I often talk with people who have been in a crash and who have been hurt, through someone else’s fault, and they ask, “Do I really need a lawyer?  Can’t I just handle this myself?  Wouldn’t it just be cheaper for me to do it?  While I understand why they ask these questions, my answer is always a resounding “NO WAY”.  It’s simple to say, “Well if you are not a car mechanic, would you try to fix your car?” or “If you’re not an electrician, would you try to rewire your house?”.  But the truth is simple - There is specialized knowledge required to know the rules, to know your rights and your obligations, to know the problem and to find the solution. 

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It takes a lawyer, who specializes in representing people who have been injured, to make sure that you get treated fairly and properly.  For the same reason

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Representing you for an injury claim may involve many issues that will affect whether you can recover and if you don’t know how to deal with them, not only could you lose, you could find yourself owing money to someone else.   

 

You have to prove fault in Virginia, so you need to know the legal basis for liability against the other person.  If you don’t prove it YOU WILL LOSE. 

 

You may have to defend a claim that you were partially at fault because, in Virginia, if you are partially at fault, YOU WILL LOSE. 

 

You have to medically prove that your injuries were caused in the crash.  If you can’t YOU WILL LOSE. 

 

You may have to repay your health insurer or the government if they have a lien on your settlement for paying your medical bills.  If you don’t pay off the liens, YOU WILL LOSE the settlement that you think you just got. 

 

Your claim goes through an insurance company and you need to know which one is responsible, how many are responsible and for what amounts.  If you don’t know, YOU WILL LOSE the insurance coverage needed to pay your claim. 

 

Your only threat if the case doesn’t settle fairly is to file suit, and you don’t know the law, the rules or the procedures to navigate court on your own.  If you don’t know how to litigate a case, YOU WILL LOSE. 

 

If you don’t take action in a timely manner, YOU WILL LOSE. 

 

Are you starting to get the picture?? 

 

Not all injury claims are the same, and some require the special knowledge, training and experience in that type of case that will make sure that your case had the best chance of success. 

 

If your injury resulted from medical malpractice, you MUST have a lawyer who handles these very complicated and very expensive cases.  The standards of proof, the evidence you need and the attorneys who defend these cases, are different from those in the average motor vehicle claim, and they almost always go through litigation and trial, without settlement. 

 

If your injury happened while you were on a motorcycle or a bicycle, get a lawyer who rides a bike.  You know how different it is to ride on the roads, you know how a bike or motorcycle operates differently from a car, and you need a lawyer who also knows this, so that the case can be presented from your perspective, to a jury, as a biker or cyclist.