Gainesville Personal Injury Lawyer

A personal injury lawyer can help you navigate all parts of the claim process. Your attorney can help you comply with filing deadlines and draft your claim, demand letter, and lawsuit in the proper form and with the proper information.

A lawyer can also provide you with access to greater resources than you would have on your own. Your lawyer will have a team of investigators, paralegals, legal assistants, and expert witnesses, all working to strengthen your case. You will need these resources if you hope to match the economic strength of the insurance companies.

Your legal adviser will also help you calculate the value of your damages. You can only get fair compensation after an injury if you know the value of your case. Your attorney can help you figure it out.

You’ll be able to rest and recover while they handle your legal claim. You need to heal from your injuries. You can’t do that if you are laser-focused on your personal injury claim. Your attorney can take on the legal burdens of your claim while you focus on your recovery.

After an mishap in Florida, you will typically be entitled to damages from the at-fault party. These damages come in two main forms: economic and non-economic.

Economic damages will cover your financial losses related to the incident, including:

• Medical payments (past and future)
• Lost wages
• Diminished earning potential
• Physical therapy
• Rehabilitation
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Property damage

Non-economic damages will cover your personal, non-financial losses, such as:

• Pain and suffering
• Anxiety
• Emotional distress
• PTSD
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Reduced quality of life
• Loss of consortium

Rare cases might qualify for punitive damages, which punish a defendant for misconduct rather than compensate an injury victim for losses.

Florida sets time limits on your ability to file a claim after an accident. Commonly, you will have four years to file the claim. This deadline applies to most motor vehicle crashes and slip and falls.

Medical malpractice and wrongful death claims have a two-year statute of limitations. Cases against the government may be subject to even shorter timelines.

You should always consult with a personal injury lawyer to establish the statute of limitations.

No lawyer can tell you what your claim is worth without evaluating the whole picture. Your attorney needs to know the circumstances of your accident and the extent of your damages before they can defne your case’s value.

However, a few factors will likely control it:

• The strength of your evidence
• Available insurance coverages
• The extent of your medical bills
• Your lost wages and diminished earning capacity, if any
• Whether you experienced pain and suffering after the wreck
• Whether you share fault for your injury

The quickest way to determine how much it’s worth is to schedule an evaluation with an experienced lawyer. Contact us now to get started.

There are several steps you should take after an accident to protect your injury claim and your health.

You should always:

• Report the accident. You should report the incident to 911 as soon as possible. Police officers will arrive at the scene and create an accident report noting their observations. The dispatcher can also send emergency medical services should you need them.

• Exchange information. You should exchange contact and insurance information with the at-fault party. You should also exchange contact information with any witnesses.
• Seek Medical Treatment. You should seek immediate medical attention after the incident, even if you believe you are uninjured. You may have hidden injuries that have not presented symptoms yet. Prompt medical attention will help you receive treatment and diagnosis of all your injuries — and prevent insurers from claiming you failed to mitigate your damages.

The last thing you should do is seek legal advice. A personal injury lawyer can help you know your rights and options for recovering compensation for your injuries. Contact us right away to schedule an initial evaluation.

Negligence is the basis of most personal injury claims in Gainesville. It refers to an unreasonable act or omission that injures another person. A person is negligent when they fail to exercise reasonable care.

Negligence requires proof of four elements:

• Duty – You must prove the defendant owed you a duty of care.
• Breach – You must show the defendant breached their duty.
• Causation – You must prove the defendant caused your injury.
• Damages – You must show you suffered damages.

Contact us for help establishing your negligence claim.

With more than 130 years handling personal injury matters just like yours, you can rest easy that you are in good hands. We’re known for being fierce and relentless advocates for our clients. We’ll negotiate a meaningful settlement on your behalf. However, we’ll never compromise the quality of our legal representation just to get some fast cash. If you’re not offered a fair deal, our team of skilled trial lawyers will not hesitate to bring your case to a jury. Our reputation in the courtroom precedes us. That, alone, often makes adjusters think twice before offering anything less than a complete and fair settlement offer.

Florida operates under a comparative fault system. This just means that sharing some of the blame for an accident will affect your ability to recover compensation. Your monetary award will be adjusted to reflect your contribution. So, if your proportionate responsibility is 25 percent, your compensation will be reduced by that amount.

Insurance companies love to use this rule to their advantage. The more blame adjusters can shift to you, the less insurers have to pay. Left unchecked, these tactics can devastate your ability to get the money you deserve. Our lawyers are all too familiar with these strategies. We also know how to blunt their effects. We’ll disprove allegations that you share blame. If you did contribute to your injuries, we’ll gather evidence to show how minor your role was.

Getting into an unexpected accident is never easy. You’ll need to heal from your physical injuries and psychological wounds. Thanks to a harsh statute of limitations, however, you’ll only have a short period to file a lawsuit and demand compensation from those responsible. You can’t focus on getting better if you’re also trying to navigate a challenging and contested legal claim. That’s where we can help. We will handle every aspect of your personal injury matter from start to finish. We’ll take care of court filings and all conversations with other parties. Our team will be transparent and keep you in the loop, but you’ll be able to focus on getting better and moving forward with your life.

We understand the impact accident and injury experts can have on a personal injury case. Insurance companies will spare no expense in getting experts in their corner – and neither will we. When you turn to us for help, you’ll also benefit from the expertise and insight of leading specialists in Alachua County. This might include accident reconstructionists, forensic scientists, medical professionals, psychologists and psychiatrists, appraisers, or vocational rehabilitation specialists. If there’s someone who can provide insight into your accident, help us analyze evidence or aid in our construction of a strong claim, we’ll get them on.

You might not know the equivalence of your case. Insurance companies will want to have complete control over the valuation of your situation. You don’t want to let that happen, because that will ultimately mean that you walk away and leave well-deserved money on the table. Our lawyers know that every penny counts when you’re recovering from an accident. That’s why we will roll up our sleeves, dig deep, and make sure it’s valued properly.

We’ll fight to secure all of the compensation you need, including money for medical invoices, lost wages, disability, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and other accident-related damages. We’re not just interested in getting you money for your current accident-related costs. We’ll also fight to secure compensation for future fees you may incur. Our goal is to make you as whole as possible after your accident – and nothing less.