Summerfield, MD Personal Injury Lawyer
Getting injured can be a serious hindrance to your life. You may be unable to work for a period of time because you are recovering. For the same reason, you may also not be able to participate in certain activities you used to enjoy. Moreover, the cost of medical care for injuries can easily reach hundreds of thousands of dollars, to the point that your health insurance policy may not have enough coverage, or the insurance provider may want to sue someone to recoup their losses.
If you were injured in or around Summerfield, MD, our attorneys are here to help. We have represented countless clients in personal injury lawsuits, so we have the experience to represent you in a competent and professional manner from the start of your case all the way through trial and beyond.
To have a free case review with our personal injury lawyers, call Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291.
What Happens Before Trial in Summerfield, MD Personal Injury Lawsuits?
It may surprise some people to find out that the vast majority of legal work in a personal injury lawsuit takes place before trial. There is a staggering amount of preparation and legal legwork that can take years before a case ever goes before a jury. During that time, you will be interacting with our personal injury lawyers as well as opposing counsel – lawyers for the other side of the case.
Discovery
An important part of the legal process before trial in a personal injury lawsuit is something called discovery. This is a formalized process where attorneys for both sides of the case exchange relevant information. The idea is that both sides are using the same set of facts and have a “fair” playing field. This also helps to cut down on surprises at trial, which, unlike in courtroom dramas, are not desired by either party.
The kind of information exchanged in discovery includes emails, known witnesses who are going to testify in court, files of all kinds, and potentially even physical evidence. Lawyers have a lot of latitude in what they ask for in discovery requests. However, we do not have to hand over everything to the other side. Some pieces of information are considered “privileged” and do not need to be produced in discovery. For example, if opposing counsel asks for our trial strategy, we can refuse that request because that would be protected by attorney-client privilege.
Depositions
Another key part of the information-gathering process in a personal injury lawsuit is something called a deposition. Depositions are formal interviews where the deponent – the person getting deposed – is under oath and answers questions about the case. Usually, depositions will happen in a conference room or other office-type setting, but they can take place anywhere. You are virtually certain to be the subject of a deposition in a personal injury lawsuit, so it is a good idea to have some understanding of how they work.
Our lawyer who is representing you, opposing counsel, and a professional deposition recorder will be present during your deposition. There may be other parties present, but those three individuals will be at every deposition. The entire proceeding will be recorded in the transcript, and there will also likely be an audio recording of the deposition. This is so that attorneys can refer back to “the record” about what is said in a deposition since there may be quite a bit of time between when a deposition takes place and an actual trial.
The first questions opposing counsel asks you are likely to be simple, like, “What do you do for a living?” and, “How old are you?” The idea is to familiarize you with the process. However, the questions will quickly turn to things relevant to your case. Opposing counsel is looking for information that is helpful to their legal argument during this process, so no matter how trivial a question may seem, it always has a purpose. Do not worry about being asked an unfair question, as our lawyers can object to anything we think is an unfair question to ask of you. After opposing counsel is finished with questions, our lawyers can ask you questions of our own for the benefit of the record. This process can go back and forth for quite a while until both attorneys have run out of questions they feel need to be asked.
Make sure to answer all questions in a deposition as truthfully as possible, even if you think it will hurt your case. This is because a bad fact is much easier to deal with at trial than a false statement.
Damages in Summerfield, MD Personal Injury Lawsuits
If you are successful in your case, the court will award you damages as compensation for your injuries. The idea behind damages is to get the plaintiff in as close a position as possible to where they were prior to getting injured.
Virtually every personal injury lawsuit will include the cost of medical care as part of the requested damages. You can use medical bills and other documents detailing your treatments as a basis for these kinds of damages.
You can also get damages for less tangible things, like physical pain or emotional distress. However, since there is no receipt for these kinds of things, you have to prove their worth to the court with the help of our personal injury lawyers.
Finally, in some cases, you may be able to get something called “punitive damages” if the defendant has acted especially badly. However, courts do not always award these damages, so you need to work closely with our lawyers if you are going to ask for them.
Call Our Summerfield, MD Personal Injury Attorneys for Help Today
Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s personal injury attorneys can help you out with a free case review when you dial (410) 694-7291.