Award Winning Chicago personal injury lawyer

Personal injury is a broad area of the law designed to provide economic compensation to a person who is injured due to the negligence of another person or corporation.

Sometimes referred to as tort law, personal injury laws entitle injury victims to recover compensation for all past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, permanent disability, and lost wages.

Most cases involve injuries sustained in car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, or slips and falls. Medical malpractice claims are also considered personal injury cases and may involve surgical errors, anesthesia mistakes, and birth injuries that occur during labor and delivery. 

In the event that a person dies in an accident, because of a defective product, or due to medical negligence, the surviving family may pursue a wrongful death lawsuit. Most wrongful death cases involve a recovery for the deceased’s medical expenses, loss of economic support, loss of consortium, or loss of emotional support.

Other examples could include construction accidents, nursing home abuse, dog bites, motor vehicle accidents, birth injuries, premises liability cases, product liability cases, brain injury, and workplace accidents.

In Illinois, a personal injury is when you have been hurt because of someone else’s negligence or actions. You can file a claim if you have been injured. A spouse, child, or parent can file on a victim’s behalf if they are unable to file for themselves because of serious injury or death.

What is the basis of personal injury claims?

Just because you have been injured does not necessarily mean that you are entitled to compensation. There are some criteria that typically must be met when filing personal injury claims, such as:

• Negligence - When a person or organization breaches their duty to exercise reasonable care
• Intentional harm - When a person or organization intentionally causes harm to another person
• Strict liability - When a person or organization can be found at fault even if they did not intend to cause injury
• Statutory mandates - When Illinois law dictates that you must be given reasonable notice to prevent injury, such as road signs or a wet floor sign

To have a personal injury case, you generally need to be able to establish that the other party was liable for what happened, and you need to have suffered damages as a result of the injury. Generally, the other party must also have financial means to pay the claim. This is referred to as collectability.

Proving a Personal Injury Lawsuit

To prove your injury case, you need to show that:

• The other party had a duty to protect or avoid harm
• The other party caused you damages
• The other party caused your injury

What types of injuries are commonly encountered by personal injury attorneys?

Some of the most common injuries seen in personal injury cases include traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, neck injuries, birth injuries, bruises, lacerations, dog bites, internal bleeding, broken bones, back injuries, bed sores from nursing home abuse or neglect, burn injuries, and internal organ injuries. The severity can range from incredibly mild to life-threatening injuries or death.

The decision to hire an experienced personal injury attorney is entirely personal. Retaining a lawyer could dramatically increase the value of your case. Research shows that victims who hire a lawyer receive 3.5 times the compensation than those who don’t.

This applies to cases that involve insurance companies, too. 85% of insurance company settlements for accidents were to people who had hired an attorney to represent them.

The length of time that you have to file a lawsuit against the person or company responsible for your injury or your loved one’s death is called the statute of limitations. The amount of time varies based on the type of injury and the state.

The Statute of Limitations on a Personal Injury Claim in the State of Illinois

The statute of limitations for personal injury, medical malpractice, product liability, premises liability, and wrongful death claims is two years from the date of injury or death. This means that you have only two years to file your civil lawsuit with the courts, or you may not be able to file it.

Exceptions to the Illinois Statute of Limitations in Illinois

There are some exceptions to the statute of limitations that could apply to your case. Under the discovery rule, you might be able to file for up to two years after you discovered the injury or the cause of death.

Some other reasons why you might be able to file a lawsuit after the two-year statute of limitations include:

• If the defendant leaves the state or cannot be found
• If you were a minor at the time of the injury and an adult has not already filed a claim for you
• If you cannot bring a claim against the responsible party because of a disability

The amount of time it takes to resolve a personal injury or medical malpractice claim is different for every case. Some straightforward car accident cases are resolved through negotiations with the insurance company and never proceed to court. These types of cases may take only 90 days to resolve.

More complex cases that involve multiple law firms and defendants may take more time to settle. Some very complex medical malpractice cases involving birth injuries may take a personal injury attorney years to resolve. Many cases require extensive litigation and a jury trial.

Similarly, most wrongful death cases tend to take longer to resolve both due to their complexity as well as the need for court oversight in the distribution of funds from a settlement or verdict.

