Riverside Personal Injury Lawyer
Personal injuries can happen in a variety of circumstances. In these cases, you have suffered an injury by the actions or inactions of another party. No matter what accident you have been in, the legal concept is still the same – you deserve compensation for all the damages you have suffered if you can prove that someone else was to blame for the accident.
Although that is how the legal process is supposed to work, it does not always work that way in practice. In practically every case, you need to fight for every dollar.
Your legal case is strongest when you hire a Riverside personal injury attorney to handle your matters. The attorneys at Bentley & More provide diligent and tenacious representation to our clients who have suffered an injury in accidents.
Some of our notable personal injury case results include:
- $67 million for lifelong disabilities after a fall through a hole in a roof
- $44 million for spinal injuries from a fall accident
- $31.5 million for a car accident due to dangerous roads
- $30 million for catastrophic truck accident injuries
- $26 million for a family in a car crash that suffered permanent injuries and a tragic fatality
- $12 million for a fatal pedestrian accident
- $7.45 million for an injured worker struck by a steel beam
These are only some examples of how we fight for our clients. You can schedule a free consultation with one of our attorneys to learn how we might help you.
Our team also takes case referrals from other attorneys. We have the resources and experience to handle high-value claims involving catastrophic injuries and a robust referral program with other attorneys. Learn more today.
Someone Else’s Actions Can Change the Course of Your Life
Unfortunately, your health and well-being often depend on what someone else does. No matter how much care you take to avoid accidents, you can be at the wrong place and time.
Whether driving on the Riverside Freeway or shopping at the Galleria at Tyler, trouble can find you when you least expect it. Someone else’s carelessness or recklessness can cause you a severe injury that changes the course of your life.
What are Common Types of Personal Injury Cases?
Here are some examples of personal injury cases that can entitle you to significant financial compensation:
- Car accidents
- Slip and fall
- Pedestrian accidents
- Rideshare accidents
- Dog bites
- Product liability cases
- Premises liability
- Medical malpractice
- Motorcycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Truck accidents
You Must Prove Your Personal Injury Case with Evidence
Each legal case starts from the same place; you need the evidence to show that someone else failed to uphold their duty of care to you. Many people owe you a duty of care, even if they will never meet you in your entire life. Certainly, a doctor you trust to treat you owes you that duty of care, as does another driver in your vicinity on the road. Both must act as a reasonable person would under the circumstances.
The success of your personal injury case depends on showing what someone else did or did not do. To win, you must prove that someone else was negligent. The core of proving negligence is the following; comparing the actions of the responsible party to what the average person will have or should have done. If you can prove that the other party fell short of what the situation called for, you can be in a position to receive financial compensation.
Examples of Negligence in a Personal Injury Case
Examples of negligence in a personal injury case might include:
- When a driver rear-ends the car in front of them (in a rear-end car crash, the reason why the crash generally does not matter. What matters is that a rear-end accident should not happen)
- A store owner failing to clean up debris or a spill in the aisle caused by another customer for an unreasonable amount of time
- A drowsy driver causes an accident because of their slow reflexes
- A careless doctor fails to diagnose a condition or take critical medical action in time
- A product manufacturer sells you a defective product that injures you (product liability cases have somewhat different rules that often allow you to receive financial compensation as soon as you can prove that the product was defective)
Insurance Companies Make Personal Injury Cases Harder (By Design)
You are likely dealing with an insurance company when you have suffered an injury. The law requires that motorists purchase automobile insurance as a condition for driving in California.
If you have suffered an injury on someone else’s premises, they will have a homeowner’s or business insurance policy. Whether you file a claim or a lawsuit, the insurance company will call the shots to deal with you. They will not make your life easy by any stretch of the imagination.
Evidence that Can Help Prove Your Personal Injury Case
The first thing an insurance company will insist on is proof that their policyholders caused your injuries. They will not take your word for it when determining responsibility for the accident. You have the burden of proof to show what happened. Without the necessary evidence, you can end up empty-handed.
Your personal injury lawyer will gather the proof you need when you file a claim or a lawsuit. You cannot investigate your accident while you struggle with your physical injuries.
