What should I do if I am in an accident?

If you were in an accident that was the fault of someone else, then you have reason to consider filing a case against them. A lawyer for personal injury Memphis TN residents trust at Patterson Bray, PLLC believe that victims should not have to suffer because someone else chose to act recklessly that day. Victims must seek medical attention, gather evidence, notify their insurance company, and then contact a lawyer for guidance from there on out. It is imperative to the outcome of your case that you do not accept a settlement offer quite yet, and that you learn more about your options and the true value of your case.

Who are the best witnesses for my case?

As your Memphis personal injury team can review, there are many witnesses that you may want to use for your personal injury case. Let’s say you were involved in a car accident and a bystander rushed over to help. This person may have seen the accident unfold and the aftermath of it too. Their statement can be incredibly influential in proving that you were the victim and how the other party had been at-fault. Other examples of witnesses that can be useful in your case include those who were with you during the accident, loved ones who saw the severity of your injuries, expert or medical professional testimonies, and more.

How do I know if I have grounds for a lawsuit?

Many people don’t even realize that they are victims in a serious accident and that their circumstances make them eligible for compensation. For instance, someone may slip and fall while shopping at a store and get seriously hurt, but are too embarrassed to report it to the store manager. However, it was a leaky ceiling that caused a puddle to accumulate on the floor. The store owner may have been privy to the leak, but didn’t properly attend to the hazard. So the person who fell may leave without filing a report and end up with medical bills and other losses that they wouldn’t have accrued if someone had attended to that leak sooner.

How do I know if someone else was at-fault?

Figuring out whether someone was responsible for an accident or not will depend on the type of incident. It is possible that more than one individual or party was at-fault. As a real life scenario, a truck accident that appears to have been the fault of a truck driver may have entailed other influencing factors that are not readily apparent yet. The trucker may have been speeding, but was he speeding because his employer was pressuring him to drive excessive hours and meet a strict deadline? Was there a truck part that was defective and caused the truck to become out of control? Your lawyer can investigate the situation to uncover all the possible parties who should be included in your lawsuit.

Do I need a lawyer to get compensation?

After reporting the accident to your insurance company, you will probably be contacted by an insurance adjuster and offered a settlement amount. While accepting these funds may sound immediately appealing, it’s important to recognize that this amount is likely only a small fraction of what your claim is worth. Insurance companies are still for-profit, which means they are for the money they can make and not the money they have to spend on victim’s claims. Your Memphis injury personal lawyer team can protect you from being tricked by settlements and fight for an amount that is fair.

Law Blog by Patterson Bray | Memphis Probate & Injury Attorneys

Law FAQ: Negligence – Is the Other Driver At Fault for the Car Wreck? (Part II)

In yesterday's blog post, I listed the 5 basic elements for a negligence claim: duty, breach, injury, causation, and proximate/legal cause. Today’s post will focus on the first 2 elements which, for...

Read This Blog

Car Wreck Case- What is negligence by the other driver?

In a car wreck case, or any other case, "negligence" is the legal term for failing to exercise reasonable care and caution under a given set of circumstances. It is...

Read This Blog

Politics in the Workplace: Wiseman Quoted in Memphis Daily News

Let's talk politics. Or not. Regardless of the outcome, the 2016 Presidential Election is set to go down in history. You have probably learned about (or are inundated with!) the...

Read This Blog

ObamaCare at the Supreme Court: Day 3 Recap

ObamaCare at the Supreme Court Sorry to be running late with this post concerning the final day of argument at the Supreme Court yesterday, but I wanted to again pass...

Read This Blog

ObamaCare at the Supreme Court: Recap of Day 2

My friend Hans von Spakovsky has been attending the oral argument at the Supreme Court and has summary of what how things went yesterday in his article over at PJ...

Read This Blog

ObamaCare Before Supreme Court Starting Today: Brief Guide

My friend Hans Von Spakovsky has a great rundown of the Supreme Court's schedule as they hear argument over the course of the next three days on the various legal...

Read This Blog

Legal Tip: Take Photos of the Contents of Your Wallet and Store Them on Your Smartphone

Identity theft is rampant. You hear horror stories over and over again. To protect yourself, you should avoid supplying personal and financial information online except in connection with verifiable, reputable...

Read This Blog

The Obamacare case to be heard by the Supreme Court in only 2 weeks

I posted previously about the Obamacare cases that were on a collision course to the Supreme Court. The most eagerly anticipated question before the Court is the constitutionality of the individual...

Read This Blog

Outrageous & Frivolous Lawsuit Verdicts – Fact or Urban Myth?

Everybody has probably seen them at one time or another -- The Stella Awards -- an annual list of the most outrageous lawsuits. The Awards are named after Stella Liebeck,...

Read This Blog