While each personal injury lawsuit is unique, they do share some common elements whether you are the defendant or the plaintiff. Either way it is better to hire a personal injury lawyer. The following are the procedures you can expect during the pre-trial and trial period:
Pre-trial procedure
Meeting with a personal injury lawyer
Whether you are suing are being sued, the first thing you need to do is hire a personal injury lawyer for your case. He/she will ask you for certain details such as how the accident happened, whether there were any witnesses present, the types of injuries sustained by you or the victim and what kind of medical treatments are imminent.
If you are the injured party, the attorney will also determine how many days of work you might lose out on during your recovery period. The claim process will commence on this information since it will help your lawyer determine whether you have a valid case or not.
The defendant is notified
If the plaintiff decides to proceed with his/her personal injury claim, the attorney will then get in touch with the one being sued or the defendant. This step is necessary since it will alert the latter and let them know that they might be asked to compensate for injuries and medical bills.
A Statement of Claim is filed
Once the defendant is notified, the attorney will continue the case by filing it through a Statement of Claim which will then be given to the former. At this point, the defendant can hire their own lawyer to defend their case by issuing a Statement of Defense (thus the reason they are called defendants). In most cases, this move is more than enough for a settlement but some serious cases can proceed to trail.
Trial Procedure
Opening statements
If a case goes to trail, it may be presided over by a jury. Once the people are selected, the very first dialogues issued will be the opening statements from both the plaintiff’s and defendant’s attorneys. The plaintiff goes first to assert his/her claim and to demonstrate that the defendant is legally liable to compensate for injuries. In some cases, the defendant might also wait for the plaintiff to conclude his/her case before presenting their own.
Cross examination and witnesses
During the trial, both parties present their evidence and arguments to the jury. This stage is called the case-in-chief stage and it is done to sway the jury. At this point, the plaintiff can call for witnesses to take the stand and testify as well as present physical evidence if any. If they have expert testimonials, they can prove their case quite successfully.
Personal Injury lawyer Javier Marcos
Whether you are the plaintiff or the defendant, Personal injury lawyer Javier Marcos can fight for your case. Just call 24 hours by dialing 713.999.4444 for a free consultation today. Our attorneys have extensive experience supporting clients who suffered from persona injuries from a number of different sources. We offer 24 hours a day service so get in touch with us anytime.
