The actual physical manifestation of your injury is what will sit at the heart of your personal injury case. The injuries themselves will hold the most weight with a jury or a judge, and the nature of your injuries will affect your settlement amount more than any aspect of your case. if you are considering pursuing a lawsuit for personal injury, you should know before you begin which injuries will actually afford you a worthwhile settlement. If you injuries are minor, or if they seem minor to the legal system, you won't have much success.
The injuries that will hold the most water in a courtroom include the following.
1. Head Trauma. Head injuries, even slight head injuries, are taken more seriously by the court. Your head is the most valuable part of your body, as it affects your personality, your reasoning, and basic bodily functions. Even if you only had a sight concussion, head injuries should always be added to the list when pursuing personal injury cases, as they make the accident seem more severe for the victim.
2. Broken Bones. Because broken bones can easily be quantified and they show up on x-rays, these injuries, while not permanent, hold more weight in a personal injuries case. Some broken bones, of course, can be worse. Your physician can testify, using x-rays as proof, about how difficult the recovery and rehabilitation of the affected area will be. Because x-rays are easy to see and understand, broken bones should always be included in your case.
3. Torn Tissues or Ligaments. Unlike other "soft tissue" injuries, these can also be proven medically using advanced x-rays or cat scans. They also can be more difficult to repair than broken bones. Some torn or separated ligaments require surgery, which can be very expensive. The expense of the surgery can be used as a damage claim in your case.
4. Open Wounds. Even though many open wounds are not serious, they also have a higher effect on the court because they are so visible. No x-rays are needed to show a gash on the forehead or stitches on the arm. Also, open wounds leave no one in doubt that other unseen injuries can be present. Blood is a powerful persuader in the courtroom, and a jury will respond with more sympathy to your case if you have external evidence of injury.
5. Spinal Injuries. Of course, spinal injuries are among the most serious and the most life changing. Paralysis is easily proven by any doctor. However, even slight spinal injuries hold weight. if you slipped a disc or have compacted vertebrae, the recovery process is still painful, and you may have back pain for the rest of your life. Because the back is both essential and fragile, any proof or indication of back injury will greatly increase the monetary value of your claim. When your physician writes a report on your back injury, try to have them use strong language. Words like "strain" or "general pain" are not conclusive; the defense will use these watered-down diagnostic terms against you to argue that your injuries are not as serious as you claim.
If you have "unseen injuries", like soft tissue damage, that cannot be seen on standard tests, you will need to make sure you keep a journal and have several medical professionals explain that, while unseen, your injury is real and lasting.
If you have any of the injuries above, or a combination of them, you should talk to a personal injury lawyer about compiling a case so that you can receive compensation for both present and future medical costs. These injuries might also afford you additional compensation because of the pain and lifestyle changes they will cause for you.
For more information, contact local injury attorneys.
