5 Reasons Why You Should NOT Represent Yourself In an Accident Claim

You have the right to represent yourself in a personal injury case. This is called proceeding pro se. At first, going forward without an attorney may seem pretty attractive. After all, if you don’t have a personal injury attorney, you can reduce your attorney fees to zero. However, these savings will most likely come at a hefty price: significantly reduced compensation in your case.

Without an experienced lawyer handling your case and fighting for you, it is highly unlikely that you will get the full monetary compensation that you deserve, regardless of how strong your case is.

Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Handle Your Own Personal Injury Case

Below are 5 reasons why you should not handle your own personal injury case:

1. You don’t know what evidence you need to fully prove your case. The type of evidence you need to fully prove your case depends on the type of accident you were involved in. In some cases, simply producing documents that show you were hurt may not be enough to prove the other person caused the accident.

2. You may miss a deadline. If you fail to timely file your claim within the statute of limitations, which is generally two years from the time of the accident, you may be forever barred from seeking compensation. There are many exceptions to this statute. For example, if you are filing a claim for getting injured on a broken sidewalk that belongs to a government entity, you only have six months to file your government claim.

4. You don’t know how to calculate the damages to your benefit. In order to ask for full compensation, you need to first understand the types of damages you are entitled to and what dollar amount would be reasonable to assign to each type of damage. An accident attorney who specifically handles these types of cases would have the necessary experience and knowledge to demand the right amount of compensation for your case.

5. Negotiating a fair settlement takes experience and practice. The majority of personal injury cases are settled before going to trial in court. However, in order to do this without settling for a fraction of the value of the case, it is important to know the tricks of the trade and the risks you may take for continuing with litigation. Some important factors you will need to know is:

• The likelihood of winning at trial
• The value of past settlements in similar types of cases
• The defendant’s insurance policy limits

Consult with an Experienced Accident Attorney in Los Angeles

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident that was caused by another party, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. For more information or to schedule a free consultation with an experienced Los Angeles accident attorney, call the Law Offices of Samer Habbas today at 888.848.5084.