Questions to the Attorney

What are examples of what can be recovered as “compensatory damage”?

SWT — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:12:25 +0000

For a “personal injury” that’s permanent, you’re entitled to recover one lump sum for: past and future medical costs, past and future lost earnings, physical pain and mental suffering and worry, and permanent loss of function or use of your body.

For “wrongful death”, there are written laws that limit who can recover (the “beneficiaries”) and exactly what they can recover as compensation.

What are “compensatory damages”?

SWT — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:14:21 +0000

“Compensatory damages” refers to money paid to compensate or replace the value of losses or injuries caused by an accident caused by someone else or a breach of a promise. The law recognizes some things can be replaced and others cannot, and the responsible party should pay for what they caused. Compensatory damages are referred to in the Old Testament; the concept is not new.
What compensation is varies depending on the injury or harm.

Do juries get to know whether the person or company who caused the harm has insurance?

SWT — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:43:53 +0000

No. Although insurance policies allow insurance companies to control whether to settle cases, there are laws which prevent juries from being told about the insurance available to pay claims. In fact at a trial, the jury can not even be told there is insurance.

Often insurance company lawyers use tactics to try and fool the jurors into believing individual people or businesses who have insurance will be the ones who will have to pay compensation. I know because I was an insurance defense lawyer. Insurance companies use this tactic in hopes a jury will like the defendant and hold back fair compensation. When that happens the insurance company profits, and it costs all of us because we’ll have to pay for medical care and lost income and productivity.

What’s my case worth?

SWT — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:49:03 +0000

You are entitled to full, fair compensation. There is no mathematical formula to figure compensation exactly, and it takes time to be sure what losses and harms have been caused. The law about what is compensation depends on the type case you have.

Those who cause injuries and their insurance companies only pay a settlement or verdict one time–there is no such thing as an open-ended result to protect the person or business that’s hurt about future, ongoing costs or harms. If you need more treatment or you can no longer do your job despite your best efforts, you don’t get a second chance.

No matter what type case my client has, I thoroughly investigate and study exactly what they have lost. When the work is done, we meet to go over the value of their case. My clients need to be confident they will get all the law allows–not a penny more, not a penny less.

Who pays my claim if there’s an accident caused by someone else?

SWT — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:41:45 +0000

In most cases where the harm is an injury, death, or property loss there is liability insurance which a person or business bought to pay compensation if they caused an accident.

Liability insurance companies are required by law to only sell insurance to cover real risks

How long will it take?

SWT — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 18:53:04 +0000

That depends on many factors. Each case is unique.
If you are injured, you should never settle before you have reached “maximum medical improvement”. If you have not gotten as well as your doctors can get you, you should not settle.
If you have a permanent injury, it’s critical

Will I have to go to court?

SWT — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 17:55:12 +0000

There’s no way to be sure, but statistics show the great majority of valid cases settle out of court. Some settlements occur before a law suit is filed, others after. There is no way to force an insurance company or corporation to offer to settle, but most try to settle valid cases.

What rights do I have when a life insurance company refuses to pay a death benefit?

SWT — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 14:14:55 +0000

Depending on the facts and how the death occurred, the beneficiary may have the right to enforce the policy and make the insurance company pay.

What’s “wrongful death”?

SWT — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:34:49 +0000

It’s a term to describe the legal right to recover when someone causes an accident which results in another person’s death.

The are written laws (called “statutes”) which strictly control wrongful death claims. Those laws specify who can make such a claim and limit what can be recovered. For example, if a single person without children dies and they have parents and siblings who survive, only the parents can recover no matter how close the siblings were.

These cases involve many technical and emotional issues. Your lawyer needs to be sensitive to these.

Do you send letters to accident victims or their families?

SWT — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 18:38:12 +0000

NO! I never have and I never will. I believe people deserve the respect and decency to chose when they’re ready to talk with a lawyer.

I don’t contact them until they contact me. If I’m not available when you call, leave a message, and I’ll call back when you say it works best for you.

You or your family should call as soon as possible. I can come to meet clients if they can’t come to me, but I need to be called.