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June 11, 2025Ultimate Guide to Personal Injury
Navigating the aftermath of a personal injury can be overwhelming. This comprehensive guide aims to demystify the process, providing clarity on legal definitions, financial implications, and steps to take following an injury.
Understanding Personal Injury
Before diving into the personal injury claims process, it’s essential to understand the foundational legal terms that shape how cases are evaluated and resolved.
Tort
The technical term for an act that infringes on someone else’s rights, resulting in loss or harm. Personal injury lawsuits are always “tort law” civil cases. The terms personal injury law and tort law can be used interchangeably. The goal of a tort action is to force the person who commits the tort to compensate the injured party that suffered the loss and/or harm.
Negligence
The failure of a person, business or organization to act with the implicit or legally explicit care required in a given circumstance. Running a red light or texting while driving is negligent. If a person’s negligent action results in an injury they have committed a tort.
Statue of limitations
A law that sets the maximum amount of time after an injury that legal action can be initiated. For example, Florida has a two-year statute of limitations on personal injury law. There are exceptions that may pause the statute of limitations clock:
- The injured person was incapacitated (can extend the timeline to seven years maximum)
- The negligent part left the state before a lawsuit could be filed
- The defendant tried to hide to avoid the lawsuit
Defendant
The person, business or organization that acted negligently and caused someone else’s injury.
Plaintiff
The person who was injured by the defendant’s negligent actions and filed a personal injury lawsuit/tort claim.
Complaint
The initial legal document that lays out the plaintiff’s grievances and begins the formal process of a personal injury lawsuit.
Answer
The defendant’s formal legal acknowledgement of the plaintiff’s complaint. The answer establishes the defendant’s position on the allegations.
Intentional tort
Actions like assault or other criminal infractions that are done with the intent to cause harm. Most regular torts arise from negligent actions that weren’t intended to cause injury. People who are texting and driving aren’t doing so with the explicit intent to cause an injury.
Burden of proof
Similar to criminal law where the state (plaintiff) must prove the defendant is guilty, tort law requires the wronged party (plaintiff) to prove the party who committed the tort (defendant) caused their injuries and damages.
Strict liability
A legal theory that holds certain parties liable for damages even if there’s no initial evidence of that party’s fault or negligence. In product liability cases, a manufacturer may be liable for injuries a defective product causes, even if someone else was using their product at the time.
Damages
The compensation the plaintiff seeks to recover from the defendant. Damages can be economic (medical costs, lost wages) or non-economic (pain and suffering).
Comparative negligence
A doctrine and defense strategy in which the injured person shares some of the blame for their injury. The plaintiff can still recover reduced damages from the defendant even if they are partially at fault for their own injuries. For example, if you are hit by someone who ran a red light, but you were speeding at the time of the accident, the defendant may use a comparative negligence defense to reduce the damages they owe.
No-fault states
In a no-fault state, each driver’s own insurance pays for their injuries and property damage. Every driver is required to carry personal injury protection (PIP) coverage to pay for their own injuries after an accident. However, if your medical costs exceed your own PIP coverage you may be able to seek additional damages from the responsible driver.
Deposition
Depositions happen during the “discovery” phase of legal proceedings. A deposition is an oral statement made by a witness, under oath, before the trial. The witness giving the deposition is asked questions and gives oral responses with the attorneys of all relevant parties present. Depositions are not made in court, but more typically in a lawyer’s office, and the judge is not usually present (there are exceptions). The questions can be broader than the line of questioning in trials.
Understanding the Legal Process
The legal process can be complex, involving multiple steps. Depositions play a key role in it and follow a structured format. Before diving into what to expect, it’s helpful to understand how a typical deposition unfolds and the kind of questions you might face.
Why Are Depositions Used in Legal Proceedings?
The purpose of a deposition is to preserve and protect the statements made by a witness and to compile an overview of information that is relevant to the case. Depositions keep witnesses honest and ensure details get recorded when they’re still fresh in a witness’s mind. Depositions are also used so all parties become aware of what a witness knows (or doesn’t know) before the trial begins.
Does the Person Being Interviewed Also Have to Testify During the Trial?
Sometimes a witness will not be asked to testify after giving a deposition, especially if the prosecution or defense determines their testimony is not helpful to the case.
How Are Depositions Recorded?
The deposition is recorded word-for-word by a court reporter. Depositions may also be video taped and the transcripts made by the court reporter are then available to all parties involved in the case. There are criminal and civil penalties if any statements made are untrue or discovered to be untrue at a later time.
What are the steps of a deposition?
