Your Chances of Winning a Personal Injury Lawsuit

If you file a personal injury lawsuit and it looks like your case will go to trial instead of resolving with a settlement, your lawyer might reassure you that a plaintiff at a civil trial has much less to fear than a defendant in a criminal trial, especially since most people’s mental image of trials comes from news coverage of criminal cases or from fictional dramas about people accused of crimes. You might be thinking of the scary, but true, statistic that most defendants plead guilty, simply because the risk of getting convicted at trial is so high. Even in the worst-case scenario, plaintiffs in personal injury cases do not get led away in handcuffs at the end of the trial. The worst thing is that the court rules in favor of the defendant, so you do not get any money to compensate for the financial losses you suffered because of your accidental injuries, even after all the years you spend pursuing the case. Yes, you can appeal the ruling, but that means even more work. To find out more about personal injury trials, and how and why you might avoid one, contact a Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney.

If You Don’t Have to Prove Your Position Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, Why Do So Many Defendants Win?

When you read about it in the abstract, prevailing at trial in a personal injury case sounds easy. You don’t even have to persuade the jury beyond a reasonable doubt that your claims are true. You only have to show a preponderance of the evidence, which means that the chances that your claims are true exceed 50 percent. Of course, cases do not get to the trial stage unless both sides are sure they have a compelling case. Even the most stubborn defendants will settle if they are sure that the jury will side with you.

Victory at What Cost?

Plaintiffs’ motivations for filing personal injury lawsuits relate to a desire to put the accident behind them and move on with their lives. While the case is pending, though, you do not feel like you have moved on. You constantly relive your suffering related to the accident. The trial will require you to listen to and refute arguments about your credibility and your health. People will be talking about details of your medical history in a courtroom, and perhaps even projecting images of your medical records on a screen.

Getting Compensation for a Preventable Injury Is Not Just About Winning or Losing

The good news is that going to trial is not the only way that you can get the money you need to cover your accident-related financial losses. Most personal injury lawsuits do not go to trial. Usually, the parties reach an agreement during the pretrial discovery phase, and the defendant pays a settlement to the plaintiff; when this happens, it is the plaintiff and the defendant, not the judge, who decides how much the defendant pays. You might not need to file a lawsuit at all. If your losses are less than the policy limit of the relevant insurance policies, you might be able to get the money you need just by filing an insurance claim.

Set Up a Consultation Today

A personal injury lawyer can help you get justice after a preventable accident with or without going to trial.  Contact Boone & Davis in Fort Lauderdale, Florida or call 954-566-9919 to explore your potential recovery options today.

Source:

patch.com/florida/west-palm-beach/how-often-do-personal-injury-lawyers-win