Charleston, SC Personal Injury Lawyer

People get hurt every day. Sometimes, these injuries truly are “freak accidents,” but in many cases, people get badly injured because someone else simply did not do their job. No matter how an injury happens, victims are often burdened with enormous medical expenses, lengthy recovery periods, and other problems stemming from their recovery.

If you were hurt and suspect that negligence had a part to play in it, call us. Our lawyers have handed countless personal injury claims, so we have the experience along with the drive and determination to see your case through to the end and work towards justice and getting you the damages you need after serious injuries.

Contact the personal injury attornes from Rice, Murtha & Psoras by calling our office at (803) 219-4906 to get a free case review.

What Injuries Can Our Personal Injury Lawyers Help You with in Charleston, SC?

“personal injury” is a large area of legal practice. Simply put, people can get hurt in a lot of different ways, so our personal injury lawyers will need to represent people in a lot of different circumstances. Some of the things we can represent you for include:

Car Accidents

Car crashes are a daily occurrence in the United States. Even with the suite of modern safety features present in motor vehicles, car crashes often lead to severe injuries for those involved, including traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, and even cutting and puncturing wounds.

Car accidents often happen because the driver of a vehicle was negligent, either because they were violating a traffic law or simply did something a reasonable driver would not do under the circumstances. An example of the former would be driving drunk. The latter is determined by a jury, and our lawyers will work hard to show them that the driver who injured you was not acting reasonably.

Truck Accidents

Trucks are large and heavy vehicles, so the potential for destruction from truck accidents is incredibly high. It is not unusual for victims of truck accidents to suffer life-altering injuries that will never truly go away.

In addition to all the ways that other drivers can be negligent, truckers need special training to drive heavy vehicles, and there are some industry-specific rules they need to follow. For example, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) promulgates rules regarding how long a trucker can drive continuously in one go. If a trucker violates those rules, that is evidence of negligence, even though other drivers do not necessarily need to follow those standards.

Bus Accidents

Like trucks, buses are larger than most other vehicles on the road and have the potential to cause serious damage. Additionally, buses often have many passengers inside them, so there is a good chance that multiple people will get hurt in bus accidents.

Pedestrian Accidents

Pedestrians who get hit by motor vehicles often suffer significant injuries because they are not protected like people in cars. Even a car moving at average speeds can put a pedestrian in critical condition if it strikes them.

Premises Liability

If you get injured by dangerous conditions on someone else’s property, you can sue them for not keeping their premises safe. Under S.C. Code Ann. § 27-3-60, you can sue property owners if they, through “gross negligence,” “willful,” or “malicious” conduct, did not keep their premises safe for people using it. Proving that someone did something “maliciously” is a step above proving negligence, so you should speak to our attorneys about these kinds of claims so that they can be handled properly.

Medical Malpractice

We trust medical professionals like doctors, nurses, and others to take care of us and do their job properly. However, doctors are people just like everyone else, and people are sometimes negligent. When a doctor incorrectly diagnoses or fails to diagnose something, botches a surgery, incorrectly prescribes medication, or does something else careless, you can sue them for injuries done to you.

A particular quirk of medical malpractice cases is that expert opinion plays a large role in deciding the outcome. Essentially, another medical professional needs to give their opinion as to whether the defendant’s conduct is in line with what a reasonable doctor or similar medical professional would do other than the circumstances. As each side is able to provide their own experts, this can often lead to lawyers needing to convince the jury that their expert is more credible. Our lawyers can go over your medical malpractice claim and pick the right experts to testify in your claim to give you the best shot at a positive outcome.

Wrongful Death

Sadly, many accidents that hurt people can also lead to people losing their lives. When that happens, you can file wrongful death lawsuits to get compensation for the loss of someone you love and care about. There may be some different rules that need to be followed for these cases, so you should speak to our attorneys about them if this applies to you.

What Happens in Personal Injury Lawsuits in Charleston, SC

Pretty much everyone knows that a lawyer can advocate for them at trial. What they may not know is that a trial is really the final capstone of an often years-long legal process where our personal injury lawyers work hard on your claim. Most of the legal legwork happens before trial, so our lawyers have put together a primer to help you understand the process while you go through it.

