Each year, unintentional injuries kill tens of thousands of people and seriously injure millions more. The top three causes almost always involve negligence. They are:
- Poisonings: Prescription drug overdoses are nearly at epidemic proportions, especially in some areas of Minnesota. Sometimes, doctors write prescriptions and do not ask the right questions. Such behavior clearly falls below the professional standard of care.
- Motor Vehicle Crashes: Speed, distraction, fatigue, and other poor driving habits cause over 95 percent of the car crashes in Buffalo. Oftentimes, the negligence per se shortcut is available in these cases.
- Falls: Falls are the leading cause of injury-related death among older adults. Sometimes, the problem is an uneven walkway or another design flaw. Other times, property owners fail to promptly clean up spills or otherwise address a hazardous condition.
If you or a loved one was injured or killed due to someone else’s negligence, you need an experienced and aggressive Buffalo personal injury attorney on your side. That partnership makes a tremendous difference to you and your family.
Address Your Needs
It’s very important to see a doctor within the first twenty-four hours of a car crash, serious fall, drug overdose, or other injury. Many people do not “feel” injured, so they put off the doctor visit. But that feeling is usually the adrenaline rush. Once it wears off, you will feel the pain. By that time, doctors will have a harder time treating your injury. Moreover, the insurance company may later claim that your injuries were not very severe. After all, its lawyers will say, s/he didn’t go to the doctor for several days.
But some people do not have the money to see a doctor, or they do not have health insurance. Furthermore, your family doctor may not be experienced with injury-related issues, so misdiagnosis is common.
An attorney steps in here. At Carlson & Jones, we can refer you to an injury-related specialist who will charge no money upfront. So, a Buffalo MN Personal Injury Lawyer helps victims get the treatment they need straightaway. That makes a big difference both in the short term and the long term.
Other people have concerns about their transportation. If the family car is in a wreck, you need alternative transportation right away. If the insurance company drags its feet, Carlson & Jones attorneys step in once again. We take care of the details, like your transportation issues, so you can concentrate on getting better.
Build a Strong Case
Minnesota Victim/Plaintiffs have the burden of proof in negligence cases, such as slip-and-falls and car crashes. An attorney can collect evidence quickly in these cases, and vehicle collisions are a good example. The main types of evidence in these cases are:
- Police Accident Report: Requesting this report is a time-consuming process for nonlawyers. In most Minnesota cities, it’s akin to a Freedom of Information Act request. But a Buffalo attorney can access this critical information in a matter of minutes.
- Witness Statements: For a number of reasons, many people do not like talking to police officers. But they are much more willing to give testimony for an injured victim, because most people are basically sympathetic.
- Event Data Recorder: A passenger vehicle’s EDR is a lot like a commercial airplane’s black box. It has a wealth of critical information. But Minnesota has very strict EDR privacy laws that only a lawyer can effectively deal with.
Slip-and-fall injuries often involve all these types of evidence, along with things like engineering reports and video surveillance footage.
Evidence alone is insufficient. A Buffalo personal injury attorney must plug the evidence into the correct legal theory. Usually, that theory is either negligence or negligence per se. If a third-party liability theory is involved, such as respondeat superior or negligent entrustment, this process is even more complex.
Finally on this point, the attorney must make the correct choice as to the correct theory. Usually, more than one is available. An attorney knows which would be the easiest one to prove and which would best resonate with the jury.
A Buffalo MN Personal Injury Lawyer Fight for You
The insurance company loses money when it pays claims. So, its lawyers are dedicated to minimum compensation for victims, and these experienced lawyers know how to fight. Your attorney levels the playing field.
Boxing matches and other fights begin with lots of physical training. In the same way, a Buffalo personal injury attorney must spend many hours preparing a case. This preparation usually leads to an estimated settlement value. To reach this value, an attorney considers things like:
- Victim’s medical bills,
- Strength of the evidence,
- Any insurance company defenses, and
- Jury’s likely composition.
This value establishes the fight’s boundaries. Attorneys will not sell your case short and they will not drag things out by unfairly demanding more money than the case is worth. In this way, everyone wins.
Most Buffalo personal injury cases settle during mediation. During this process, an attorney fights for you by sticking with the plan and persevering though difficulties. Your lawyer is your strong advocate. Without such a partner, you are unlikely to obtain fair compensation during mediation. The insurance company lawyers will almost certainly take advantage of you.
CALL TODAY TO SPEAK WITH A BUFFALO MN PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER AT CARLSON & JONES
The best reason to hire a personal injury attorney is the peace of mind that it brings. For a free consultation with an experienced personal injury in Buffalo, contact Carlson & Jones, P.A. Home and hospital consultations are available.