The value of an injury case depends on two factors: the seriousness of the injuries and whether insurance coverage is available. Generally, a wrongful death case or a catastrophic injury that causes legal disability is worth more money than an injury that can be recovered from.

When helping you seek compensation, some strategies that your Chicago, IL personal injury attorney might utilize to assess how much compensation you receive are:

• Multiplier Method– This is based on how severe or life-altering the injury is from one to give. More severe injuries would have a higher multiplier used to calculate compensation for emotional distress.
• Per Diem– Per diem calculates daily suffering between one and five. This number is multiplied by the number of days the suffering occurred. This calculation is the per diem amount for your pain and suffering compensation.

Settlement Amounts That Our Lawyers Have Recovered

Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers has successfully helped personal injury victims across the US receive hundreds of millions in compensation, including some multi-million dollar settlements. Some of the settlements our Illinois trial lawyers have helped to secure include:

• A confidential 8-figure settlement for a teenage boy who was groomed and repeatedly assaulted while living in an inpatient treatment facility for narcotic addiction. Our medical malpractice attorneys established that the facility had repeated complaints from other residents involving similar behavior, but no interventions were made.
• In conjunction with our partners, our Chicago personal injury attorneys successfully secured $18,500,000 for a head-on semi-truck crash which left our client with permanent injuries and limited mobility. This case was settled via mediation approximately one year after the lawsuit was filed.
• We secured a $14,100,000 settlement for the family of a motorcyclist who was fatally injured when a truck made a left-turn into his path of travel. Accident reconstructionists established that the driver of the truck was speeding and not paying attention prior to the collision.

Types of Compensation That a Chicago Personal Injury Attorney Can Help You Recover

There are different types of compensation that can be awarded in a Chicago personal injury case as the result of an injury or wrongful death lawsuit.

Economic damages include medical expenses, lost wages, and future expenses. These often directly relate to financial losses.

Fair compensation often includes non-economic damages, too, including loss of enjoyment, pain and suffering, loss of companionship, and disfigurement.

While less common, punitive damages can be added to a settlement amount to help deter future negligence in cases that are particularly egregious or malicious.

When looking for the best personal injury lawyer in Chicago to handle your case, be sure to compare costs. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers work on a contingency basis.

This means that you only pay for our services when we settle or win your case in court.

Our legal fees typically range from 1/3 (33.33%) to 2/5 (40%) of the gross recovery via settlement or trial in an injury or medical malpractice case. In workers’ compensation matters, our fee is 20% of your recovery as controlled by the Illinois Legislature.

For example, in a truck accident case involving multiple broken bones that settles for $1,000,000, the legal fee would typically be $333,333.33. If there are any costs involved (such as court costs, deposition fees, and medical records), these would be deducted from the balance, and the client would receive the remainder.

When you retain our firm, you will receive a written contract setting forth all legal fees and expenses related to your case. Our goal is to be as transparent as possible regarding your legal representation so you have a clear understanding of the legal process and all fees and costs involved.

Filing an injury claim with a personal injury attorney in Chicago is fairly straightforward. While every case is different, you can generally expect the following steps:

• Free case evaluation – We’ll review your case and make personalized recommendations for next steps
• Claim investigation – We’ll conduct an initial investigation to see what kind of evidence we can gather to support your claim
• Filing a civil lawsuit – We’ll file a civil lawsuit against the responsible party on your behalf
• Discovery process – We’ll request specific information from the defendant and any applicable third parties
• Collecting evidence – We’ll gather all evidence to support your case, including medical records, video surveillance, and eyewitness testimony
• Negotiations and mediation – We’ll work to negotiate with the insurance company and defendants to reach a settlement through mediation
• Settlement – In many cases, we are able to reach a fair settlement without having to go to court
• Going to court – If necessary, we are ready and prepared to represent you in court

Contact an Illinois Personal Injury Lawyer Today!

Contact the Chicago personal injury attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers for a free case review by filling out our contact form or calling our law firm toll-free at (888) 424-5757. We specialize in helping injured victims get the compensation they deserve and are available 24/7 to answer your call.