Filing Your Claim

When you retain us as counsel, we will start working towards filing your claim as soon as possible. This is because there is only a short amount of time that you have to file a personal injury lawsuit. Under § 15-3-530, you have three years from when you get injured to file most personal injury claims in South Carolina. However, the time you have may vary depending on the particular circumstances of your claim. Regardless, once time runs out, you are barred from recovery, cannot file a case, and will not be able to collect any damages.

Three years may seem like a long time, but when you take into consideration the time it takes to gather evidence and prepare initial filings, that time can quickly pass by, so it is always better to get in touch with a lawyer sooner rather than later.

Discovery

One of the most important steps in collecting evidence for your claim is a process called “discovery.” This process involves attorneys from both sides of a claim sharing information with each other so that both sides are operating off of a similar set of facts. This may seem strange, but there are important reasons for this process.

Unlike in television dramas, courtroom surprises are not good for either side and are to be avoided. Sharing information helps ensure that one side does not unfairly hide something from the other that could change the case. Operating off of a similar set of facts helps ensure that justice is carried out fairly and the jury has access to the most accurate information about the case.

However, just because attorneys from opposite sides of a case share information does not mean that we will tell opposing counsel everything. Some information, like discussions you have with us about trial strategy, is privileged and does not need to be shared with the other side.

Depositions

Depositions are another very important part of the information-gathering process before trial. A deposition is a formal, under-oath interview where the deponent – the person getting deposed – makes statements relevant to the case. You will almost certainly get deposed by opposing counsel in a personal injury claim, but witnesses, subject matter experts, and anyone else who may be involved in the trial may also get deposed in your case.

Depositions are usually held in an office-type setting, but they can be held anywhere. Present will be our lawyers, opposing counsel, the person getting deposed, and a professional recorder to make a record of what is said. The lawyer opposite the party getting deposed gets to ask questions first. Generally, depositions start out with basic questions like asking the deponent to state their name for the record, but they quickly move to things relevant to the case.

You should answer all questions in your deposition as honestly as you can, even if you think the answer hurts your case. Our lawyers can work with “bad facts,” but it is much harder to deal with lying under oath, even if the rest of your case is strong. However, if opposing counsel asks a question that is out of line, our lawyers can object, and you will not have to answer it.

Once opposing counsel feels they have asked all the questions they want, our lawyers get a chance to ask follow-up questions. Both attorneys can go back and forth in this way until they are satisfied, so it is not unusual for a deposition to take all day.

Pre-Trial Preparations

Our lawyers handle many things that happen in the courtroom before a trial. This could be clerical issues, like when to schedule the trial or certain hearings, or more serious things, like determining whether certain evidence should be allowed at trial. To do these things, our lawyers file “motions,” which are formal requests to get the judge to take a certain course of action. For example, if there is evidence we do not think should be shown at trial, our lawyers can file a “motion to suppress,” explaining to the judge why that evidence should not be let in. Naturally, opposing counsel may argue that it should be let in, which could lead to a hearing where both sides argue their point before the judge makes a determination.

Settlement Offers

Sometimes, defendants will offer to resolve their legal disputes before trial. This is known as a settlement offer. In settlements, both parties agree to terms, and the matter is dropped without any finding of liability – although some settlements do include an admission to certain things by one or both parties.

Settlements can have a number of benefits over trials. First, the outcome is certain. At trial, the decision is always up to the jury, and there is no guarantee as to how they will rule. Second, it often cuts down on costs, as the matter is resolved sooner than it would be with a full trial.

Some people may see accepting a settlement offer as a sign of weakness, but that is simply not true. If a settlement offer meets all of your needs, you should seriously consider it. On the other hand, if a settlement offer does not do that, you should consider moving on to trial. Of course, our attorneys can advise you as to which course of action is best for your situation.

Trial

The trial is often the final step in the legal process in civil claims. By this point, both sides more or less know what the other side is going to show to the court. All that remains is for the judge and jury to hear both legal arguments, weigh expert and eyewitness testimony, and view all of the evidence from both sides. Once closing arguments have been made, the judge will instruct the jury on the appropriate laws and the jury will go to deliberate. Once the jury has finished, they will return with a verdict that states whether the defendant is liable for your injuries or not. If the jury finds the defendant liable, they will also state how much you are to be awarded in damages. If they do not find the defendant liable, there are still options like appealing your claim, which we can help you with.

Get Help from Our Charleston, SC Personal Injury Lawyers Today

Rice, Murtha & Psoras has personal injury lawyers ready to help you with your claim when you call us at (803) 219-4906.