How Long Does a Personal Injury Settlement Take?

Personal Injury Settlement

How Long Does Personal Injury Settlement Take?

Each Injury Settlement is Different

How long will it take for me to get my personal injury settlement? There is no set formula for how long a personal injury case can take to a settlement.

The reality is that an electric scooter accident can be 360 degrees different from a commercial truck accident, or a pedestrian accident.

A personal injury case can arise after somebody gets injured due to the negligence or intentional acts of another person.

Personal injury can be broken up into 2 distinct categories – physical and psychological.

Psychological injuries will cause stress and be related to mental anguish – PTSD, anxiety, etc.

If you are injured it’s very important to contact us today and let Daniel Kim help you.

Personal injury lawsuits can be settled in 6 months sometimes, but can easily drag on for over 12 months or even 2 years so don’t fight the insurance companies alone.

Some law firms are not organized and their employees are overwhelmed so your lawsuit can get lost in the shuffle.

But at The Law Offices of Daniel Kim, we have efficient processes that allow our legal team to settle your lawsuit as fast as possible.

Below is a breakdown of what you can expect immediately after a car accident, and what you can expect the process to look like as you hire a law and deal with the legal process.

 

Get Medical Treatment

If you are injured in a car accident, motorcycle, Uber, etc., your first step should be to seek medical help.

Even if you don’t believe you are hurt it can be wise to get checked out by a doctor to ensure you don’t have any internal injuries or head trauma etc.

The other thing to remember is that if you don’t get medical care for a month or whatever, then the insurance adjuster and the jury can assume later that you weren’t really injured and that is why you didn’t seek immediate medical care.

 

Why Contact The Law Offices of Daniel Kim?

Daniel Kim and his team have years of experience dealing with personal injury cases in California.

The Law Offices of Daniel Kim know that our clients come first, and we need to represent you with total professionalism and compassion.

Our motto is that “we can help and we will”.

Daniel has over 1,000 Positive reviews online with Yelp, Google, and Facebook from happy clients.

We understand how difficult it can be after an accident when you or a loved one has been injured.

Once you start dealing with the medical bills, insurance companies, adjusters, police report, etc., the whole situation becomes hard to handle.

Daniel will negotiate and settle with the insurance companies (each insurance company is different so Metromile is not the same as Allstate, etc.) to make sure you get maximum compensation.

Don’t just hire any attorney or a family friend, you need to really hire the best when it comes to your injuries and injury lawsuit.

Sadly these accident claims can change your life, so do your research and call us today.

You can call us 7 days a week to get answers to your questions.

We handle all cases including motorcycle, car, Uber, pedestrian, bicycle, and truck accidents.

And if you need help with an accident in Los Angeles, Orange County, or anywhere else in Southern California, then contact us today.

 

Information We Will Need from You

When you first contact us we can help explain what we need from you, but first we want to answer any questions you might have.

After we have answered all your questions then we will need to know:

  • date of the accident and exact location, time of day, etc.
  • contact information for any witnesses
  • any information related to the police report
  • some evidence to prove you have missed work and lost wages
  • any information that relates to the personal injuries you suffered – and medical treatments you had
  • insurance documents that might cover your losses, like health insurance

 

We Investigate the Claim and Review Medical Records

Once you hire Daniel Kim then our law firm will need to speak with you about how the accident happened, your background, your injuries, and any medical treatment you’ve had so far.

We will need to know all of this information (and more) because we don’t want to be surprised later on as the injury claim goes thru the legal process.

Next up our law office will start to gather all of your medical records and bills that are related to the injuries you suffered from the accident.

And we will obtain any medical records for treatments you might have had previously if they are related to this same injury (this process can take a while).

Once we get all of your medical records then Daniel Kim will review them and decide if you have a case.

As you can tell this whole medical process is very complicated and the insurance companies won’t make it any easier for you.

So call Daniel Kim today to get answers about your potential case.

 

What Damages Are Considered Personal Injury?

With a lawsuit being filed on your behalf you are entitled to compensation for any injuries you suffered due to another person’s negligence.

This is called “damages” –  when you are awarded money in a personal injury settlement for your pain and injuries.

In California if the defendant is found guilty ,the defendant is responsible for paying out damages to the plaintiff or injured party.

Typically these damages are compensatory which are meant to compensate the victim for injuries or loss, etc.

Remember to learn about any tax laws that might affect your settlement.

In a way, you can break personal injury damages into two different segments – general or special

So with the general damages, an injury victim would be compensated for things like:

  • Physical pain
  • Disfigurement
  • Emotional suffering and loss

We need to prove that these damages were a result of the injury and not from a past condition.

On the other hand, when it comes to special damages, the things listed below might count:

  • Loss of job earnings
  • Replacing and fixing property (car, items in the car, etc.)
  • Compensation for items that can’t be replaced

And when you want compensation for these damages you must prove that your property was damaged due to this accident, and not from before.

All of this stuff is complicated but Daniel Kim and his team will take care of you all the way.

 

Details About Information and Damages

Pain and suffering – you will have the right to collect money for your physical pain and suffering, and for any future pain due to your injuries.

Medical expenses – this is just like it sounds. You will be compensated for the medical bills you incurred due to your accident and injuries.

Wrongful death – damages for wrongful death claims would be available to a child, spouse, parent, etc.

Loss of earning – you are also entitled to receive monetary compensation for any loss of earnings when you missed work

Loss of future earnings – If your injuries hinder you from future earning potential then you can also seek damages for that. Think about a dancer who loses a leg, that will affect her future earnings.

Deformity – this looks at scars and marks caused by the injury.

Personal property – this takes into consideration stuff like your car that was damaged in the accident, and anything like rental car you need while you are without a car.

