Calculating Damages in Personal Injury Cases

February 3rd, 2012 ~by Samer

Personal injury cases are notoriously complex, and it is not always clear how the insurance company goes about evaluating cases to determine how settlement money to offer. The process can be quite opaque. An Irvine personal injury attorney may be able to help you understand what’s going on.

The question on how to calculate damages in personal injury cases or wrongful death cases is somewhat complicated. Damages can be divided into two groups: economic damages (which are calculated first) and non-economic damages (which are calculated second). Non-economic damages are usually the largest damages, but economic damages are easier to quantify first.

Economic damages usually consist of loss of earnings or earning capacity. It may also include damage to property or loss of property. In some jurisdictions, it may include loss of credit or loss of insurability, because these are losses of a positive value caused by the defendant. Your Irvine personal injury attorney will know the latest relevant case law and can answer your questions about what is and is not included. It also includes negative costs such as past and future medical costs, rehabilitation costs, and special accommodation costs resulting from the injury.

Non-economic damages are either regarded as positive values lost or negative values incurred depending on the circumstances. It may be stronger rhetorically to argue that they are positive values lost, in order to emphasize your diminished health and capacity. Effects such as pain, mental suffering, anguish, and physical disfigurement, as well as loss of enjoyment of life and loss of society, are considered non-economic damages.

If you have further questions about how damages are calculated, contact knowledgeable Irvine personal injury attorney Samer Habbas at (888) 848-5084. The initial consultation is free of charge.

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Possible Themes for Your Attorney’s Opening

January 29th, 2012 ~by Samer

A competent Orange County personal injury attorney will likely select themes for a trial after taking the specifics of each of his or her clients’ distinctive cases under consideration. Good themes can help to shrink the case down to unifying principles that are far broader than the actual case itself. A theme should be straightforward, clear, and succinct.

While juries typically reach a conclusion with respect to their first impression of an attorney and his or her client prior to the opening statement, this is still the first time in which the lawyer will have to impress the jury with his or her client’s story. In sum, the theme is actually the moral of the client’s story. It should grab hold to the attention of the audience and set the stage for the story that the lawyer is about to share.

There are several examples of possible opening lines that your Orange County personal injury attorney might use in an effort to grab the jury’s attention at the beginning of the opening statement. For instance, he or she may start with, “This is a case about…” This type of opening statement may work well in cases where the attorney would like to persuade the jury to disregard all of the other complex topics and distractions of the trial and focus on one primary cause.

Another opening that might be used is one that acts like a “teaser” of sorts to capture the attention of the jurors. An example of such a statement would be, “The operation that my client was having was to be like any other ordinary operation.” People go through routine acts all the time; that’s why using this type of statement might remind jurors that the hurtful event that happened to your client could ultimately happen to anyone of them at any given time.

If you believe that you would benefit from the services of a knowledgeable Orange County personal injury attorney, please call Samer Habbas at (888) 848-5084 for a free consultation.

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Tips for Testifying at Your Personal Injury Trial

January 26th, 2012 ~by Samer

If your personal injury case goes to trial, you may be frightened at the prospect of testifying before a jury about what happened. Testifying can be intimidating, but an Irvine personal injury attorney will be able to prepare you and coach you to say the right things and tell your story most effectively. Here are some tips for witnesses preparing to take the stand:

Tell your story with confidence. Some people seize up on the stand and speak in a low voice and in a halting manner that seems insecure; this makes the jury doubt their credibility. Instead, speak in a confident voice and positive manner to give the jury reason to believe you. Your Irvine personal injury attorney may give you other advice before you actually testify.

Don’t get distracted by papers put down in front of you. Think of it like a TV newscast: newscasters know how to communicate information without keeping their eyes on the paper. Don’t look down at your paper and answer at the same time, as the jury will lose eye contact with you and might not pay attention to you. If you are being asked a question, don’t look down at what’s in your hands, but pay close attention to the attorney asking you and make sure you understand what they are asking. Listen to the question, then look at your report if you need to, then look back and confidently answer the question.

If you need help preparing to testify at a personal injury case, contact skilled Irvine personal injury attorney Samer Habbas at (888) 848-5084 for a free initial consultation.

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Slip and Fall Cases – Documenting the Scene of the Accident

January 23rd, 2012 ~by Samer

If your slip and fall case reaches trial, it will be crucial that you and your Orange County personal injury attorney present evidence establishing all of the relevant features of the scene of the accident. Fully describing the scene enables the jury to clearly envision what occurred and provides your expert witness a basis for his or her opinions. For instance, if you slip on a wet substance in the supermarket, the jury will need to know the color of the floor, the distances between various objects on the floor, the angle of the floor, what the floor looked like from your perspective, where the wet spot was located in relation to the cash registers, etc., in order to analyze what caused your fall to occur.

While you may be able to provide the jury a clear picture of the scene through testimony, offering photographic evidence is a far more effective means for conveying the material facts to the jury. As such, your Orange County personal injury attorney will take pictures of the scene as soon as possible after you retain him or her. In order for the pictures to be admissible at trial, they must accurately depict the scene as it was at the time of the accident.

In addition to taking photographs of the scene, a seasoned Orange County personal injury attorney will take physical measurements of the scene. Said measurements include changes in elevation in walkways, the dimensions of any cracks or holes, and distances between various objects. Expert witnesses need this information to evaluate the defendant’s precautionary measures and to opine as to whether they were reasonable.

Given the importance of documenting the scene, if you suffer a slip and fall that you believe arose from another person’s negligence, you should take pictures as quickly as possible. If you do not obtain pictures prior to consulting with your Orange County personal injury attorney, you should inform him or her during your first consultation that it is necessary to photograph the scene.

For assistance with your slip and fall case, please contact experienced Orange County personal injury attorney Samer Habbas at (888) 848-5084. The initial consultation is free.

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Techniques for Dealing with Stalled Negotiations

January 12th, 2012 ~by Samer

Even the most experienced Orange County personal injury attorney sometimes finds himself at an impasse with insurance company about a client’s settlement. However, there are techniques that your attorney can use to get negotiations for your settlement back on track.

For example, your personal injury attorney can check the unfair claims practice laws. California laws govern the insurance company’s practices. These laws restrict, among other things, the amount time the claims adjuster spends investigating the claim. If your attorney suspects the adjuster is dragging out the investigation phase in order to stall negotiations, he may be able to use these laws to leverage the adjuster into resuming negotiations.

Failing that, you attorney might try the time-tested technique of setting a time-limit. A letter with a reasonable settlement demand stating that a response is required in 10-20 days could spur a hesitant adjuster into resuming negotiations.

Your attorney can also start asking concrete questions as to what specifically the adjuster is investigating. Direct pressure in this manner can reveal an insurance adjuster who is stalling rather than an adjuster who is earnestly running into unforeseen trouble in his investigation.

If all else fails, your personal injury attorney may decide that the best way for you to recover damages is to file a lawsuit. If a lawsuit does proceed, the adjuster is no longer involved in the case.

Make sure you have an experienced Orange County personal injury attorney on your side, no matter how your claim proceeds. Call Samer Habbas today at (888) 848-5084 for a free initial consultation.

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