4 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Pursue a Personal Injury Claim on Your Own
Having an experienced legal representative by your side offers you the best chance of getting the personal injury settlement you hope for. Nevertheless, many people are tempted to pursue their personal injury cases on their own, either because they think they can't afford an attorney or because they believe they can adequately represent themselves in court. Although you can pursue your civil lawsuit as a pro se litigant, there are plenty of reasons why it's better to be represented by an attorney.
1. The Burden of Proof Is on You
In a civil case, it's up to the plaintiff to provide the burden of proof. That means you'll have to put in all of the legwork to provide at least a preponderance of the evidence that your personal injury warrants compensation. The defense won't prove your case for you and the judge won't be able to provide any legal advice from the bench.
2. You Won't Have the Tools or Knowledge to Value Your Case
Case valuation is a critical part of filing your personal injury claim. Without it, you won't be able to file your claim at all. A personal injury attorney has to find out how much your case is worth, taking into account such details as the extent of your personal injuries, the number of defendants involved, the amount of money available from insurance company, and previous outcomes and settlement amounts from other similar cases.
When you represent yourself pro se, there's a good chance you won't have the tools or expertise to determine these factors, which could sink your case before it even has a chance to start.
3. You May End Up with a Crash Course in Legal Procedure
Representing yourself in a personal injury lawsuit (or any other civil case, for that matter) means diving headfirst into the world of civil court procedure, legal jargon, and case-building tactics. You may not know how to order or perform a deposition, request interrogatories, or properly file motions, and learning on the fly can be a long and thoroughly exhausting process. Not knowing how to state your claim or prove it within the court's legal parameters could easily spell the end of your case and an easy victory for the other side.
The average personal injury attorney has spent years learning the ins and outs of civil litigation procedure, so they're better equipped to deal with the minutiae of the average civil case.
4. You'll Lose the Upper Hand When Dealing with Insurance Adjusters
An experienced personal injury attorney regularly deals with insurance adjusters to ensure that their clients receive fair compensation for their injuries and damages. Even if the adjuster throws out a lowball offer, an attorney can easily use their expertise and research to counter with a more realistic offer that better reflects the case valuation.
Pro se litigants, on the other hand, are often at a loss when it comes to settlement offers. Without an accurate view of the case's true value, it's easier for pro se litigants to unwittingly accept lowball offers or even take the first offer that's put on a table. Some pro se litigants may have an unrealistic idea of how much their case is actually worth, resulting in them rejecting reasonable settlement offers in hopes of receiving a much higher payout.
Possible Solution: Choose an Attorney Who Works on Contingency
One way to get around the financial hurdle of hiring an experienced personal injury attorney is to hire one who works on a contingency fee. Unlike attorneys who take on cases only when given upfront payments, those who work on contingency receive an agreed-upon percentage of the award if he or she wins the case. In most cases, an attorney may negotiate a 33-percent to 40-percent take of the settlement in exchange for their services. If you lose your personal injury case, your attorney usually receives nothing.
Keep in mind that taking a case on contingency can be a gamble for an attorney, since any chance of a payoff depends on winning the case. As a result, your attorney may not take your case if he or she thinks there's a slim chance of recovering damages.
Click here for more information about personal injury attorneys and how they can help you.
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