INJURY LITIGATION ADVICE
INJURY LITIGATION ADVICE
What Will Be Needed?
What or who will be needed to project and convince of damages in this case?
Will the medical records be sufficient or will lay witnesses be necessary?
Such lay witnesses are members of the family, neighbors, co-workers, social friends, ministers, church people, and local neighborhood acquaintances who note change abnormality, and function losses but have no personal relationships to the client.
From the time of initial interview and case intake, jury effect and impact must be considerations.
All of the comments and instructions regarding preparation of a personal injury case in this text are related to going to the jury. Should a case settle prior to that point, it will have done better than one which was prepared for with settlement in mind.
Your lawyer needs a detailed history of past and present medical treatment, including names and addresses of physicians.
What damages are compensable? The injuries and damages that are listed in medical records are compensable and are obvious on their face. Substantial damages are those which result in function changes and in how this person is different pre-trauma versus post-trauma.
The only thing for which a plaintiff is compensated is the DIFFERENCE between the pre-trauma and the post-trauma state. It does not matter what his pre-trauma condition was. He could have been the “Marlboro Man” and still appear that way, but his degeneration to a lower level demands compensation.
The plaintiff could have been a borderline emotional cripple, a weak individual, someone who was predisposed to all kinds of injury, illness, and disability; but if the negligence legally caused these to happen sooner, damages exist.
Clients need a notebook to record facts, they will use to answer all subsequent interrogatory questions, to keep a diary of each and every expense, and where they may write questions directed toward their attorney or the treating physicians.
A diary of symptoms, doctor visits and how these symptoms interfered with your life. Any ideas they or members of the family might have which help in preparing such a litigation should also be written so as not to be forgotten. A very important purpose of such a notebook is to have fundamental answers to questions which determine whether or not there are damages and how much those damages are.
The answers need to be detailed, lengthy, complete, and honest. As well as describe activities and circumstances which may or may not seem important at the time of the writing.
On the surface, most of the issues seem to be medical problems and the information should be present in the medical record.