Laguna Niguel Brain Injury Attorneys

Suffering a brain injury is a life-changing event that can lead to immense feelings of grief and depression. If the TBI was caused by someone else’s carelessness, you might also be frustrated and eager to hold them accountable. Our brain injury attorneys in Laguna Niguel can help you seek the compensation you need to cover medical costs, lost wages, and other damages. The initial consultation is free, and we don’t charge attorneys’ fees unless we win. Call us at 1-800-GO-HARRIS to learn more.

What Mistakes Should I Avoid During the Claims Process?

Everyone makes mistakes, but errors made during personal injury proceedings can delay the resolution of your case, reduce your financial recovery, or even prevent you from obtaining any compensation at all. With your future security on the line, it is essential that you steer clear of the common pitfalls made by personal injury claimants. Our brain injury lawyers in Laguna Niguel can help you understand the mistakes you must avoid and how to avoid them in order to protect your case. Common errors made by personal injury claimants include:

• Failing to Track Damages: Those repair costs and medical bills may have taken a big bite out of your savings, but the insurance company won’t pay a dime until they’ve seen sufficient evidence of damages. Every receipt, invoice, and financial document pertaining to your injury-related expenses should be carefully stored. Failing to maintain these records could open the door to a damages dispute. From day one, you should create a folder to file away important financial documents to share with your attorney during the free initial consultation. Consider scanning them and saving them to a cloud drive for added security.

• Ignoring Doctor’s Orders: Whether you were prescribed specific medication or told to take time off work to recover, you should always follow your doctor’s orders. Failure to do so could give the insurance company ammunition to argue that you did not take reasonable steps to mitigate damages and therefore are at least partially liable for your healthcare costs and other losses.

• Posting on Social Media: The claims process can, at times, be incredibly frustrating. While airing your feelings online can offer relief in the moment, these social media tirades could cost you in the long run. The insurance company may be monitoring your social media accounts, scanning for any information that could be used to challenge your claim. For instance, photographs of yourself enjoying a day at the park may be submitted as evidence that your injuries are not as serious as you claim. It is advised that you disable your social media accounts until your claim is resolved.

How Long Will It Take to Resolve My Brain Injury Case?

Only about 5 percent of personal injury cases go to trial. Avoiding trial is usually in the best interests of all parties since it can draw out the proceedings, comes with added costs, and removes control from the plaintiff and defendant. That said, if the defendant is not willing to come to the table and agree to a fair settlement, it may be in your best interests to eventually proceed to trial. Here are a few factors that could influence the duration of the proceedings:

• Strength of Your Evidence: Cases are won (and lost) on the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence. Holes in your case could leave room for the opposing party to dispute liability, causation, or damages. If an impasse is reached that is not resolved through discovery or alternative dispute resolution, you may have no other option but to move to trial.

• Recovery Time: Some injuries can take weeks, if not months, to heal. During this time, you may have to undergo unanticipated procedures, take medication to manage pain, and make use of many other necessary medical services. It is often strategically advisable to delay settlement negotiations until the plaintiff has reached maximum medical improvement. That way, your attorney can estimate a more accurate settlement figure. If you rush the claims process, your eventual settlement may fall short of covering the full costs of treatment, potentially leading to financial turmoil down the line.

• Other Factors: Generally speaking, any dispute has the potential to send your case to trial. A dispute may arise, for example, if you do not follow your doctor’s orders or delay the medical assessment, in which case the opposing party might say that you have failed to mitigate damages. A dispute could also arise over how liability is apportioned if more than one party played a role in causing your injury. Our Laguna Niguel brain injury attorneys can help you anticipate, avoid, and mitigate disputes.

Call 1-800-GO-HARRIS to Speak with a Laguna Niguel Brain Injury Lawyer

We are available 24 hours a day to schedule your free consultation. Call 1-800-GO-HARRIS or send us an email to get started.