How you document an injury, track your damages, and prepare your case dictates its success. We can ensure that you handle these steps appropriately so you ultimately receive relief from damages.
Some of the most significant consequences for victims include medical bills and lost wages. Go to the closest hospital if an injury requires that level of care. Medical evidence proves your injury, so you need documentation. You can change your mind about accepting a settlement agreement before you sign it, but not after. As a result, we ensure that victims are satisfied with their settlements. Otherwise, we will keep negotiating or go to trial.
Our personal injury lawyers can assess your case for free when you call Agrapidis & Maroules, P.C. now at (201) 777-1111.
Do You Need to Document Personal Injuries at the Hospital in Secaucus?
Whether or not you should go to the emergency room after an accident depends on the severity of the injury. Even if a victim does not have any lacerations, contusions, or other visible injuries, they should seek immediate medical attention if they hit their head, as they might have a concussion or other brain injury.
Some injuries, such as sprains and soft tissue damage, can be treated at urgent care facilities. Use your best judgment, and get the appropriate level of care for your injuries.
If paramedics arrive on the scene and suggest you accompany them to the nearest hospital, take their advice. Whether or not you accepted emergency medical attention might be noted in a police report, which we can also get and review.
Do not delay medical care if you are injured and need it. If whiplash, a fracture, or internal injury becomes apparent in the following hours or days, get medical attention at that time.
How Do You Prove Lost Wages from an Injury?
We must prove your lost wages to recover them in an injury lawsuit. Tax returns, pay stubs, and other income records confirm your earnings before the accident and help us prove your losses since.
Medical experts can also help prove lost wages. Their statements can confirm the victim’s diagnosed injuries and their effects. They can explain X-rays, MRIs, and other test results, as well as how injuries prevent the victim from returning to work.
If physicians testify that you have permanent injuries, that helps you get future lost wages. A bad spinal cord or traumatic brain injury might stop you from earning the same income ever again, which we can prove during your lawsuit.
Though you may need urgent compensation for lost wages, do not try to return to work prematurely. That might exacerbate an injury and weaken your claim, so listen to your doctors if they tell you not to return to your previous job until you are fully physically recovered.
What to Do About Pain and Suffering in Secaucus Personal Injury Cases
Pain and suffering are compensable non-economic damages, but they are sometimes trickier to recover than economic damages. Our personal injury lawyers can help you properly document your pain and suffering, calculate non-economic losses, and testify about your intangible losses.
Document Damages
There are several ways to document your pain and suffering, like writing in a journal. You can log your feelings, struggles, chronic pain, and other intangible losses.
You can also speak to your loved ones about your non-financial damages, as well as a mental health expert. Many traumatic accidents and injuries cause PTSD, anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues.
Calculate Damages
There are two different methods for calculating pain and suffering. One is the “multiplier method.” To use this calculation process, we pick a multiplier between one and five. The multiplier should reflect the severity of the victim’s injuries, with five being the most severe. We then multiply the chosen multiplier by the victim’s economic damages, and that is what we seek for intangible damages.
We may also use the “per diem method.” Using this method, we identify a daily rate for the victim’s pain and suffering. We may base the daily rate on the victim’s daily earnings before the injury and the severity of their injury. We then multiply that rate by the number of days the victim has incurred or expects to incur non-economic damages.
Whatever calculation method plaintiffs use, they must be able to explain their reasoning to the jury, which our lawyers can handle.
Testify About Damages
Testimony is strong proof of non-economic losses. The plaintiff’s testimony can reveal their pain and suffering to the jury. The testimony of mental health experts who have evaluated the plaintiff is also compelling. Experts can discuss mental health diagnoses and other relevant information about the victim.
We understand that testifying can be intimidating for personal injury plaintiffs, which is why we take the time to prepare victims to discuss their pain and suffering candidly in court.
Can You Change Your Mind About Accepting a Personal Injury Settlement in Secaucus?
Up until you sign a settlement agreement, you can change your mind about accepting it. You can also change your mind about going to court and accept a settlement offer mid-trial in Secaucus.
You should only accept a settlement you feel comfortable with, which we can ensure by carefully reviewing all offers and giving an honest assessment.
If you are unsure about a settlement, please let us know, and we may be able to negotiate a larger sum. If the defense will not budge, you can change your mind about settlement negotiations altogether and go to trial.
Tell us about any major changes to your medical condition or damages, as well as changes to your general goals for the lawsuit. For example, a plaintiff may want to go to court if settlement negotiations take many months, even if they originally wanted to avoid a trial.
For Help, Call Our Secaucus Injury Lawyers Now
Our personal injury lawyers can give you a free case analysis when you call Agrapidis & Maroules, P.C. at (201) 777-1111.