A personal injury lawyer can gather the following evidence that can help prove your claim:
- Eyewitness testimony from people who saw what happened (this type of evidence is often the most persuasive, especially when it comes from objective people who have no relationship with you)
- Pictures of your accident scene that can give an idea of what caused the accident (it is not always easy to take photos at the scene when EMTs treat you for your injuries)
- Video footage of the accident (there may be dashcam footage or security camera recordings if your injury happened on someone else’s premises
- Corporate records that can show what the company did to properly hire people or provide maintenance (these records are not obtainable right off the bat, your attorney will need to get them in the discovery process after filing a lawsuit)
- Testimony from an expert witness who can recreate an accident and give their opinion about the cause
How Your Lawyer Will Help You Prepare for a Personal Injury Case
At the start of each legal process, your lawyer will help you take three crucial steps:
- Determining the responsible party for your accident – in some cases, you can sue multiple people for your injuries (giving you access to more insurance coverage). If an employee on the job injures you, our lawyers can hold their employer responsible.
- Helping you decide the best way to pursue financial compensation – you have two options: file a claim with the responsible party’s insurance company or file a lawsuit against them in court. If you go through the insurance company, nothing stops you from filing a lawsuit if you cannot successfully negotiate a settlement agreement.
- Calculating the possible value of your case – if you do not have this crucial knowledge, the insurance company will walk all over you in settlement negotiations. If you do not know how much your case is worth, you will be unable to tell a reasonable settlement offer from one that puts a boatload of your money in the insurance company’s pocket.
How Your Lawyer Values Your Personal Injury Case
One of the first questions many people ask is how much their personal injury case is worth. A personal injury lawyer cannot answer that without knowing you and your situation. Your damages depend on you and what you have gone through since the accident. There is a reason why it is called a personal injury – you are the person.
Here are some damages you might seek in a personal injury case:
- The complete cost of all your medical and personal care (if you need help with the activities of daily life)
- Lost income for the time that you missed from work or the reduction in your earning capacity
- Non-economic damages that measure your own subjective experience since the accident and in the future. These damages can include pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and scarring and disfigurement
Wrongful Death Compensation in a Personal Injury Case
If your family lost a loved one in an accident, that is also considered a personal injury for your family. The responsible party should pay the damages your family suffered when your loved one tragically died in a wrongful death case. The compensation in these cases can be considerable. We will explain the wrongful death law and help you file a lawsuit.
You Must Fight for Everything that You Get in a Personal Injury Case
There is never a guarantee of compensation in the personal injury legal process. The insurance company makes you fight for it. Their interests are opposed to your interests.
A dollar in your pocket is a dollar out of theirs. As a result, you need to speak to them in a language they understand by hiring an experienced lawyer to represent you. If you do not have a lawyer, you will get the short end of the stick through a paltry settlement or a claim denial.
How a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help Your Case
to help your case, a personal injury will:
- Speak to you to learn more about the facts of the case
- Advise you of your legal options to obtain financial compensation
- Investigate the accident to compile the necessary proof
- Prepare the claim to file with the insurance company or the lawsuit for court
- Communicate with the insurance company on your behalf
- Respond to settlement offers and negotiate a better deal with the insurance company
- Argue the case to the jury, if it is necessary
Handling Your Own Personal Injury Case Does Not Deliver the Results You Need
Some people think they can save money by handling their cases independently. If you try to deal with the insurance company without any help, there will not be any money at all. You may be unable to prove your case altogether. If the insurance company offers you a settlement, it will offer an extremely low one. You do not have much leverage in settlement negotiations. The insurance company knows that they can push you around and get away with it.
If you do not have an attorney, the insurance company may ask, “What will you do about it?”
An experienced attorney knows exactly what to do about it. They will pressure the insurance company, using the threat of possible litigation to make the insurance company more reasonable. While it may take some time to get the insurance company to agree to a better settlement, your chances of that happening improve when you hire a personal injury lawyer.
Along with getting the medical help you need to treat your injuries, one of your first steps after your accident should be contacting an experienced personal injury lawyer. If you delay hiring an attorney, you risk jeopardizing your entire case.
Although you may not file a claim or lawsuit right away, you should still have a lawyer helping you – it will not cost you any extra to hire an attorney early in your case. In fact, your attorney receives the same fees regardless of when you hire them, so you should get the soonest possible help.
Contact a Riverside Personal Injury Attorney Today
The attorneys at Bentley & More are standing by and ready to help you. To speak with one of our attorneys, you can message us online or call us today at (949) 870-3800. As always, we do not receive legal fees unless you get compensation. We deliver results for our clients, but first, you must contact us to set up your free case evaluation.
Client Testimonial
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Bentley & More for the past 5-6 years. Their drive and compassion to earn great results for their clients is obvious to everyone who works with them.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to partner with the firm to help serve their clients.”
– Nicole S. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Bentley & More LLP – Riverside Office
Phone: (949) 870-3800