Middleborough Personal Injury Lawyer
What matters most to victims after sustaining personal injuries is getting compensation, which our lawyers can help victims obtain by filing personal injury claims in Middleborough.
At the start of your case, our lawyers will identify and tally all compensable damages from the accident. This will include expenses from medical treatment and missed wages from being unable to work because of personal injuries. We will also calculate victims’ non-economic damages so they can get compensation for pain and suffering in Middleborough. Victims might get lump sum or structured settlements from at-fault parties, and our lawyers can explain the notable differences between these two settlement types so you are prepared. Before advising you to accept a lump sum or structured settlement, our attorneys will carefully review it to ensure it fully and fairly compensates you.
Call us today for a free case review from the Law Office of John J. Sheehan’s Plymouth, MA personal injury lawyers at (617) 925-6407.
Tallying All Compensable Damages from Personal Injuries in Middleborough
Before filing your lawsuit for negligence in Middleborough, you should appreciate the value of your claim. Our attorneys can tally all damages from personal injuries, including victims’ medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Based on the results, we will request compensation for specific economic and non-economic damages.
We can begin doing this immediately by obtaining relevant information from hospitals and physicians and gathering all charges related to your treatment. Organizing medical damages alone is a tall task, especially when victims need multiple surgeries or specialized treatments, and our lawyers will assist with this as we prepare your case.
When unable to return to work, victims can get damages for lost income, which our personal injury lawyers can prove using employment records and tax returns. All other out-of-pocket expenses due to the accident are also compensable, and we can help victims identify such losses, like travel or home accommodation costs.
Intangible damages are harder to quantify, and our attorneys may employ various tactics and calculation methods to assert the need for non-economic damages in your claim. This might include getting excerpts to testify or having victims give personal statements about their struggles because of the accident.
In general, there are no compensation limits on personal injury claims except for intangible damages in medical malpractice lawsuits in Middleborough. In such claims, victims can only recover up to $500,000 in non-economic damages against negligent hospitals or physicians, according to Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 231, § 60H, though there are exceptions in cases involving substantial disfigurement or substantial or permanent loss of a bodily function.
Types of Personal Injury Settlements in Middleborough
Lump sum and structured settlements are the two types of injury settlements for victims in Middleborough, and our lawyers can explain what you need to know about each type before accepting either.
Lump Sum Settlements
In lump sum settlements, victims receive the full amount in one payment. Because of this, even poor lump sum settlements might seem fair initially because they appear like a large amount in a victim’s pocket at one time. However, if we examine these offers more closely, it might become clear that the lump sum amount does not cover all medical damages or lost wages from the accident. While assessing lump sum settlements in Middleborough, our lawyers will compare offers to our calculation of your total damages to determine whether or not they are fair. Because lump sum settlements require defendants to pay large amounts to victims at once, they are not very common, as not all defendants have this financial ability.
Structured Settlements
Structured settlements are more common than lump sum settlements. In this type of settlement, defendants pay the full agreed-upon amount over time instead of in one payment. Our lawyers can negotiate payment dates and amounts that allow you to cover all necessary medical expenses and adequately supplement your lost wages so that a structured settlement is fair.
Deciding Whether to Settle Personal Injury Claims or Go to Court in Middleborough
When helping victims pursue compensation for personal injuries, our attorneys can help make difficult determinations, including whether to settle a case or take it to trial in Middleborough.
Trials may be totally unnecessary when our lawyers settle claims for victims out of court. This is often the case for personal injury lawsuits, as defendants may want to avoid trials where they could be found liable for considerable damages. Your total losses and the amount you stand to recover from a jury award are just some of the factors our lawyers may consider when helping you decide whether to settle or go to court, as will your desired timeline for collecting damages. While trials do not always take longer than settlements in Middleborough, victims do have to wait for their claims to reach court dockets, which could take time.
Settlement negotiations provide victims with an opportunity to get compensation without having to go to court. While negotiating with the other side, our lawyers will refer to our proof of damages and evidence showing the defendant’s liability. Preparing claims to meet the standard of proof for personal injury lawsuits is important, even if they ultimately settle out of court. This gives our lawyers leverage we can use to increase the defense’s settlement offers as much as possible.
When victims need fast access to compensation and settlement negotiations stall or the defense becomes non-communicative, we can change directions and proceed with a trial, the simple indication of which might convince the defendant to offer a greater amount to settle the case and save time and resources. Settlements are binding once signed, so our lawyers will only advise victims to accept offers that fairly compensate them for personal injuries in Middleborough.
Call Our Injury Lawyers in Middleborough Today
Call the Law Office of John J. Sheehan at (617) 925-6407 for help with your case from our personal injury lawyers.