Tag Archive for lawyer

What Are The Best Tips For A Successful Personal Injury Lawsuit?

September 25, 2011 admin No comments

Making a claim for an injury received in an accident is not nearly as hard as it used to be. Because the costs are awarded against the losing party engaging a no win no fee solicitor is an economic way of getting legal assistance which allows people with limited means to access justice when otherwise they might be inclined to lose out, both to compensation and justice.

If you’ve been the victim of an accident and you feel some-one else was at fault then there are a number of things you should do if you think you are going to need to make a claim for lost earnings, expenses, distress and to ensure that a similar misfortune doesn’t befall some-one else.

First of all, get the contact details of any witnesses. Unless the accident was a serious road accident they are unlikely to have to give up any of their time attending court, far more likely that they just have to write a statement detailing what they saw. If there was no one around or nobody stops to give you their contact details take photos. Even if it’s just a few snaps on your phone, this evidence is better than none at-all.

Call The Cops!

You should always call the police to any road traffic accident and if this was the incident you were involved in, make sure you get an incident number from the investigating officer. If you have to go to hospital make sure you get a full examination from the doctor treating you. Some injuries only show up after an interval but a doctor will know what to look out for. Again, photograph any bruises or lesions that appear on your body as a result of your accident. If you have to go to court to contest your case and your injuries have all healed photographs are compelling evidence to present to a court.

Keep Records Of Everything That Happens

Keep all of your receipts for everything that you have to pay for as a result of your injuries. If your claim is going to be successful at recouping your losses thanks to the injuries you received having a vague idea about the bills you’ve paid isn’t going to be as convincing as printed evidence for medicines and painkillers, buses and cabs if you’ve been left unable to drive, car rental if you can but your own vehicle is no longer road-worthy. You might have to take on childcare while you attend treatment and physiotherapy, again, keep the receipts.

The entire point of compensation is that you recoup the money that you lose thanks to an injury that was the responsibility of some-one else, either due to their negligence, their lack of foresight or their lack of attention. If you can’t prove how much the accident has cost you, you can’t expect to be fully compensated.

@DanCash is a features writer on the south coast of England. If you need to make a no win no fee accident claim make sure you keep as much evidence as you can and consult a reputable lawyer

 

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Changes In Legal Aid Could Affect your Right To Justice

August 1, 2011 admin No comments

Courts in the UK are coming under increasing pressure to relegate personal injury claims so that they have less relevance than criminal cases. In most instances personal injury cases have a victim and a culprit, whether through negligence, lack of training or ignorance. However, because no crime has been committed and there is very unlikely to be a prison sentence handed down, the government is proposing that legal aid is withdrawn from such cases. They see the personal injury world of the law as a victim, legitimate or otherwise, chasing money from some-one who’s fails to do their job properly in some way.

While car insurance companies are increasingly becoming drawn into this kind of case with accident victims claiming whiplash and back injuries, injuries which are very hard for doctors to identify and prove one way or another, this would appear to be the case. But that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to personal injury claims.

The chancellor wants to cut legal aid not only from divorce cases which are being contested but also from people who’ve been victims of medical negligence and people who wish to sue their local NHS Trust or the local authority.

The logic is easy to see; if the government pays for people to sue a hospital or council it’s effectively paying the court to sue itself and in many cases the award which the victim receives is far outstripped by the legal costs which are awarded against the guilty party. If this happens to be the hospital for example, the injured party might get a couple of hundred pounds for their distress and loss of earnings if they had to take a week or two off work but the legal teams might receive several thousands of pounds for their fees.

While this seems unfair and reasonable to stop paying for it, the reality of these circumstances is concealed. If you’re injured and you believe it’s down to a public sector employee’s negligence, if you can’t afford to sue them out of your own pocket then the costs of your medical treatment beyond the basic provision that the NHS and benefits services will have to be covered out of your own pocket. You might be entitled to statutory sick pay or disability allowance but anything beyond the basic will have to be covered out of your savings.

So you’re paying for an injury caused you by some-one else and they carry on regardless, possibly putting many more people at risk.

So, by cutting the number of cases for which legal aid is granted doesn’t just save the government money, it prevents the less well off from achieving justice when they find themselves unable to work through no fault of their own.

And personal injury cases aren’t simply about the victim getting some cash for their inconvenience. Personal injury claims can and do highlight criminal negligence and circumstances where the culprit is systematically endangering public health and even exposing them to the risk of permanent disability or death. Cutting spending on these cases will mean that people will be able to operate negligently until there is a catastrophe.

 

@DanCash is a feature writer living on the south coast. If you’re injured either at work, out on the street or you want to pursue a holiday accident claim or when receiving medical care then you should in the first instance consult a personal injury lawyer. If you want to make a compensation claim then get in touch with a reputable no-win-no-fee lawyer.

 

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