If you or someone you know was recently hurt in an accident, speak to an attorney about your legal options immediately. The person who caused the accident should be held responsible and made to cover your damages. You can file a personal injury lawsuit or explore other options with your lawyer.
Your damages may be vast and include big hospital bills, expensive property damage, lost income from being unable to return to work, and more. To begin your case, we must find evidence. Much evidence may come directly from the accident scene, while other important details might be found in certain records related to the case. We must first draft a formal complaint before filing it with the appropriate court and serving notice to the defendant. If these rules are not followed, your case cannot get off the ground.
Receive a free initial case review when you call our personal injury attorneys with Agrapidis & Maroules, P.C. at (201) 777-1111.
When to Call a Lawyer About Personal Injuries
It is never too early to call a lawyer for help. If you were recently in an accident, you should contact a lawyer for help as soon as possible, as the time to file a legal claim may already be slipping away.
Our personal injury attorneys must file your case before the limitation period set by the statute of limitations is over. Under N.J.S.A. § 2A:14-2(a), you have only 2 years from the date of the accident to file a case in court.
If something prevents you from taking legal action on your own, ask your lawyer about tolling options. Plaintiffs who cannot take action because they were minors when the accident happened may have the statute of limitations tolled until they are 18, giving them until age 20 to file.
Tolling may also be possible when the defendant is absent from the state. If they are outside New Jersey and cannot be reached by long-arm statutes despite our best efforts, the time they are outside the state may not count toward the limitation period.
Recoverable Damages in a Palisades Park Personal Injury Case
Your damages should reflect your monetary expenses and emotional damages. How much these damages are worth depends on your unique circumstances.
Medical Bills
Personal injury cases must involve bodily harm, and plaintiffs often claim big hospital bills as part of their damages. You might have needed emergency medical care after the accident, and it likely was not cheap.
We should also think about your long-term care needs. You might be so badly hurt that you need ongoing treatment that will last long past the end of the trial. You might even have permanent complications or disabilities. We may estimate and claim future medical costs as part of your damages.
Property Damage
Another important factor is property damage. Accidents often leave plaintiffs with physical injuries in addition to costly property damage. For example, you might claim the cost of repairing your car after a car accident or the value of damaged personal belongings.
Even if the property you lost was not very expensive, it should not be discounted. The loss of multiple personal items may add up to expensive damages that should be accounted for in your case.
Lost Earnings
In many cases, plaintiffs are so seriously injured that they cannot return to work. The longer they are out of work, the more income they may lose. Losing income is bad enough, but losing income while also dealing with expensive medical bills and other costs from the accident may be more than you can handle.
These damages may depend on your income and the nature of your job. Calculating lost income might be a bit easier if you are paid a steady annual salary. It may be more challenging but not impossible if your income comes from something like gig work.
Emotional Damages
Many damages cannot be proven by evidence of financial cost. Some damages take an emotional or physical toll rather than a monetary one.
You may claim non-economic damages for your physical pain. The more severe your injuries are, the greater these damages may be. Some injuries are severe or complicated and lead to chronic pain conditions that may cause severe pain over a long time. In such cases, your damages should reflect the magnitude of your suffering.
You may also claim non-economic damages for the mental and emotional turmoil you endure because of the accident. If your accident was traumatic, frightening, or caused permanent injuries that forever altered your body, you may claim significant emotional damages.
Gathering Evidence for Your Personal Injury Case
We cannot win your case without evidence, and it might come from almost anywhere, depending on your situation.
Much evidence may come from the scene of the accident. If you took photos or recorded videos of the accident scene, show them to your lawyer. We may also collect physical evidence from the scene if it is available.
We should also get testimony from you and witnesses to the accident. The more people who can back you up in court, the better. Additionally, your testimony may be invaluable, as only you can testify about how the accident has affected you.
How to File a Personal Injury Case in Palisades Park
We can start your personal injury case by preparing a formal legal complaint. The complaint should be drafted in accordance with strict court rules, and it must contain specific details about the accident.
We must gather extensive information about you, the defendant, the accident, damages, and evidence. This is a lot, and it may take time to get all the information we need, so we should start as soon as possible.
When the complaint is ready, we can file with the Bergen County Superior Court. Once the court accepts the complaint, we must notify the defendant of the case so they can file an answer.
Call Our Palisades Park Personal Injury Attorneys for Help Now
Receive a free initial case review when you call our personal injury attorneys with Agrapidis & Maroules, P.C. at (201) 777-1111.