A deposition usually begins with basic procedural questions to establish that you understand the process and are testifying under oath. You may be asked if you’ve given a deposition before or if you understand that your answers carry legal weight.
Next, you’ll provide background information such as your name, age, occupation, and any aliases. From there, the questions may become more personal, covering topics like your marital status, education, employment history, legal background, and even how you prepared for the deposition.
Finally, the focus shifts to your version of the events surrounding your injury. You’ll be asked specific questions about what happened, your injuries, and any related details. These questions vary depending on your involvement in the case, and your attorney will typically help you prepare in advance.
The Financial Impact of a Personal Injury
The financial costs of a personal injury are far reaching and complicated. People injured due to someone else’s negligence are often faced with several difficult problems. The pain, suffering and inconvenience of personal injuries are serious, but the financial ramifications are often the most pressing and disruptive effects of a severe injury.
Medical bills and health care costs
Some people who are injured have health insurance; others don’t. If you don’t have any health care coverage you will likely need to pay for all the emergency care you received out of pocket. Emergency medical bills can be particularly high. If you do have health insurance, and your injuries were someone else’s fault, it’s not uncommon for your insurer to want to be paid back. Part of your negotiated settlement or personal injury verdict will likely need to be paid to your health insurance company (if they covered your initial injury treatments).
Bills and unexpected costs
Bills and expenses can become an impossible burden when you are bedridden or stuck in a hospital. Your rent doesn’t get put on hold after an injury. You may have a family you still need to feed. You likely have electric, water and phone bills to pay. You may also incur unexpected new costs, like having to pay for in-home care or childcare that’s only necessary because you’re unable to perform everyday tasks yourself.
Lost wages
People who are seriously injured may require weeks, months or even years to fully recover and return to full productivity. Workers with white collar jobs may be able to return to work more quickly than those working in service sector or manufacturing jobs that require them to be onsite and physically fit. Serious injuries may cause a worker to miss months of income that they need to cover their increasing medical costs and pay bills.
Long-term damage to earning potential
Suffering a debilitating injury in a car accident, workplace accident or slip and fall may prevent you from working for years. Your future promotions or upward mobility in your profession could be permanently hampered due to a new disability. Personal injury lawyers can help you calculate the long-term financial damage to your earning potential caused by these types of injuries.
Psychological and emotional damages
Physical injuries and disabilities aren’t the only challenges that may prevent an injured person from returning to gainful employment. People who have suffered through traumatic events may struggle with depression, difficulty concentrating and other psychological challenges that prevent them from being productive or holding down a job.
Property costs and home modifications
Getting your vehicle replaced isn’t always the only cost associated with car accident injuries. People who suffer catastrophic injuries are often forced to adjust to life with limited mobility. Living with a disability often requires modifications of a person’s home or vehicles. They may need to widen doorways, add ramps or wheelchair lifts in their home and make accessibility modifications to bathrooms. All of these modifications are expensive.
Getting compensation
The best way to pay for these costs is to get a fast and fair negotiated settlement from the insurance company. Getting fair compensation is often easier said than done. There may be temporary financing options available if you are facing a long trial and need money to pay for expenses until you finally receive money from a settlement or jury verdict. Your personal injury lawyer may be able to help you find ways to cover costs related to your injury.
How to Document Your Personal Injury Damages and Expenses
As the plaintiff in a personal injury case, you need to provide proof of damages and expenses you incurred due to your injury. Whether your end up reaching a pre-trial settlement with the responsible party’s insurance company or your lawyers take your case to court, having an accurate accounting of all your expenses will be vital to making a full recovery.
Damages are calculated based on the circumstance of the accident and the severity of your injuries.
Economic damages are quantifiable, meaning you can add up your receipts for medical costs or tally the wages you missed while you were out of work recovering. These damages are provable with adequate documentation, which you will be responsible for providing.
Failing to provide evidence may result in underpayment. That is why it is critical to provide as much documentation as possible to account for expenses and damages.
Medical Attention Documentation
It is important to seek medical attention immediately after your accident, even if you don’t think you are seriously injured. Adrenaline often masks any immediate pain because your body is in shock. Once the adrenaline wears off, you may discover you have significant pain from accident-related injuries.
If you’re ever involved in a serious accident you should see a doctor or go to an emergency room straight from the scene of the accident. The initial trip to the hospital is a necessary form of documentation that can aid your case.
Any delays in seeking medical care could be viewed as evidence that your injuries were either nonexistent or not serious enough to justify a personal injury case.
For many people who are injured in car accidents or slip and falls, medical costs turn out to be the largest source of damages in their case. Keep all your medical records and bills pertaining to your injury and provide copies of them to your personal injury lawyer.
