Have you suffered an injury in an accident due to negligence? Sometimes you may have to file a personal injury lawsuit but how can you determine if you have a successful lawsuit on your hands?
Of course, with any lawsuit, a personal injury lawsuit is stressful, especially when you are recovering from an injury. But working with a personal injury lawyer  such as one on the team of The Law Offices of Deanna McFarlane can help you with the legality of your case.  

Personal Injury Law Basics

Keep in mind that in Jamaica, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases gives you six years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit. 

First, let’s discuss  some common examples of personal injury lawsuits. 

Negligence – When an individual is negligent, causing harm to a person such as a car accident, dog bite, or slip and fall.
Intentional – When someone commits intentional acts of harm to another person such as assault or battery.
Product liability – When an injury occurs due to a defective product.

How Do You Know You Should Move Forward with a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

The first thing you should ask yourself to determine if you should move forward with a personal injury lawsuit is, were you injured?
If the answer is yes, was someone else responsible for the injury? If so, then you should move forward with a lawsuit to receive damages for medical bills and/ or missed work due to the injury. 

Damages
Damages are defined as the money you get compensated for to help cover things like medical bills, lost wages, even pain and suffering after being involved in an accident. Two different types of damages can be awarded. 

Economic damages: Economic damages pay for things like medical bills, wages, and income loss or any property damage costs that stem from the accident. Medical bills can include ambulance fees, emergency room bills, bills for surgery, physical therapy, medications, doctors’ appointments, consultations with specialists, and other costs that have accumulated as a result of the injury. 

Income loss is repaid when any time off had to be taken due to the injury. If you were involved in a car accident, you could receive property damage costs. 

Non-economic damages: Non-economic damages are things like pain and suffering. It is common to experience mental and emotional pain after getting injured in an accident. This covers things like fear, grief, and insomnia. 

To determine the amount of damages you could receive, there are a few methods. In this jurisdiction, we use the legal literature such as the Harrisons or Khans, case law and other relevantl literature that considers the types of injuries along with any medical bills or treatment costs to calculate the amount of damages. 

Another method is to take the total amount of damages, including medical bills and loss of wages, and then multiply that by a number ranging from 1 to 5, depending on the actual severity of the injuries and suffering. 

Chances of a Successful Personal Injury Lawsuit

Every case is different, but you can get a good idea of how successful your chances are of winning your personal injury case after you talk with your lawyer.
A strong case is based on honesty, evidence, and proof. If you are honest about your injuries and provide the evidence, you will most likely be able to settle without having to go to trial. 

To increase your chances of a successful personal injury case, always seek medical attention as soon as possible. A delay in receiving medical attention could hurt your lawsuit as it would be argued that the medical report is not contemporaneous  enough (ie not close enough to the date of the accident).                                               
Next, report the accident to law enforcement if it was a slip and fall. Then, seek out legal representation from a personal injury attorney. Remember to document what happened, your injuries and collect witness statements. 
After being injured in an accident, be careful of what you say, especially on social media. You never want to jeopardize your case just by saying something you shouldn’t. 
Working with The Law Offices of Deanna McFarlane
If you are looking for a trusted and reliable personal injury attorney, our team also ecializes in personal injury cases. Our skilled team will focus on your case while you focus on healing from your injuries. 
We have in-depth knowledge and experience to aggressively fight for you from the beginning of your case to the end, never settling for less than what you deserve #personalinjurylaw #personalinjury #personalinjurylawyerinJamaica