Massapequa, NY Personal Injury Lawyer
Negligent individuals can cause accidents in numerous ways. If you were injured because of the carelessness of someone else, our attorneys can help you recover compensation.
Time is of the essence when filing a legal claim. We must gather evidence to prove how the defendant was negligent and what damages you sustained as a result. While most victims have three years to file a lawsuit, you might be entitled to more or less time if you were the victim of malpractice or a crime. Our team can use that time to identify challenges to your case, such as meeting the threshold for serious injuries in a car accident and addressing actions of your own that might have contributed to the accident. Working with our skilled attorneys is the best method to get the maximum compensation available in your situation.
Call The Carrion Law Firm at (631) 910-7493 for your confidential, free case evaluation with our Long Island, NY personal injury lawyers.
Ways a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help Your Case After an Accident in Massapequa, NY
While no one wants to be injured in an accident, it does not hurt to be prepared and understand what will happen in a personal injury claim if one occurs. The clock to file your case usually starts running the moment you are injured, giving you a limited amount of time to pursue compensation. Our personal injury lawyers can assess exactly what the time limit to file your case is and obtain evidence to meet the standard of proof for civil claims. We can also help overcome challenges that might threaten the compensation you can recover, such as serious injury limitations in car accidents and accusations of your own negligence. Our attorneys will also be able to evaluate your various economic and non-economic damages.
File Your Claim on Time
Our team typically starts by identifying the filing deadline under the state’s statute of limitations when taking a personal injury case. Most injury claims must be filed within three years of the accident date, as per C.V.P. Law § 214(5). However, some claims must be filed sooner than three years, while other situations can extend the limitations period, giving individuals more time to file their case.
For instance, victims of medical, podiatric, or dental malpractice have just two years and six months from the act, omission, or last treatment to file a lawsuit against the provider, according to § 214-a. However, if the malpractice concerns a foreign object left in the patient’s body by a negligent healthcare provider, victims have one year from the date they discovered the object or should have reasonably discovered it to file a claim. If your doctor misdiagnosed your cancer or missed it completely, you will have two years and six months from the date you knew or reasonably should have known of the malpractice to file your lawsuit.
Victims of a crime for which the defendant was convicted will have 10 years from the date of conviction to file a legal claim under § 213-b.
If a defendant leaves the state for four months or longer or uses a fake name to avoid a lawsuit, the clock will stop until the defendant returns, according to § 207.
Lastly, children and individuals with disabilities will generally have three years from the date the disability is removed to file a lawsuit, as per § 208. Thus, the limitations period will run when a child victim turns 18, or the disability no longer prevents the victim from exercising their legal rights.
Identify Useful Evidence to Meet the Standard of Proof
Our team will also gather evidence to meet the standard of proof in your case. For a personal injury claim to be successful, we must show with evidence that it is more likely than not that the defendant caused the accident and damages. This is known as a “preponderance of the evidence” and is a lower standard than “beyond a reasonable doubt,” which is what must be shown in a criminal case.
In a personal injury claim, our lawyers can use evidence like photos, police reports, and medical records to meet this standard. We can also have eyewitnesses testify to what they saw and expert witnesses to describe your damages and how the defendant caused them.
Overcome Challenges to Recovering Compensation
It is also important to identify challenges that could prevent you from recovering compensation. A typical challenge is the “serious injury” threshold applied to car accident claims, one of the most common reasons for filing a lawsuit. Car accident victims can only recover economic damages through their insurance unless they suffer a serious injury, as defined by I.S.C. Law § 5102(d). You can also file a lawsuit if your damages exceed the basic economic loss of $50,000, according to § 5104(a). You can pursue economic and non-economic damages from a car accident by overcoming these limitations.
Your own negligence can also be a barrier to recovering compensation. According to C.V.P. Law § 1411, the modified comparative negligence rule, plaintiffs and defendants are liable for their share of negligence. Fortunately, the state uses a “true” version of this rule, so you are not barred from recovering compensation even if you were more or mostly at fault for the accident. However, your compensation will be reduced in proportion to the percentage of fault attributed to your actions. Our team can help you get the evidence to fight the defendant’s claims that you contributed to your losses, like those mentioned above.
Determine the Damages You Sustained
Our attorneys can also calculate your damages accurately. We will use your medical records, lost wages, and property damage to determine the value of your economic damages, including future losses you might have. We will also gauge the overall impact of the accident on your life to evaluate your non-economic damages, known collectively as pain and suffering. For egregious incidents, like DUI accidents, we might also be able to secure punitive damages in a trial.
Reach Out to Our Personal Injury Lawyers in Massapequa, NY Today for Help with Your Case
Contact our personal injury lawyers at The Carrion Law Firm by calling (631) 910-7493 for a free case review.