Visalia Car Accident Lawyers

Not all accidents will result in a lawsuit or claim for damages. But when you suffer injuries because of the negligence of an individual or other party, you may be eligible to pursue compensation.

Personal injury law provides an avenue toward relief for individuals who have sustained avoidable or preventable injuries due to the actions (or inaction) of another party.

Personal Injury defined

Most people immediately think of auto accidents when they hear the term “personal injury.” However, numerous other cases belong to this category.

Essentially, injuries you suffer from another’s personal negligence or malice all represent personal injuries. Animal attacks are a major example. Also, if you are injured on another person’s or business’s property, they can be held accountable. Examples of this can include an unsafe yard on personal property or a wet and unmarked floor in a business.

You should always retain – or at least consult – an attorney if you’ve been in an auto accident or suffered any other personal injury that wasn’t your fault. In numerous situations, you’ll interact with one or more large businesses, insurance companies, or government agencies. All of these groups have considerable resources, and you shouldn’t try taking them on by representing yourself.

With an injury attorney in Visalia by your side, you can focus on recovering from any physical and emotional injuries. All the while, your accident lawyer will fight the insurance companies and any at-fault parties to help you get any compensation you deserve.

Liability for personal injury cases will indicate who bears responsibility for paying for the losses and injuries you have sustained. While an at-fault party may constitute the primary liable party, many other parties can also face liability for your damages.

Through a settlement or lawsuit, a court or insurance company will assign a percentage of fauilt to all parties whose negligence contributed to your injuries. This allows victims to seek compensation for the full value of their injuries, based on the calculation of damages

Liability for personal injury cases may include one or more of the following parties:

• The individual at fault
• An employer
• A business, company, or another type of organization
• A doctor or other healthcare professional
• Property owner
• Manufacturer or distributor of a product

Shared Fault Laws

California follows a legal concept known as shared fault. For example, if you’re badly injured in an automobile accident, your actions while driving will be taken under consideration. While someone running a red light and striking your car would be mostly at fault if you were driving 10 miles over the speed limit at the time of the accident, your speeding is also considered.

At-fault laws don’t mean a 50/50 split. You may be found completely innocent of fault in some cases, or your fault may be considered very minor. In such cases, you may have to pay for a small percentage of the total cost of your injuries. This can include medical bills and lost wages.

When victims suffer injuries in an accident, they should focus on their health and recovery. However, a personal injury victim may soon feel consumed by stress and worry regarding the financial consequences and impacts that stem from their injuries. California law delineates the type of damages that injured individuals may pursue.

Economic Damages

These damages include the losses that many victims first consider: the financial expenses and costs of the injuries they have suffered. These damages constitute tangible monetary losses that you can easily estimate and calculate based on specific evidence, such as bills, receipts, and other records.

In California, the economic losses in a personal injury case most commonly include:

• Medical expenses – All costs associated with the emergency care and treatment of your injuries inclusive of rehabilitation and any necessary therapy.
• Income losses – Lost wages while you recover from your injuries as well as any impacts on your ability to fulfill your work duties and meet the obligations necessary.
• Property damage – Some personal injury cases include damage to your personal property that occurred during the accident. If this is true in your case, you should include that in your claim and/or lawsuit.

Non-Economic Damages

Some of the most impactful and traumatic losses don’t relate to your finances at all. These non-economic losses involve changes in your way of life.

Non-economic damages in a personal injury case can include:

• Pain and suffering – Serious injuries often prove painful as they occur and throughout recovery. Treatments, surgeries, and other procedures can exacerbate that pain and discomfort. The suffering you endure after an accident can make you eligible for compensation in an injury claim or lawsuit.
• Emotional and mental trauma – The events of an accident and its aftermath can cause intense trauma, emotional distress, and psychological impacts that affect a victim’s day-to-day life and future. These damage awards aim to help rectify such suffering.
• Loss of quality of life and enjoyment – When you lose the ability to enjoy your life as you did before the accident or your quality of life diminishes because of your injuries, you can seek these (often irreparable) damages as part of your personal injury claim. Although no amount of money can make up for the losses you’ve suffered, a claim or lawsuit allows you to potentially receive compensation for the unfortunate, tragic effects of the accident and your injuries on your current and future life.
• Loss of consortium – Families of personal injury survivors can also suffer due to an accident. In many cases, family members may need to provide for your primary care and well-being. The relationship between you and your family may change forever because of an accident. As such, your relatives may also qualify for compensation for the loss of relationship and companionship resulting from your accident and its consequences.
• Wrongful death – If your loved one died in a preventable accident, your family may face not only a deep emotional loss, but also unexpected financial hardship. A wrongful death claim helps surviving family members pursue compensation if negligence caused your untimely death. This can include the loss of financial contribution to the family unit as well as funeral and burial expenses.

