Facts You Should Know About Personal Injury Settlements

Are you preparing to file a personal injury lawsuit following a car accident, a slip-and-fall accident, a pedestrian accident, or another type of accident? Hiring a Palm Bay personal injury lawyer will help you navigate the process. Such an attorney will determine the viability of your personal injury case, file the necessary paperwork if you ultimately decide to launch a lawsuit, and put together a compelling case before presenting it in a courtroom. They will also try to help you avoid taking your case to trial by attempting to negotiate a personal injury settlement. The vast majority of personal injury cases end with plaintiffs and defendants coming to settlement agreements. Very few end up in courtrooms, so you need a dedicated and experienced personal injury attorney to take the lead during settlement negotiations. This could put you in a better position to collect financial compensation that you can use to cover economic damages like medical expenses, property damage costs, and non-economic damages like emotional distress and mental anguish. Here are a few facts you should know about personal injury settlements.

They May Save Time During Personal Injury Lawsuits

In Florida, the average personal injury lawsuit takes 12 to 18 months to resolve. Some lawsuits take even longer since the Sunshine State leads the nation in the total number of personal injury cases filed annually. If you wish there were a way to speed up the personal injury lawsuit process, negotiating a settlement is one effective option. You might end your case within a few months instead of over a year by advising your lawyer to work out a personal injury settlement agreement. If you’re sick and tired of having medical expenses hanging over your head after sustaining severe injuries during an accident, you may welcome the idea of bringing a personal injury lawsuit to a close. Reaching a settlement agreement will enable you to collect fair compensation from the at-fault party in your case to cover these costs and other out-of-pocket expenses for things like physical therapy.

They’re Negotiable

When you engage in personal injury settlement talks during your case, you’re free to ask for as much compensation as you would like following an automobile accident or some other kind of accident. A personal injury lawyer will set you up with legal advice as you seek this compensation and assist you in coming up with what you deem a fair number. From there, you have the right as the injured party in your case to try to negotiate a personal injury settlement with the defendant. They will likely counter your original settlement offer before you go back and forth to determine whether you can agree. At some point, you may want to shut down negotiations, at least for a little while, if you don’t like the offers you’re receiving from the defendant. Some plaintiffs will use this approach during personal injury cases to show their willingness to take their lawsuits to trial. It sometimes convinces defendants to compensate plaintiffs more than they may have agreed to otherwise. Don’t be afraid to rely on a personal injury attorney to drive a hard bargain during this part of the process. You will likely have plenty of leverage in your case, and there is nothing wrong with using it to claim as much compensation as possible.

They Require Evidence Collection

When you authorize a personal injury attorney to kickstart settlement negotiations, it will still be early in the legal process. You might not yet have all the evidence you plan to utilize during a trial. However, you shouldn’t begin negotiating without first collecting the necessary evidence. The more evidence you present to the defendant in your personal injury case, the greater the chances of this defendant deciding they would prefer settling the case instead of seeing it through to a trial. Whether you suffered a brain injury during an auto accident or serious injuries during one of the many motorcycle accidents that occur in Florida each year, gather evidence that makes your case look as compelling as it can. Excellent examples of evidence include:

• Police reports
• Medical records
• Witness statements
• Financial records (medical costs, property damage expenses, lost wages, etc.)
• Expert witness analyses

You will need to secure this evidence for a trial anyway, so have it on hand from the beginning of personal injury settlement negotiations. This may improve the odds of you locking down a fair settlement or recovering economic and/or non-economic damages during a trial.

They Often Revolve Around the Severity of a Person’s Injuries

The severity of the injuries you sustained during a car accident, a truck accident, or some other type of accident might make or break the settlement negotiations. If your personal injury lawyer shows the legal team for the defendant in your case that you suffered something like a traumatic brain injury, the severity of the injury might motivate them to want to settle your case outside of court. For this reason, you shouldn’t ever put off medical care in the aftermath of an accident. If you do, it could weaken the personal injury case you file and possibly prevent the at-fault party from even considering negotiating with you and your legal team. Document every injury you suffer during an accident and hang on to medical records that reveal just how severe the injuries you sustained were. This could greatly affect how much compensation a defendant will give you during negotiations.

