A Guide For New Orleans Residents On What To Expect During A Personal Injury Lawsuit In Louisiana

In this article, you can discover…

• The steps involved in a personal injury lawsuit.
• Whether your personal injury case will require going to court.
• The factors that will affect your compensation.

What Steps Go Into A Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Before we go to court, we will examine things like where the accident occurred, where the defendant lives, and where our clients live to determine where to file the lawsuit. The first thing we will do is file what we call a “Petition for Damages”. This document essentially outlines the facts of the accident and requests compensation for damages, including medical bills, lost wages, loss of enjoyment of life, and more.

After this step, you will go through a process called discovery. Discovery is exactly what it sounds like: the process of each side discovering things about one another as it pertains to their case. It allows both sides to evaluate the good and bad things about their case.

If your case goes to court, you will receive questions (called Interrogatories) and requests for documents from the other side. These questions are typically written with heavy legal wording, making them difficult for non-lawyers to understand thoroughly. We work side-by-side with our clients to help them answer the questions and determine what documents to gather.

Similarly, we will send questions and requests for documents and other evidence to the defendant as well. Depending on the circumstances of the case, we may also travel and inspect the location of the accident, or the vessel involved.

During this discovery phase, each side will get to depose each other and also any important witnesses. A deposition is essentially a question-and-answer session under oath.

We may also hire experts to outline and explain specific aspects of a case that may be too technical for a jury to understand. The defendant may also hire a medical expert to examine you in an effort to defend against your medical provider’s expert opinion.

It is important to build a legally sound case with a strong portfolio of evidence in order to corroborate witness accounts and bolster the expert’s opinions.

The discovery process may sound overwhelming, but we will handle a great deal of the work involved in this process, minimizing the stress and time commitment of our clients as much as possible. At my firm, we even front the costs for all filings, experts, and court fees.

Will I Need To Go To Court For My Personal Injury Case?

Generally, you will only need to visit a courthouse at the very end of your case for a trial if your case does not settle fairly. The vast majority of personal injury cases settle without going to trial. However, at my firm we prepare as if every case was going to trial, meaning we will make sure that we have all the evidence gathered and are prepared to present your case in its best light to the jury.

Am I Able To Settle At Any Point During The Lawsuit?

Yes, a case can be settled after the lawsuit is filed. Settlement authority is always vested in the injured person, meaning that, if an offer is made, the person who was harmed in the accident decides whether to accept it, not the attorney.

As your attorney, I will make suggestions and recommendations based on what I think is right, but it is ultimately your decision as the victim in a personal injury case. Whenever there is an offer from the defendant, we will discuss the offer and come to a decision.

What Factors Influence Determinations About Compensation In Louisiana?

Some of the primary variables that influence how compensation is determined are called hard numbers, meaning things we can apply an exact dollar amount to, like lost wages or medical bills. Other numbers, such as future compensation loss or continuing medical bills, may be more difficult to determine and could require the assistance of an expert.

These numbers can vary greatly depending on your situation, so it’s important to be aware of your past earnings and previous medical bills so that you can provide any necessary information for determining future compensation.

The most difficult number to determine is what we call general damages, which entails pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and other damages that are hard to quantify. No amount will ever be enough to have gone through what you went through, but we’ll do our best to make up for your hardship by getting you the compensation you deserve.

Generally, we will look into the decisions of other juries and judges who have dealt with similar cases in order to develop a benchmark for success in your case.

If I Lose My Personal Injury Case, Can I Appeal?

If your case makes it all the way to trial and verdict, it is likely that somebody will appeal it, whether it is you or the defendant. If we have a great day at trial, and the jury compensates you with a high award, the defendants will usually appeal to try to get the appeals court to decrease the award. At this point, the court of appeals may either uphold the verdict, change the verdict, or even send your case back down to be retried. The appeals process can easily add several months onto your case.

How Do You Help Keep Morale Up For Clients Whose Cases Are Taking Longer Than Expected?

This can be very difficult. When a case is taking an extended amount of time, I ensure that my clients know that we will be diligent in moving their case along.

It is possible that your case may end up in a jurisdiction that only has one or two jury trials a year. This means that you could be waiting upwards of two to three years for a trial, which can be very difficult.

While a great deal of the power lies in the hands of the courts, we will do our best to keep your case moving smoothly and ensure that you are informed at every step of the process.

Still Have Questions? Ready To Get Started?

If you are interested in learning more about What To Expect During A Personal Injury Lawsuit In Louisiana, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling 1 504 230 5222 today.