Lexington, MA Car Accident Lawyer
If you were involved in a car accident, do not talk to the insurance companies or accept any money for your injuries until you talk to a lawyer. Our attorneys can represent you in your case and advise you on how much your case should be worth, what damages you should accept, and when the case should be taken to court.
After an injury, it can seem like the medical bills are piling up, especially if you are out of work while you recover. Our attorneys can work to maximize your damages and fight to get you every penny you deserve.
Call the Law Office of John J. Sheehan at (617) 925-6407 for your free case evaluation with our car accident attorneys.
Determining Whether You Have a Car Accident Case in Lexington, MA
Many people looking at their car accident wonder if they have a case in the first place. It is easy to doubt that anyone will believe your claim or trust you when you say that the other driver was responsible for the accident. Our car accident lawyers will be able to help you look into your case from a legal perspective and determine whether you have a case in the first place and how strong your case is.
When Do You Have a Case?
Car accident claims can be filed any time you suffered injuries through no fault of your own. Even when fault can be partially assigned to you, the key element is that the other driver is at fault (or more at fault than you were).
Fault is determined by looking at the totality of the circumstances and taking the whole situation into account. When all things are considered, if there was a mistake, traffic violation, dangerous decision, or unreasonable action from the other driver, that will be enough to constitute fault.
Many drivers have the initial fear that they will be held responsible, but the law has ways of parsing out each driver’s fault. For one, courts are able to assign partial fault to each driver and order damages corresponding to that percentage of the fault. This means that even if you did something wrong to contribute to the crash, it will not necessarily outweigh the other driver’s mistakes. For example, driving 5 miles per hour over the speed limit might technically be illegal, but in the face of something extremely dangerous like running a red light or drunk driving, the court will be likely to see the other driver’s fault as the real cause.
Do I Have a Strong Case?
Your car accident case will be strongest if you are totally innocent, you have strong evidence of the other driver’s fault, and the facts of your accident case are not too complicated.
While partial fault can be dealt with by arguing for partial damages, it still weakens your claim overall and ultimately reduces how much money you would get. However, when the facts are clear that you did nothing wrong, the jury is more likely to rule in your favor.
If you have strong evidence of what the other driver did wrong, then that can help the jury more easily rule in your favor. Some of the strongest evidence will be actual video of the crash, whether recorded on a traffic camera, a security camera, a dashcam, or even someone’s cell phone. If you do not have actual video, good witness testimony will also be incredibly strong. Your evidence is also stronger if multiple independent sources confirm your claim, such as witnesses that are not related to you and objective video that backs up your story.
Some car accident cases involve multiple drivers, technical violations of the law, and complex crashes. Crashes involving two cars are simpler than crashes involving three or more; crashes involving a clearly dangerous driver are simpler than crashes involving slight violations; and crashes involving a T-shaped intersection are simpler than crosses involving a five- or six-way intersection. Our attorneys are experienced in presenting cases to courts and juries and can help juries focus in on the important details, potentially even turning these potential weaknesses into strengths. For example, a crash that injured 12 people has 12 potential witnesses who can corroborate your story, even if the case is more complicated.
Damages for Injured Car Accident Victims in Lexington, MA
When you are injured in a car crash, that injury can have repercussions that echo throughout your life and cause additional expenses and harms in surprising ways. You can usually claim financial compensation for obvious harms that are the direct result of the accident, like vehicle repair bills and hospital bills. However, you can also claim compensation for other results, such as the wages you missed at work because of your injury, your additional childcare needs, replacement services around the house while you recover (e.g., cooking and cleaning), and more.
One common area of damages that might not be immediately obvious is pain and suffering. These damages pay you back for the harms that have no economic or financial value, such as your emotional distress. Even the physical pain of your injuries is separate from the financial cost of treating the injuries, and they are accounted for under the umbrella of “pain and suffering.”
Another potentially strange area of damages is called “loss of consortium.” These are damages that your spouse can claim because of your injury and the way it affects your ability to help around the house, your intimacy, and more.
Ultimately, you should talk to a lawyer about the damages in your specific case. There may be thresholds that must be met before you can file a lawsuit, and you should always have an attorney review the calculations for your damages before you accept any money from insurance.
Call Our Car Accident Lawyers in Lexington, MA
If you were hurt in a car accident, do not delay; call (617) 925-6407 today for a free case review with the car accident attorneys at the Law Office of John J. Sheehan.
