Marietta, GA Motorcycle Accident Lawyer
When hit by negligent drivers in Marietta, motorcycle accident victims can respond by pursuing compensatory damages via a lawsuit.
Immediately after the accident happens, our attorneys can prioritize evidence collection. We can collect crash site photos, interview eyewitnesses, and organize medical records proving your injuries. As we prepare your case, we will keep the statute of limitations in mind and file your lawsuit before the deadline. Settlement negotiations typically follow case filings, and our lawyers can help you navigate them. If your case does not settle out of court, we can present our case to the jury, which will decide the defendant’s liability and assess damages.
For help with your case from our Marietta motorcycle accident lawyers, you can call Rice, Murtha & Psoras now at (470) 287-3070.
What Our Marietta Motorcycle Accident Lawyers Can Do for You
After an accident in Marietta, our lawyers can focus on collecting evidence and preparing your case to file before the Georgia deadline. We can also navigate settlement negotiations alongside you and present a compelling case should your lawsuit go to court.
Evidence Collection
After taking on your case, our motorcycle accident lawyers will focus on collecting and preserving evidence. If you have any photos from the accident scene, give them to our lawyers at this time. If you called law enforcement to report the accident, we can get the resulting report from the Marietta Police Department in the following days.
We can also survey the accident site to see if any signs, potholes, or other environmental factors might come up during your case. As we collect and organize evidence, you should continue getting medical care for your injuries. Having medical records from the first trip to the emergency room is important, as is having extensive records detailing your injuries and required treatment in the days, weeks, and possibly months that follow a crash in Marietta.
An important aspect of evidence collection is identifying and interviewing witnesses. If you spoke to eyewitnesses at the crash site, give their contact information to our attorneys so we can reach out to them promptly. If you cannot talk to eyewitnesses, we can refer to the police report for their information.
In addition to interviewing eyewitnesses, we may get experts to add credence and support to your case. For example, accident reconstruction can pinpoint a crash’s cause, and an expert can testify to their findings in court.
Calculating Damages
Identifying and tallying all damages related to a motorcycle crash is important. Victims might incur a wide range of damages, and documenting them as they incur them is necessary, as otherwise records might become disorganized. Our car accident lawyers can keep careful records of your losses, including those from property damage, medical bills, and lost wages, among others. Regarding your lost income, we might need past tax returns or paystubs to estimate wages missed due to a motorcycle crash in Marietta.
In addition to your economic damages, your non-economic damages are also compensable. These are the emotional losses you have experienced because of a crash. For example, suppose a victim sustains a permanent head injury due to negligence. The injury might prevent a victim from returning to work or engaging in activities they once enjoyed. Furthermore, the injury itself could cause physical pain and suffering, which is also compensable. Using careful assessments, our attorneys can estimate your non-economic damages and request them when filing your complaint in Marietta.
Case Preparation and Filing
Filing a lawsuit is a complicated process that starts with a complaint. When preparing your complaint, our attorneys will include the necessary information, such as the accident’s circumstances, the defendant’s negligence, and your desired compensatory damages. After you file your complaint with the court, the defendant will be served and notified of the lawsuit in Marietta.
Starting case preparation immediately after a motorcycle crash is important because of the statute of limitations. O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33 gives injury victims two years to initiate their claims in Georgia, so do not wait to start preparing yours.
Settlement Negotiations
Settlement negotiations are common in motorcycle accident cases and other injury claims in Marietta. Hold steadfast to our calculation of your damages during settlement negotiations. If you accept a lowball settlement offer right away, the matter will end, and you cannot pursue additional compensation against the at-fault party.
During settlement talks, our attorneys can leverage evidence against the defendant to convince them to settle fairly. Responding to offers with additional evidence to support our calculation of your damages might sway a defendant to increase a settlement offer.
You are under no obligation to settle your case out of court, especially if the defendant will not budge on their offer. In addition to helping you succeed in settlement negotiations, our lawyers can identify when settlement negotiations are stalling and help you proceed with a trial in Marietta.
Proving Fault
If your case goes to court, our attorneys can use evidence gathered in the early stages of your case to prove fault. When preparing your claim, we will do so with the standard of proof in mind. Victims in Marietta must show the court that it is more likely than not a defendant injured them. Furthermore, we must show that the defendant owed you a duty of care and breached it, ultimately causing your injuries and damages.
Physical evidence from the crash site, eyewitness statements, expert testimony, and victims’ medical records may be sufficient evidence to meet the standard of proof in Georgia. Our attorneys can organize evidence in a compelling manner so the jury finds the defendant liable.
We will also submit proof of your damages to the court so that the jury can easily calculate your losses and compensate you for all of them. Because juries award compensation during trials, victims might recover more if they go to court and successfully prove fault. For example, recovering all non-economic damages at a trial might be more likely than in a settlement.
Call Our Attorneys in Marietta Today
For a confidential and free case analysis from Rice, Murtha & Psoras, call our motorcycle accident lawyers at (470) 287-3070.