 

Making Demands and Negotiating

Most of the time any smaller personal injury claim can be settle before a lawsuit even has to be filed.

If our law firm believes that your case can be settled then we will make a demand to the other lawyer or insurance company.

This process can speed up the settlement immensely and allows us to get you paid quickly.

On the other hand, if your claim involves a claim for permanent injury or impairment then Law Offices of Daniel Kim won’t settle before filing a suit – we will fight to get you maximum compensation.

Daniel Kim is a Top car accident lawyer here in California and he knows all the ins and outs of the legal system.

We will not make a demand until our client has reached a point of max medical improvement (MMI).

This just means that we won’t move forward until we know you have recovered and have ended any necessary medical treatments to get back your full health.

We have to follow these steps to find out how much your case can be worth when it settles, and Daniel Kim doesn’t take any shortcuts just to get a quick settlement.

In addition, it’s not wise for us to file a lawsuit until MMI because if you aren’t at MMI when your case goes to trial then the jury might totally undervalue your case.

Sometimes it can take months or over a year for our clients to reach MMI, but we will work with you during the entire process to protect your legal rights.

 

What Is My Car Accident Settlement Worth?

Ah, unfortunately, this is a long and detailed answer.

The short answer is each case is very different, and until we can investigate your case and get you the medical treatment you will need, we won’t be able to give you a quick answer on what the worth of a settlement accident is.

The legal process is complicated and takes time, don’t fight the insurance companies alone and then just give in and get an unfair settlement.

Once you start signing paperwork for the insurance adjuster and insurance companies then you are basically already accepting offers on what settlement to settle on.

And things matter like were you a passenger, were you in an Uber, did the other driver have insurance, etc.

 

When a Lawsuit is Filed

Daniel Kim and his legal team will file a lawsuit if need be, and from that point on the clock is ticking for when the case could go to trial.

In California (due to so many people and lawsuits) it can take one to 2 years for a personal injury case get to trial, but keep in mind that each state has a statute of limitations which determines how long a person has to file an injury claim.

This is why it’s very important to contact a lawyer immediately after you get injured so that no time is wasted and we can help get you on the path to recovery (financially and your health) ASAP.

 

The Discovery Process

This is the procedure where each party – plaintiff and defendant – will investigate the opposing legal claims and what their defense might be.

Our law firm and the defendant will send out interrogatories (basically a bunch of questions) and specific document requests to each other, then depositions are taken from any relevant witnesses which typically start with the defendant and you the plaintiff.

Believe it or not this process can last for months and months as it will just depend on the deadlines put forth by the court and how complicated your case might be.

But all of this will be taken care of by Daniel Kim and his team so you can focus on your health and recovery.

 

If you want to know how long does a personal injury claim take then read this article, to know that and also know other benefits of choosing a personal injury attorney Orange County for your compensation claims.  We will discuss the time to settle a personal injury case.

Time to Settle a Personal Injury Case

Personal injury claim can take a specific time depending on how quickly you do the following steps:

Settlement negotiations: Negotiations are a part of getting the claims for you they can go forever and generally to avoid court these negotiations are done. Thus basically these negotiations are done to make you insurance company takes your claim seriously. Thus choose the best personal injury attorney Orange County for you to make an effective negotiation for you.

Filing a Lawsuit: This is when you legally challenge the insurance company for you compensation claims. Once a lawsuit is filed, the defendant will typically be served within 30 to 60 days, and will have 30-45 days to file a response. And it generally takes average of three months from the date you file your personal injury lawsuit to get the initial response from the insurer. Then the pre-trial discovery process begins, which can be lengthy.

How Long Does A Personal Injury Claim Take

Alternative dispute resolution: Mostly to avoid trials people chose for mediation outside the court. Mostly this takes place after many months of the accident.

Trial: If your claim does go to trial, the trial will usually occur more than one year after the crash. In some cases, it is closer to two years. The trial itself will usually last between a couple of days and a couple of weeks. It’s important to note that a trial is not a common outcome.

Thus at last if we sum all this the conclusion would be that how much time takes to get the compensation depends on how serious the case is. If the case is not so serious you can get compensation in few months but if it is serious then it takes a year or more to get the compensation for you. Thus always choose yourself a Personal Injury Lawyer Orange County for you and increase the chances of getting the compensation.

Why choose a professional personal injury lawyer for you

Increase your compensation amount

The biggest benefit of choosing experienced personal injury Attorney Orange County is to increase your chances of obtaining the highest amount of compensation possible. An attorney will be able to use its knowledge and experience to help you to increase the compensation of yours.

A personal injury attorney near me will be able to help you in best way possible to get the claim which you deserve.

Handling insurance companies

Handling insurance companies is not an easy task to do, they will never allow you to get the compensation and will try to low the amount as much they can. As you are not experienced in handling such people choosing a professional will be the best option for you to convince insurance company to give you the claim for your damages.

A personal injury attorney Orange County is the best person for you to convince the insurance company from your side to give the claims for your damages. Also you will not be able to calculate the amount of compensation which you deserve.

Personal Injury Attorney Orange County

Medical Expenses Upfront

The last thing you want to worry about is paying for extensive and mounting medical bills. You may even receive a hospital lien within days or weeks of leaving the emergency room or hospital. When you hire a Personal Injury lawyer, he or she can help facilitate letters of protection and letters of representation that assure providers that they will be paid at the time you settle your case. This alleviates the financial pressure you may already feel soon after you get medical care.

If you want professional lawyers to handle your case then The Law Offices of Daniel Kim is the best place for you to find that. We are a group of professional lawyers who have experienced skills and knowledge to handle any personal injury claim for you.

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