Limits on damages

In certain cases, California law limits the amounts recoverable for injuries. Consider these two examples.

If an uninsured driver is injured by another’s negligence, they typically can’t recover non-economic damages like pain and suffering. The only exception is if the individual at fault was under the influence and received a DUI conviction for events directly related to the accident.

Situations following a car accident that fall under the umbrella of medical malpractice have another hard cap on damages. Under the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA), non-economic damages in malpractice cases can be no greater than $250,000. By comparison, economic damages have no limit.

After a personal injury occurs, injured individuals have a very narrow window in which they can take legal action against the parties responsible for the injuries and damages. This time window constitutes the statute of limitations. Each state sets its own rules on how long plaintiffs have to file for recovery of their losses from a negligent party.

In California, the statute of limitations gives a claimant only two years from the date of an accident to initiate a lawsuit against a responsible party. Also, if you’re filing against the state of California, you only have six months to do so.

Any claimant that fails to file in the time required by the statute may lose the right to pursue any financial recovery. While two years may seem like a long time, it can pass quickly when a personal injury matter proves complex. Ultimately, your attorney will work to settle your case out of court, but if that proves unviable, you may need to file a lawsuit to protect and preserve your rights to recovery.

Any materials you can bring that support your claim, such as accident photos, medical records, proof of lost earnings, and other information, are all helpful. Such materials help us build a solid foundation for your specific case.

There is no way to tell from the beginning of your case if your case will go to court or not. However, it’s common for personal injury cases to resolve outside of the courtroom.

The personal injury attorneys at The May Firm will work diligently to negotiate a settlement in your favor before pursuing action through the court system. No matter what happens, we’ll fight hard on your behalf to ensure you’re appropriately compensated for your injuries.

If you’ve been injured by somebody else because of negligence, you’re more likely to have a case. However, it is not always as easy as it may sound, even if your injuries are obvious. It may take a lot of work and consideration to establish that the person at fault or the defendant has indeed caused you harm by being negligent.

In California, many personal injury cases arise from traffic accidents, medical malpractice, and defective products. Negligence is possible in all these situations: Drivers, medical practitioners, and manufacturers all have safety standards they must follow to avoid harming others. When a motorist, patient, or consumer suffers an injury, one must determine if someone’s carelessness regarding the aforementioned standards led to that injury.

With a lawyer’s help, this is how you’d initially try to prove negligence. The next step would be to prove your injury stemmed from the defendant’s misconduct.

Say you have been in a serious car accident that caused injuries to your physical being and damage to your car. You would have made it safely to your destination, but because somebody decided to drive beyond the speed limit and failed to follow traffic signs, that driver ended up crashing into your car. This led to injuries, damages, and pain and suffering.

To prove this in court, your attorney must gather and present relevant information regarding the accident to substantiate your statement against the defendant. Valid evidence supporting their wrongdoing may include the following:

Eyewitness Accounts

An ideal eyewitness must have seen the incident and volunteered to show up in court. If a potential eyewitness does not agree to show up in court, ask for a written statement of what he or she witnessed during the incident. This will still be valuable for proving negligence.

Police Report

After almost any car accident (but especially any serious one), a police officer usually shows up at the scene. They fill out an accident report form containing the personal information of all parties involved and a brief statement of their professional opinion on the circumstances surrounding the accident.

The document will likely also include notes on any traffic violations that might have caused the accident. You may secure a copy of this report at the police station and present it to support all other evidence you’ve gathered.

Photographs and Visuals: Any photographs taken at the scene just after (or during) the accident are excellent evidence. You may also present photos of the damage to your vehicle and any marks or bruises left on your skin after the accident.

Additionally, you may create a diagram displaying what happened – for example, which part of the road you were on and where the defendant’s car came from to hit you. You may ask permission from the judge to present these as evidence.

