The Process of Filing a Personal Injury Claim
Personal injury is an injury that occurs to a person’s body, mind, or emotion. This type of injury can be a result of recklessness, negligence, or malpractice. Personal injury does not involve injury to property. Personal injury claims compensate the victim of the injury, but only if liability and damages can be proven. Several steps must be taken in order to obtain rightful compensation from filing a personal injury claim.
Talk to an Attorney
Once an attorney learns about the details of your circumstances, he or she can give advice on how to proceed with a personal injury claim and give insight into the possible outcomes of the claim. Personal injury victims who hire an attorney tend to receive larger settlements when filing a personal injury claim.
Statute of Limitations
Nevada has a statute of limitations on when you are allowed to take action for a civil claim. For a personal injury, the state requires that you go filing a personal injury claim within two years from the date of the injury. Once those two years have passed, a claim cannot be filed against that personal injury incident. If your case is within the statute of limitations on personal injury, you may want to proceed with the claim.
Obtaining Evidence
In order to obtain a successful injury claim, you must show that you were hurt and that your injuries are another person’s fault. Evidence such as pictures, police reports, medical bills, and any other information that can help prove that you were hurt is crucial to have during this process. When attempting to get a third-party claim from an insurance company, you must be able to show that the person they insure is responsible for your injuries.
Demand Letter
Most personal injury cases begin with a demand letter. In this letter, you will explain why you believe the party liable for your injuries should pay for the damages using the evidence that you have gathered. If the opposing party rejects the demand, or if you believe that they will not pay enough in compensation, then your attorney may recommend that you start filing a personal injury claim and start a lawsuit.
Settlement
Before or after a lawsuit is filed, the parties may engage in mediation. During mediation, the parties may negotiate to reach an agreement, which would stop the case from going to trial. Many personal injury cases will reach a settlement before going to trial, and some can be resolved before a civil lawsuit is filed.
Trial
If the parties were not able to come to an agreement during mediation, or if mediation did not occur, then the case will go to trial. At trial, a jury will determine the fault and award damages.
