If you intend to sue for accident-related injuries in Connecticut, one of the considerations you have to make is whether or not you will involve a personal injury lawyer. Ideally, you should have one, but it is also important to consider that you will have to pay them. Because of this, your next concern may be whether hiring one is worth the cost.
This guide can help answer these questions by highlighting circumstances under which hiring a lawyer may be worth it and is an excellent read before making this important decision.
You Are Unfamiliar With State Laws
Most people seek to understand personal injury laws when the need arises. For example, you are probably reading this article because you intend to file a personal injury claim. While it could offer you some insight, reading it or even a couple of similar articles cannot qualify as familiarity with Connecticut’s personal injury laws.
What may qualify as familiarity would be having a background in law or if you are a legal enthusiast. Still, there are aspects of navigating a claim you may not know how to approach, so the safest option is hiring a lawyer.
You Have Suffered Serious Injuries
Recoverable damages are relative to the severity of injuries, so potential payouts may be significant with severe injuries, attracting some pushback from the opposing side.
Remember, insurers are out to make a profit and will try to minimize your claim value. By going without a lawyer, you will be giving them an easier avenue to lower your claim. Statistics show that having a lawyer increases a victim’s chance of winning desirable compensation up to five times, and this is even when you consider a lawyer’s cut. This means getting a lawyer if your claim involves a series of injuries is 100 percent worth it.
Fault Is in Dispute
Fault determines liability in an accident and, consequently, who compensates who. In cases where the fault is not straightforward, having a lawyer to help you establish it can make a huge difference.
Connecticut follows a modified comparative negligence approach to fault, which allows victims to recover damages if their level of fault is not more than half. Also, recoverable damages are relative to the percentage of fault in the accident. For example, if you are 30 percent at fault in a case that settles at $100,000, you can only get $70,000 as compensation.
“Due to comparative negligence, the opposing side doesn’t have to claim they are completely not at fault; they may only need to prove that you were also at fault, which could impact recoverable damages in your case,” says personal injury lawyer Russell Berkowitz.
You Suspect Lowballing From the Opposing Side
Most personal injury claims do not go all the way to trial. In most cases, involved parties reach a consensus through negotiations. Insurance adjusters can feel encouraged to lowball unrepresented victims, so if you feel like an insurer is offering too poor a deal and is unwilling to negotiate, it may be worth involving a lawyer.
Lawyers will rarely take on a case that is not worth pursuing because their pay depends on the outcome of a case. Also, most personal injury lawyers do not charge for the initial consultation; an initial consultation is often all you need to determine the worth of your case and whether hiring a lawyer is worth it.