Medical Records: One of the most important things that you should not forget is getting seen by a physician right after an accident. Seeking medical attention should be your priority after any accident. Primarily, this is for the sake of your well-being, but it also serves as valid documentation you can present in court. It can help prove your claim for injuries, given that its timestamps should roughly correspond to those logged by the police.

Evidence presented in court plays an important role in establishing the defendant’s fault. Remember that only a skilled personal injury attorney can increase your chances of recovering all your losses, including damages to your car, hospital bills, and even lost wages. Be sure to hire someone with specific experience in the California state court system.

It’s always a good idea to talk to a few personal injury law firms to find the best fit for you and your case. That’s why The May Firm offers a free, no-obligation consultation to all potential clients. There’s no obligation to continue working together if the fit is not right.

During this conversation, a May Firm attorney will sit down with you and ask questions to learn every detail about your situation.

We will ask how the accident happened, what injuries you suffered because of the accident, and what your life is like as you recover and heal from your physical injuries. This allows us to determine if you have a case. If so, we will go over the next steps with you, including a list of documents you’ll need to gather for us as a starting point in building a strong case for you.

It is difficult to say exactly how long it will take to settle your case. There is no specific time frame for either negotiated settlements or civil trials. The insurance companies will push you to settle quickly, which may be enticing when you are struggling to pay your medical bills or cover the costs of missing work for an extended period.

However, a quick settlement is usually not in your best interest. These are typically well below the amount of compensation you actually deserve. The personal injury attorneys at The May Firm will work as fast as possible to get you full and fair compensation. We will communicate with you every step of the way so you understand what is happening.

Insurance companies can be especially daunting. As they’re in business to make a profit, they often try to find reasons to deny claims. Alternatively, they may offer settlements that seem considerable at first but ultimately might not cover all your expenses. Furthermore, unless ordered to by the ruling of a civil court, an insurance company will not pay out on a claim until you agree to a settlement.

Keep your interactions with insurers as short as possible to reduce the chances of falling for their gambits.

After the accident, give the insurance adjuster your name, the date, time, and location of the accident, and your attorney’s contact information. Let your car accident attorney in Bakersfield handle all other interactions.

If you try to negotiate with them alone, they may later twist your words and attempt to place blame for the accident on you. If they can show the accident was your fault, they’ll have grounds to deny your claim or offer you a low settlement that likely won’t cover your medical bills.

A statute of limitations is a time limit placed on action taken in a personal injury claim. In the majority of cases, after the statute of limitations expires, you can no longer seek damages or other compensation through a personal injury claim. For a typical personal injury case, you will usually have to take action within two (2) years from the date of the accident in order to remain within the statute of limitations. However, the statute is different for medical malpractice claims and for cases against a government entity. It is best to consult with a qualified personal injury attorney at The May Firm right away for detailed information specific to your case. We offer free, no-obligation consultations and we will fight for your rights under California law. 

We at The May Firm have extensive experience in a variety of personal injury cases. These include, but are not limited to:

• Car accidents
• Truck accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Construction accidents
• Dog bites
• Dangerous products, including:
  • Airbag injuries
  • Car seats
  • Crushed roofs
  • Defective seat belts
  • Food poisoning
  • Gas tank explosions
  • Mesothelioma/asbestos
  • Motor vehicle defects
  • Pharmaceutical liability
  • Product liability
  • Recalled products
  • Tire defects
• Injuries, including:
  • Amputation
  • Brain injury
  • Burn injury
  • Catastrophic injury
  • Shoulder injury
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Wrongful death

The May Firm attorneys enjoy working with clients. We will put all of our energy into achieving a successful outcome for your case. We will always put your case first, with personal attention and a hands-on approach to guide you through each step of your case. 

A personal injury lawyer should be called whenever you experience an injury due to someone else’s negligence. Common personal injury cases may include: motorcycle accidents, car accidents, truck accidents, bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, dog bites, construction accidents, and injuries due to a defective product. It doesn’t matter if your injury is minor or severe, a personal injury attorney can help you manage claims against your insurance company, or the insurance company of the person who is responsible for the accident. An attorney will act as your advocate during this difficult time to ensure your rights are protected and fought for. The personal injury attorneys at The May Firm can also assist you in recovering damages for your time spent out of work due to your injury.