List of Medical Professionals
You will also want to keep a list of doctors and any other medical professionals that tend to your injuries. This list may include your primary care doctor, emergency room physicians, physical therapists, chiropractors, nurses or therapists.
Even after the initial visit, you may continue to seek medical attention for ongoing injuries and pain. Having a list of their names is helpful, as you can provide documentation of who you saw on what days.
These medical professionals can also provide letters and testimony detailing your injuries and attributing those injuries to your accident. Your doctors may also be called on to testify to future medical expenses and your chances (or lack thereof) at making a full recovery.
Receipts for Medical Bills
Keep your receipts for any medical attention that you receive. Medical bills are the number one form of documentation that you will want to provide to the other driver’s insurance company.
These expenses can be extensive. Hospital bills and doctor visits quickly pile up, and it should be the responsibility of the person at fault to take care of those costs.
You can still be reimbursed even if your insurance covers those costs. Just keep in mind that your health insurance provider will expect to be reimbursed for any medical costs they’ve paid on your behalf if you settle or win a verdict in court.
In addition to receipts for medical attention also include travel expenses and time spent driving to and from those appointments.
Police Reports
After an accident, a police report is recorded on behalf of all persons involved. Sometimes this even includes witness testimony or contact information. You are entitled to a copy of all police reports filed as documentation for your personal injury case. These reports are valuable in settlement negotiations with insurance companies.
In most personal injury cases police reports are not admissible in court, but witnesses and responding officers can be called to testify to what they saw and what was said to them at the scene.
Personal Notes and Journals
Right after an accident is the best time to recall what happened. Journaling and taking immediate notes can help you solidify your personal experience and accident narrative.
Taking notes after the accident and continuing to journal following the incident will allow you to provide better details that are not in the police report. This can also help prevent future inconsistencies when you’re called on to explain what happened during depositions or at trial.
In a journal, you should describe your pain, recall vivid memories and provide more evidence to support your case.
Photographs
Photographs are physical forms of evidence that can clearly show what happened in an accident. If you can, get pictures following the incident. The shock of an accident may make it difficult to comprehend exactly what’s happening in the minutes after a crash, but do your best to remember to take accident photos.
If you are unable to take photos, have someone do it for you. Take several photos from different angles to be sure you thoroughly document the damage and vehicle positioning.
Loss of Income
After an accident, it is common to miss work or even be out of work for long periods. Whether it is a few days, weeks or months, provide documentation of your loss of income. Documents include tax forms, pay stubs, letters from management, billing and invoices. These forms of documentation account for the time you were away from work and income opportunities that you missed while away.
Your personal injury case is more likely to be successful if you can provide many sources of detailed financial and medical information relating to your injuries and expenses. Thorough and honest documentation will help you win the financial compensation you deserve for your damages.
Personal Injury Claim FAQs
Here are just a few of the most common questions we answer during free consultations and throughout our work with our clients. Remember that these are general answers that won’t get into the specifics of your unique situation, and the only way to get the answers you need is to contact us right away for a free consultation.
How long does a personal injury settlement take?
The timeline for receiving your personal injury settlement check is typically around four to six weeks after the case is resolved, though this can vary depending on several factors.
The standard process begins once you sign the insurance company’s release forms and any other required documents. The insurer then processes the paperwork and issues a check made payable to both you and your attorney. Your attorney deposits the funds into an escrow account, uses that account to pay off any outstanding liens (such as medical bills or legal obligations), deducts legal fees and case-related expenses, and then disburses the remaining balance to you.
However, not all cases follow this smooth timeline. Several factors can delay the payment, including the complexity or type of case, the defendant’s insurance policy limits, or any extenuating circumstances. Delays may also arise from unresolved medical or child support liens, ongoing negotiations over release terms, or holdups within the defendant’s insurance company. Additionally, your attorney may need extra time to finalize lien negotiations before issuing your final payment.
How to win a slip and fall claim
To successfully win a slip and fall personal injury claim, you must prove three key elements. First, that the property owner or occupier had a legal duty of care to maintain reasonably safe conditions for visitors, such as customers, guests, or residents. Second, that this duty was breached, meaning the owner failed to address a hazardous condition or provide adequate warning about it. And third, that you suffered an injury directly as a result of this negligence and incurred damages, such as medical bills or lost income.
However, certain factors can complicate your case and make it harder to prove liability. For instance, if the property owner was unaware of the hazard, or if warnings were clearly posted and steps were already being taken to fix the issue, your claim may be weakened. Additionally, if you were trespassing at the time of the injury, except in some cases involving children, or if your own actions contributed to the dangerous condition, the property owner’s liability may be limited or nullified.
