Protect Yourself After Injury

- Motor Vehicle Accidents

- Workplace Injuries

- Professional Negligence

- Intentional Damage

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1. GETTING WELL

If you are like most people, the first thing you think about when you sustain an injury is what you will have to do to get well. You need to heal, and you need to deal with the pain.

Once you realize the extent of your injuries, and you get beyond the initial treatments, your thoughts may turn to questions of whether your injuries might have been preventable, especially if your recovery may be long or difficult.

2. PROTECT YOURSELF

Many injuries could and should have been prevented.

If someone other than you caused or contributed to your injury, you may be entitled to compensation for the effects the injury has on your life. You may be entitled to compensation for medical treatments, lost wages, incidental expenses, and "pain and suffering".

Your injuries may prevent you from enjoying your home life, family life, recreation; you may just hurt all the time. You may have to be medicated for pain to such an extent that you are not the same person you were before the injury. You may have nightmares or other psychological damages resulting from the circumstances of the injury.

If someone was careless (negligent) in causing your injuries, or if they did it intentionally, you may be able to recover compensation from them.

3. WHAT AN ATTORNEY CAN DO FOR YOU

The rules for recovery differ, depending on how, and where, and by whom you were injured. There may be more or other people at fault than you realize. Some of the people at fault may have no resources from which to pay compensation, and others may have substantial assets, or insurance policies which cover such situations.

You need to consult with a lawyer as soon as possible, in order to give them the opportunity to preserve valuable evidence which may otherwise be lost. There may also be time limits which require you to provide legally proper notice to insurance companies, or to other people or agencies that may be responsible for covering your losses. If you do not get to a lawyer before the evidence is destroyed, or before the time limits run out, you may compromise or lose your rights to fair compensation.

Note: Because insurance companies have to respond quickly to injury claims, parties and witnesses may approached by an insurance company representative within hours after notice of the injury, and certainly within a day. Sometimes, they may even contact people who are still hospitalized. Medicated people should probably not sign anything, nor should anyone who is in pain, or under stress. They should contact a lawyer.

Call right away. Don't delay.