They’re Typically Ongoing

It’s rare for personal injury settlement negotiations to wrap up overnight. Unless both the plaintiff and defendant in a personal injury case are extra motivated to bring a lawsuit to a close, these negotiations often take days, weeks, and sometimes even months. Because of this, you will need to practice patience while negotiations are playing out. You will also need to prepare for a long battle at the negotiating table, especially if a defendant seems hellbent on providing you with as little compensation as they can. You may be surprised to learn that some negotiations in personal injury cases continue even after their trials have started. You and your personal injury attorney should keep negotiating right up until the very end as you seek justice for the physical injuries and mental anguish you suffered during your accident. You might lose some leverage as time goes on without reaching an agreement with the defendant in your case. However, you may also convince a defendant to increase their offers if things appear to be going your way during a trial.

They Call for Assistance From Personal Injury Lawyers

Some personal injury plaintiffs wonder whether they should consider removing lawyers from the equation when conducting settlement negotiations. While you can technically do this if you wish, we wouldn’t recommend it. Too much can go wrong when you don’t have a legal team providing guidance as you negotiate. Negotiating a settlement requires skill and experience within the legal industry. You could shortchange yourself if you try negotiating a settlement on your own and don’t know what you’re doing during the process. Ideally, you should hire a lawyer who knows all about negotiating personal injury settlements to represent you. You won’t have to worry too much about legal fees since the average personal injury attorney delivers legal services on a contingency fee basis. This means they will only collect compensation if they earn you a settlement or judgment at the conclusion of your case. Search for a lawyer with experience in the personal injury practice areas that apply to your case. If, for instance, you suffered slip-and-fall injuries at work, an attorney who routinely handles premises liability and workers’ compensation cases will serve as the right choice. If, on the other hand, you sustained injuries while using a particular product, a product liability lawyer will help you take legal action against the company that manufactures it. A great personal injury law firm will have lawyers to tackle all kinds of cases. Rely on a firm like this to provide a free case evaluation and share their thoughts on the strength of your lawsuit.

They Aren’t Taxable in Many Cases

A common concern that some personal injury plaintiffs share relates to taxes. People wonder whether personal injury settlements will be taxed once they receive settlement checks. You’ll be happy to hear that, more often than not, these settlements are not taxed. In many instances, you will keep the entire settlement amount you receive from a personal injury defendant. However, several scenarios could force you to part ways with a certain amount of money following a settlement agreement. You may have to send Uncle Sam a portion of a settlement if:

• It includes any compensation for non-economic damages, like emotional distress.
• It features punitive damages designed to punish the defendant in your case.
• It involves a significant amount of compensation that warrants taxation under the IRS’s standards.

Ask a personal injury lawyer for legal guidance if you’re lucky enough to collect a higher settlement than you may have anticipated. They will advise you on how to pay any taxes you might owe on your sudden windfall.

They Reduce the Stress Associated With Personal Injury Lawsuits

Throughout a personal injury lawsuit, you will feel stressed out. It comes with the territory when trying to collect compensation in a case. Depending on your case’s circumstances, you might fret over whether or not it will be a success — and this could lead to you suffering from anxiety and other mental health issues. Unfortunately, there isn’t a surefire way to erase all the stress that often accompanies filing a personal injury lawsuit. Even if it appears as though you have a slam-dunk case on your hands, you never know which new evidence the legal team for the defendant might present that could impact your ability to collect compensation. When you see a personal injury lawsuit through to the end, things might not go your way. You could lose your case and walk away with nothing in your pockets despite your lawyer’s strongest efforts and endure stress at every turn. You might have to accept a smaller personal injury settlement than you would like to skip all of this stress, but it could be worth it in the end. It will ensure you collect at least some compensation during your case and minimize the stress you feel while on your way to accepting it.

They’re Each Unique

Hundreds of thousands of personal injury cases are filed annually in the United States. Yet, no two cases are the same. Various factors set these cases apart and make them unique. Although your personal injury lawyer may have worked on a case or even multiple cases similar to yours, there is virtually no chance that your case includes all the same elements as those cases. As a result, you shouldn’t assume that your personal injury settlement negotiations will go just like the negotiations in other cases your attorney handled. Ensure your personal injury lawyer gives your case the time and attention it deserves from beginning to end. Their case evaluation should highlight how your case differs from other lawsuits and inspire ideas on how they will help you claim the largest settlement possible if you decide to go in this direction.

Interested in Negotiating a Personal Injury Settlement Following an Accident? Contact Our Law Firm Today

Florida is home to many personal injury lawsuits during any given year. If you suspect that you have a strong case after being involved in an accident, Alpizar Law Firm is here to help. We will assist you in exploring your legal options and file a lawsuit on your behalf if you choose to take legal action against the at-fault party in your accident. We will also discuss personal injury settlement negotiations and how they work. We will even shed more light on the potential tax implications of collecting compensation in your case. Contact us at 321-676-2511 today for a free case evaluation!