Filing a personal injury claim is a surefire way to peacefully resolve your claim against the defendant. Rather than hold resentment towards the party who harmed you, why not let go of the negativity and hold the other party accountable? If this sounds like the route you would like to take, we encourage you to contact Ledger & Associates today to get started on your claim. A personal injury action may be the perfect solution for your recent harm or injury.
You have many questions surrounding how a personal injury lawsuit actually works. You may be unsure just how the claim is going to be resolved because you have never traveled through a personal injury lawsuit before. We understand this and we would love to meet with you and discuss the various legal options available to you.
There are generally two ways in which a personal injury lawsuit is concluded, as outlined below.
- Settlement: The first way for a personal injury action to be resolved is through a series of negotiations between the plaintiff and defendant followed by an agreed-upon amount of money the defendant agrees to pay the plaintiff. Many times, a defendant will be eager to settle if he realizes that his case is weak and the plaintiff has a strong likelihood of prevailing on the merits. These defendants do not want to take a chance with a jury who could end up awarding a much larger amount than the defendant would like to pay. Also, a settlement eliminates the need for a trial. Some parties seek to avoid a trial for a variety of reasons. A settlement may be in your best interest or it may not. It all depends on the facts of your case. We urge you to contact a personal injury lawyer in San Diego to go over the settlement process and why it may or may not be the best legal course for you.
- Trial: If the parties cannot agree on a settlement amount or do not wish to pursue a settlement as a course of action for their case, the parties can move forward with a trial. Oftentimes, parties will elect to have a trial if the facts could go either way. The defendant may resist a settlement because he believes he has strong defenses to the plaintiff’s claim. The plaintiff may resist a settlement because he believes his case is worth more than the defendant offered. There are dozens of reasons to choose a trial over a negotiated settlement and as before this will depend on the unique set of facts apparent in your case.
It is our sincere hope that this brief introduction has cleared up some questions for you about how the civil lawsuit will work. There is much more to consider when filling a civil lawsuit and we urge you to contact our offices today! We would love to meet with you and discuss your personal injury case.
