Can You Settle an Injury Claim Without a Lawyer in Massachusetts?
Personal injury victims in Massachusetts are entitled to financial compensation from the parties responsible for their injuries. In many instances, victims are contacted by defendants’ insurance companies in the immediate aftermath of their accidents. These insurers typically want to settle cases as quickly and as cheaply as possible.
You should not settle an injury claim without a lawyer in Massachusetts. The guidance and support of an experienced attorney will help injured parties ease their stress and recover the full range of compensation they deserve.
If you were injured because of someone else’s negligent actions in Massachusetts, get help building your case. Get in touch with our experienced Massachusetts personal injury lawyers by calling the Law Office of John J. Sheehan at (617) 925-6407 to review your case for free.
Settling an Injury Claim Without a Lawyer in Massachusetts
You are technically allowed to settle an injury claim without legal representation. However, defendants are usually represented by insurance companies who will attempt to settle your case for less than its worth. In most cases, injured parties will be presented with inadequate settlement offers in the immediate aftermath of their accidents. Furthermore, defendants’ insurers often hire teams of defense lawyers, doctors, and private investigators who will try to refute key elements of victims’ claims.
Our experienced Boston personal injury lawyers can help negotiate with insurance companies and evaluate settlement offers, so you can confidently decide if settling early is the right choice for you. If not, our team can help gather evidence and present your case at trial, so you may recover the full amount of compensation you deserve.
How Our Massachusetts Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help
The process of recovering compensation for a personal injury can be frustrating and tiresome. Cases can take weeks to months to years to complete. Furthermore, defendants often dispute multiple aspects of plaintiffs’ claims. Fortunately, our Cambridge personal injury lawyers can provide guidance and support throughout each stage of the legal process. The following are examples of ways our attorneys can help with your case:
Reviewing Your Case
Personal injury claims can come in many forms. There are several factors that can influence the process for pursuing compensation. However, in every case, plaintiffs must demonstrate that the following four elements are true:
- The defendant owed you a duty of care
- The defendant did not adhere to that duty of care
- You were injured because of the defendant’s breach of duty
- You sustained damages because of the injuries you incurred
While these elements may seem simple on their face, analyzing them within the context of your case can be difficult. During a free case review, our attorneys can help determine if the aforementioned elements have been established.
Gathering Evidence
There are several forms of evidence that can be used to establish the necessary elements of a personal injury claim. The following are examples of evidence frequently utilized by our Massachusetts personal injury lawyers:
- Medical records
- Witness statements
- Accident reports
- Photos from the scene of an accident
- Physical evidence from the scene of an accident
- Surveillance footage
- Expert witness statements
- Financial documents
- Insurance documents
Collecting the evidence required to support your claim can be a difficult process. Parties in the control of such evidence may not behave cooperatively with plaintiffs. Furthermore, certain pieces of evidence may be easily lost or forgotten. Our Wakefield personal injury lawyers can help gather and preserve the evidence necessary to win your case.
Assigning Fault
A key step in any personal injury lawsuit involves determining who to sue. In some cases, this is not a straightforward task. For example, after a truck accident, it may be difficult to determine if you should sue the truck driver or his employer. After reviewing your case and gathering evidence, our attorneys can help determine the most likely path to compensation.
It is worth noting that Massachusetts courts follow the doctrine of modified comparative fault when awarding damages in injury cases. This means that damages are apportioned based on percentages of fault. If a defendant was 70% responsible for your accident while you were 30% to blame, then the defendant will pay for 70% of damages related to the accident while you will account for the remaining 30%. Additionally, if a plaintiff is over 50% responsible for an accident, they will be unable to recover monetary damages.
Accordingly, in most cases, defendants and their insurance companies will attempt to shift fault onto plaintiffs. By blaming other parties, defendants may avoid paying the full value of plaintiffs’ claims. The assistance of our experienced Quincy personal injury lawyers can be highly valuable when proving that negligent parties are at fault.
Filing Your Case
Furthermore, our Massachusetts personal injury lawyers can provide crucial support when filing your case. There are several requirements that must be complied with when bringing your case to court. Under Mass. Gen. Laws Ch. 260, § 2A, you usually must file your case within three years of the date your accident occurred. Noncompliance with this deadline could cause you to forfeit your case.
Also, when filing a personal injury lawsuit, you must attach supporting documents, file in the correct court, pay any filing fees, serve all named defendants, and avoid filing a frivolous or incomplete claim. Our attorneys can help ensure that you comply with all of these requirements so that you do not miss out on the monetary damages you deserve.
Negotiating with Insurance Companies
After filing your case, dealing with defendants and their insurance companies can be a very frustrating process. Insurers usually offer cheap settlement offers in attempts to settle cases for less than they are worth. Our experienced Middleton personal injury lawyers can lean on years of experience while negotiating with insurance companies so that you may receive a more appropriate offer in your case.
Trying Your Case
Finally, if a settlement agreement cannot be reached, our attorneys can represent your interests at trial. At trial, our lawyers will fight for the full amount of financial compensation you deserve.
If You Suffered a Personal Injury in Massachusetts, Our Attorneys Can Help
If you were hurt because of someone else’s negligent conduct, seek assistance from our experienced Revere personal injury lawyers by calling the Law Office of John J. Sheehan at (617) 925-6407 to review your case for free.