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Columbia Personal Injury Attorney > Blog > Personal Injury > Obtaining Compensation After a Catastrophic Injury

Obtaining Compensation After a Catastrophic Injury

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The average economic cost of a catastrophic (life-threatening) injury is over $150,000. Medical bills and lost wages make up the bulk of this amount. This figure doesn’t include noneconomic losses, such as emotional distress, loss of enjoyment in life, and pain and suffering. This figure also doesn’t include lost future earning potential.

As outlined below, the compensation process following a catastrophic injury is long and complex. Attorneys and clients alike often lose heart during this long process. Clients are anxious to move on with their lives and many lawyers look for quick settlements. A Columbia personal injury lawyer must be part legal advocate and part cheerleader. Attorneys must build solid cases and use proven methods during the litigation process. Furthermore, they must encourage clients to persevere and obtain maximum compensation, instead of settling for less.

Pre-Filing Negotiations

Meaningful settlement negotiations cannot begin until medical treatment is at least substantially complete, especially in a catastrophic injury claim. Before then, the amount of damages is too uncertain.

Catastrophic injuries usually require future medical care. If a settlement doesn’t account for these costs, the victim is usually financially responsible for them. Other future losses, such as future lots warning potential, are also difficult to pinpoint early in a case.

To clarify these areas, a Columbia personal injury lawyer often partners with outside professionals, such as doctors and accountants. Attorneys then include the results of their reports in settlement demands.

We haven’t even discussed liability, or legal responsibility for injury. Insurance companies often use legal loopholes, such as the comparative fault doctrine, as an excuse to make a low-ball offer or drag their feet during negotiations.

Because of these concerns, and others as well, early settlements in catastrophic injury cases are rare and probably not in the victim’s best financial interests.

Filing Legal Paperwork

This maneuver often jumpstarts stalled settlement negotiations. Insurance companies know victims are serious when they make this kind of commitment.

This filing might also be necessary for legal reasons. Catastrophic injury medical treatment and subsequent physical therapy could take a year, at the minimum. So, by the time it’s substantially complete, the two-year statute of limitations deadline in an injury case might be approaching.

An attorney could throw together a legal claim the day before the SOL expires. But these disorganized claims often don’t hold up in court. A well-prepared claim has a much better chance of surviving pretrial motions that call for its immediate dismissal.

Mediation

Attorneys also file legal claims because, in most jurisdictions, this filing triggers a mandatory mediation requirement.

Formal mediation talks usually succeed even if informal talks have produced almost nothing. A professional mediator builds on any progress the two sides made during informal talks and brings them together on a final figure. Additionally, during mediation, both sides have a duty to negotiate in good faith. Therefore, the aforementioned low-ball offers are illegal.

In the unlikely event mediation doesn’t work, most personal injury trials take place before a judge only or a judge and jury.

Work With a Diligent Richland County Lawyer

Injury victims are entitled to significant compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Columbia, contact the Marc Brown Law Firm. We do not charge upfront legal fees in these matters.

Source:

injuryfacts.nsc.org/all-injuries/costs/guide-to-calculating-costs/data-details/

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Marc Brown

Marc Brown Law Firm

Meet Attorney Marc Brown

Marc Brown is an experienced personal injury and civil rights attorney serving clients throughout South Carolina and Georgia. Marc is motivated by the challenge of helping his clients solve their complex legal issues, and most importantly, he obtains favorable results. He is a caring and conscientious attorney who brings the experience and resources of a larger firm to his smaller, more personalized practices in Sumter and Columbia, SC.

A Personable & Dedicated South Carolina Attorney

As someone who has always had a keen sense of right and wrong and a desire to achieve excellence and fairness in all things, pursuing law was a natural career choice. After graduating with honors from the prestigious Emory University School of Law, Marc went on to become a dedicated litigator who focuses on personal injury, workers’ compensation, and criminal defense cases.

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Choosing an attorney is a very important decision, but it can be difficult. When you choose the Marc Brown Law Firm, we do everything we can to keep you informed, put your needs first, and to make sure justice is served. Here are just a few reasons to choose us:

The Right Experience

Attorney Marc Brown has experience that matters. Prior to opening this law firm, Marc spent nearly a half a decade defending big insurance companies and large corporations in personal injury and commercial litigation matters across the United States. Marc knows exactly how insurance companies and corporations evaluate claims and what they look at when deciding to increase the amount they are willing to pay. He thinks outside the box to find additional or hidden opportunities for favorable results.

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After being injured in a serious accident, you need to focus on getting better. Serious accidents can be hard on an individual, physically and emotionally. The Marc Brown Law Firm is dedicated to fight for you while you recover. If you are unable to travel to our office for any reason, we will personally visit you! Just give us a call to talk whenever you may be in need of assistance. We’re here to help.

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At the Marc Brown Law Firm, we choose to put our clients first. Our clients are more than just a case number. We think of each of our clients as extended members of the family. We make sure to inform our clients of all their legal options and provide timely updates throughout the life their case.

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We are available around the clock for our clients. If at any point we are unavailable, we promise to promptly respond to all messages within hours.

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We work hard so that our clients receive the justice they deserve! When necessary, Attorney Marc Brown retains investigators, engineers, and other experts to help prove your case. Insurance companies are big, but Marc is experienced and resourceful. We fight for each of our clients so that you can receive the maximum compensation available to you.

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We work on a contingency fee basis, which means there are no upfront cost to clients. You only pay lawyer fees when we win your case. This also means that your attorney is only paid a percentage of what is recovered for you. The Marc Brown Law Firm has a vested interest in ensuring that each of our clients receive the maximum recovery available to them. We are determined to fight tirelessly to recover for you.

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