How to Choose an Accident Lawyer for a Serious Case

The majority of the cases our lawyers handle involve auto accidents and truck accidents in the area. We handle only extremely serious injury and wrongful death accident claims.

Although not all, the vast majority of our cases are in Maryland. We will handle truck accident and car injury cases outside of Maryland but only in the event of catastrophic injury or death .

You are trying to choose a lawyer? Take a second and take a breath. Your choice matters. Do some research. Talk to a lot of lawyers. Find out who is really trying cases and getting verdicts for their clients and who is running a marketing firm to get and settle - regardless of the value - cases as fast as they can. And... one other thing I think is critical: ask every accident lawyer you talk to who they would refer a case to if they could not handle a serious car accident case on behalf of a loved one. If the answer keeps coming up one firm, you have a great candidate.

Our car accident lawyers have already recovered millions of dollars in compensation for car accident victims by settlement or trial in 2011. If you or a loved one has serious injuries and you need a lawyer, call 800-553-8082. You can also make a free on-line inquiry here . Ultimately, you should not be talking only to us. You should be interviewing a lot of accident lawyers to figure out the big question you need to answer: who is the best lawyer for you?

Comparative Negligence. Car Accident Attorney | Injury Lawyer

Car accident settlements can be very complicated, and they’re made even more troublesome for the everyday driver by the fact that car accident laws are different between states. These differences can have a huge impact on your auto accident case and the damages you receive from the at-fault insurance company. Fault is always a highly contested issue in car accident cases , and in sometimes, the injuries that result can be the fault of both the person that caused the accident and the victim. Something as simple as the victim not wearing a seatbelt can have a drastic impact on their case, because that act likely would’ve had an effect on the extent of the injury.

When the injury is found to have been caused in part by the victim, it can become a case of comparative negligence.

What is Comparative Negligence?

A rule of law that divides car accident damages based on whether or not the victim is found partially responsible for some of their own injuries. One of the more common reasons comparative negligence can come into play is when the victim is not wearing a seatbelt. In a case like this, even if the at-fault driver ran a red light and collided with the victim in the intersection, some of the injury may have been avoided if the victim was wearing a seat belt. In a case like this, the insurance company will stress that some of the injuries could have been avoided had the victim not been negligent, so they’ll argue for comparative negligence.

We should go forward with this piece of content. In the United States, there are 4 different systems of comparative negligence law, and they change from state to state. The different systems are: pure comparative negligence, pure modified comparative negligence, modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar rule, and modified comparative negligence with a 51% bar rule.

Pure Contributory Negligence Negligence:

Law of: Virginia, Alabama, District of Columbia, North Carolina, Maryland.

If there is any degree of responsibility for the injury on the part of the victim, then the at-fault party won’t be held liable. For example, if Joe hits Scott’s car and Scott is injured as a result, but the jury finds him responsible for 10% of the injury, then he’ll not receive any compensation. Under this set of laws, the at-fault driver must be 100% responsible for the victim’s injuries, or else they don’t have to pay any damages. In this system, even a minor role in the damages can ruin an auto accident claim . This system has roots from British law, but is only used in four states, and Washington D.C. The other fourty-five states have laws that offer more protection to auto accident victims .

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