to prove that you are owed compensation for your damages and losses. For this reason, it is important to retain the services of an experienced personal injury attorney who can fight for your rights and recover full and fair amount of compensation you deserve. They have the knowledge and skills necessary to prove your case and when your settlement.

Indianapolis Personal Injury Attorneys

Personal Injury Law Firm Indiana

Personal Injury Law Firm 317-881-2700

Call the law office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P. C. At 317-881-2700 to file a claim for broken nose in Indianapolis, Indiana. Seasoned personal injury lawyers, Daniel Craven, Ralph Hoover, and Keith Blazek, are eager to help you recover the compensation you deserve. We offer free initial consultations and never collect lawyer fees unless we win your settlement. Call 317-881-2700 to schedule an appointment with one of our skilled Indianapolis personal injury attorneys, today.

On What Grounds Can a Personal Injury Victim Recover Compensation?

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

When a person is injured in an accident, and suffers serious injury or mental trauma, it is important to decide who is at fault for the incident. This is called comparative fault analysis and is widely used as a guide in personal injury cases. It is the report given by the jury, to the judge at the closing of a personal injury trial. Basically, if a victim or plaintiff is 49% (or less) at-fault, then they are most likely entitled to basic remuneration. If they plaintiff is 50% at-fault, or greater, then there is no chance for recovery.

An accident that causes a person serious injury or harm must be caused from another’s negligence or carelessness. This could be a person, company, or manufacturer. The most common negligent personal injury cases include drunk driving accidents, slip and falls, dog bites, assault, medical malpractice, product liability, motor vehicle accidents, workplace accidents, and sexual harassment. Continue reading to learn more about comparative fault analysis and additional stipulations that can make or break a victim’s personal injury lawsuit.

Personal Injury Lawsuits and Settlements

Comparative fault analysis simply describes the standard formula used to identify the negligent party involved in a personal injury accident. There are details that go into making these distinctions. For example, if a person was injured as a result of their own negligence, they will not be awarded compensation for their damages. This can happen if a person slips and falls in a grocery store, on a rainy day, even when there are “wet floor” signs placed throughout the premises. This person would not be considered a victim of a negligent accident. On the other hand, if it were a sunny day and no “Caution: Wet Floor” signs are posted even though there is a puddle or spill, the grocery store is accountable for that person’s damages if they are injured as a result of the wet spot.

Another example involves motor vehicle accidents. If a pedestrian, passenger, or driver is injured as a result of a drunk driver, they are considered victims using the comparative fault analysis formula; however, if a person was not obeying traffic signals or street signs, and is hit by another driver, they will most likely be held responsible for their own damages because they were the negligent party in the accident. All of these perspectives must be considered in order to properly determine which person is at-fault in a personal injury lawsuit. The same idea is applied for workplace accidents. If an employee is injured at work or while performing work-related duties, they are entitled to compensation for their damages; however, on the other hand if that employee was injured as a result of their own negligence (i.e. improper use of company equipment, not wearing proper safety gear, etc.), they are accountable for the incident.

Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C.

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Call 317-881-2700 and speak with a knowledgeable and licensed personal injury attorney in Indianapolis, Indiana today. Attorneys Daniel Craven, Ralph Hoover, Keith Blazek, and their legal teams are highly accomplished accident lawyers with decades of personal injury litigation and trial experience. We offer free initial consultations to assess your case and determine if you are a victim of a negligent accident. Also, we never collect attorney fees unless we win your settlement and recover full and fair compensation for your damages. Call 317-881-2700 to learn more about personal
injury lawsuits in Indianapolis, IN
.