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When an unexpected injury disrupts your life, your first step should be to contact a local attorney. In many cases, you could be entitled to compensation for your injury-related expenses and the pain, suffering, and inconvenience the injury caused. Most accidents occur because someone fails to take adequate precautions to prevent harm to others. When the failure causes an injury, the careless party is financially liable for their negligence. Insurance companies usually pay the injured person’s damages but never pay more than they must.
Working with a Lawrence personal injury lawyer could ensure you receive appropriate compensation for your injuries.
The statute of limitations for a personal injury lawsuit in Indiana is two years. Failing to meet this deadline defeats the right to sue in most cases but a personal injury lawyer in Lawrence could explain a few narrow exceptions.
When the state or a local government is a potentially responsible party lawsuit, the injured plaintiff must file a written notice with the government entity before filing a lawsuit. If the claim is against the state, the plaintiff has 270 days to submit a written notice of claim. If the claim is against a town or city, the claimant must file the notice within 180 days.
Claims against the government arise often. A plaintiff might have a claim against a government if they were in an accident with a government-owned vehicle like a city bus, garbage truck, or a car driven by a public employee on the clock. Falls or other accidents on government property also could lead to a claim against the government.
When a legal professional takes a case, they immediately begin an investigation into the circumstances of the accident. An injured person must provide proof of another party’s negligence to support a claim for damages. The essential point is to demonstrate the defendant failed to uphold an obligation to use reasonable care to protect the plaintiff from harm. McCready Law handles a variety of cases, including:
In a vehicle accident case, proof of negligence could be a police citation or witness statement showing carelessness. In a swimming pool accident, proof could include evidence of inadequate lifeguard training or failure to repair an uneven pool deck. A Lawrence attorney could tailor the personal injury investigation to the circumstances and engage experts when necessary.
The compensation a plaintiff seeks in a personal injury is called their damages. The law offers compensatory damages whenever a plaintiff can prove they suffered losses due to their injury. In rare cases, a plaintiff also might seek punitive damages.
A plaintiff can seek reimbursement for the expenses resulting from the injury, such as diminished income, medical costs, property damage associated with the accident, and incidental expenses. The plaintiff should keep records of all the expenses they incur related to their injury.
Compensatory damages also include compensation for losses that do not have a price tag. Plaintiffs could seek money to acknowledge their physical pain, emotional trauma, inconvenience, disability, scarring, and other results of the accident that had a negative impact on their quality of life.
If a plaintiff can prove a defendant willfully and intentionally engaged in misconduct, there could be punitive damages available. Few cases meet this standard but may be appropriate in certain situations. Sometimes punitive damages are awarded when a driver’s blood alcohol concentration far exceeded the legal limit at the time of a crash.
Punitive damages are an extra financial penalty a court places on a defendant to punish them for egregious conduct. Indiana Code § 34-51-3-4 caps punitive damages at three times a plaintiff’s total compensatory damages or $50,000, whichever is larger. However, a plaintiff receives only 25 percent of a punitive damages award. The rest is paid into the state’s violent crime victims compensation fund.
If you were hurt in any type of accident that was someone else’s fault, you might have a viable personal injury claim. The party whose carelessness led to your injury could owe you compensation for your losses.
Explore your legal options with a Lawrence personal injury lawyer. Call today to schedule a consultation.