Questions to Ask a Personal Injury Attorney
After suffering a severe injury, you should seek an experienced attorney who has the adequate resources, is responsive to your needs and questions and is willing to put in the necessary time and effort to win.
- What Type of Personal Injury Cases Do You Usually Take?
- Are the lawyers you’re talking to focused on personal injury cases, or do they practice multiple types of law? Lawyers with more than one focus aren’t necessarily bad, but attorneys who concentrate solely on personal injury tend to be more familiar with relevant laws and precedents.
- What’s Your Firm’s Track Record with Cases Like Mine?
- Most reputable attorneys won’t shy away from sharing their positive case results. There are thousands of personal injury attorneys in every state. Before you choose one, make sure you’re collecting case results from many different attorneys to find out which perform best with your type of case. Some cases are harder than others. Impressive results in difficult cases count for more.
- How Often Do You Go into Court?
- Roughly 95% of personal injury cases never go to a full trial. Many cases end in a negotiated settlement before attorneys officially file a lawsuit. Some attorneys have little to no litigation experience and aren’t willing to risk taking a case to trial. They are professional negotiators and settlers. Make sure your attorney isn’t afraid to go all the way with your case if it turns out to be necessary.
- What Is Your Availability?
- Some law firms may consist of a single attorney or a few attorneys and paralegals. Others may have dozens of personal injury lawyers. A firm with very few attorneys may provide a lot of personal attention, as long as they don’t have too many other clients simultaneously. If you’re talking to lawyers at small firms, ask about their caseload and how much time they’ll be able to commit to you.
- How Do You Handle Expenses?
- Most personal injury attorneys operate on a contingency fee basis, meaning you don’t pay them until they win or settle your case. You then pay them a percentage of the settlement or verdict. However, some attorneys may ask you to pay for court costs or other litigation fees. If your injuries have put you out of work, you may not have the available funds to pay those costs.
- How Much Compensation Should I Expect?
- Some cases are worth a lot due to pain and suffering damages, punitive damages or loss of consortium damages. Other personal injury cases, such as those involving relatively minor injuries that will heal completely, may justify only enough compensation to cover medical costs, lost wages and property damage. An experienced attorney should be able to give you a ballpark range, but likely not a specific dollar amount. Each case and injury is unique.
- Can You Help Me with Money Issues?
- People who suffer severe injuries may not be able to work. They have growing medical costs and no income to pay for rent, food or their bills. The injured person’s lack of resources often leads to desperation, causing them to settle prematurely and accept less than they deserve. If you’re in a similar situation, ask your attorney if they can help you find temporary financial assistance.
- What If We Disagree?
- Not every personal injury attorney reacts with professionalism when a client decides they want to make their own choice. Some clients may feel like they need to settle for less than the attorney suggests because they need money right away. A client may also want to keep fighting when their attorney suggests settling. Ask potential personal injury lawyers how they react when disagreements between attorney and client arise.
- How Will You Improve My Chance for Success?
- Your personal injury attorney should care about winning your business. They need to have a compelling answer to this question. Make sure they explain how their unique skillset or their willingness to invest the necessary resources and time into your case will make a difference.
Why Choose Kanner & Pintaluga
Our proven track record and decades of experience handling personal injury law sets us apart. Our dedicated legal team takes a client-first approach, and we do what it takes to get you the money you deserve.
Learn About Your Case During a Free Consultation
We offer a free consultation so you can learn more about your legal options. We encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity so you can get a clear understanding of the path forward. Speaking with an experienced legal professional is one of the best ways to clear up some initial anxiety about getting back on your feet, and we’ll be able to give you examples of cases similar to yours that we’ve successfully represented. We want you to complete your initial consultation knowing that there is support for you.
Only Pay If We Win
We work on contingency fees, meaning that you pay us a portion of your winnings and owe us nothing if we don’t win the case. This is a safe way to get exceptional legal representation without adding to your stress and anxiety about your finances after such a major disruption in your life. You’ll also know with certainty that your attorney is focused on your case, not just collecting a check and not giving it their full effort.
Proven Results
One look at our history of success shows you that we know how to take on these cases, and we know how to win them. During your consultation, we’ll be happy to go over similar cases to yours so you know that we’re experienced with this area of personal injury and that we see a way forward for you.
Client-Centered Approach
We focus on compassion, communication, and service to our clients. When you’re being represented by Kanner & Pintaluga, you can be certain that there is a dedicated legal professional handling your case and will be in contact with you throughout the process. No speculating about your case or wondering if there is anyone still thinking about you — we’re on top of it, and you’ll be kept in the loop.