
Chicago Personal Injury Lawyers
Chicago Attorneys Advocating Aggressively for Accident Victims
many of us live according to routines and take for granted our ability to conduct the daily business of our lives. unfortunately, an accident can throw everything off balance. Whether it is a car accident, a hand truck crash, a slip and fall, or an wound on the job, accidents can make it challenging to do even the smallest tasks. sometimes injuries are catastrophic or evening fatal. The Chicago personal injury lawyers at Abels & Annes have helped hundreds of accident victims recover compensation after suffering injuries due to the negligence or misbehave of other people or entities .
Personal Injury
Most personal injury lawsuits are pursued under a theory of negligence. You will need to show that it is more likely than not that the defendant failed to act safely in the site, avoiding unnecessary risks of injury. This duty of care depends on the circumstances. If you can establish liability, you can obtain damages such as annoyance and suffer, lost wages, and medical expenses. While it is most coarse that accidents are caused by negligence, it may be possible to recover damages under theories of designed wrongdoing or recklessness under certain circumstances. You must bring a claim within a certain time time period, known as the codified of limitations .
once you leave your Chicagoland home, anyone can compromise your safety. person you never met before may make a amiss choice or fail to pay attention, and you can suffer an injury .
At Abels & Annes, we help people who have suffered an wound in accidents. We will work for you to receive full compensation when person else was to blame for your accident. When you need legal help, our Chicago personal wound attorneys are here to help.
Accident and Injury Risks in Chicago
Wherever you go in the Windy City, you might be in an accident that causes injuries .
Some common accidents might include :
- Rear-end collisions on the Dan Ryan Expressway
- Slip and falls while shopping Jewel-Osco
- Falling on an icy parking lot
- Boating accidents on Lake Michigan
- Pedestrian accident while crossing the six-way intersection of N. Milwaukee, W. North Avenue, and N. Damen Avenue
Common Factors in Personal Injury Cases
All personal injury cases have two things in coarse, flush when the actual ways the injuries happened are starkly different :
- The legal standard for determining responsibility in personal injury cases is the same
- You may recover total compensation if you prove that someone else injured you
Personal Injury Cases that We Handle
numerous types of accidents and negligence can fall under the personal wound umbrella .
personal injury cases that we handle at Abels & Annes include :
For about all of these cases, an insurance company or jury will use the same test to determine whether person else should pay for your injuries. Whether you slipped on a wet spot in a store or were injured in a T-bone crash by a car that ran a red light, the legal test is always negligence .
Proving Negligence in a Personal Injury Case
There is no one law on the books that says what negligence is. alternatively, Illinois ’ s negligence casing law and statutes have evolved .
hush, all courts across the area use the same four elements to determine negligence :
- The other party owes you a duty of care – someone does not need to know you to owe you a duty to use reasonable care. A driver who passes by you on the highway you will never meet in your entire life owes you a duty of care because you are close to them on the road. When a commercial business opens its doors, it must provide a reasonably safe premises.
- The defendant breached the duty of care – the defendant is expected to act reasonably under the circumstances. They do not have to be perfect. However, they must act as an ordinary person would. For example, a driver should not speed, text, or make illegal turns, and a premises owner should take security measures when there has been crime in the past.
- You suffered an injury – in a personal injury case, the word “injury” covers a wide variety of harms. Of course, it includes physical injuries. It may also include property damage and harm to your reputation.
- The defendant was the proximate cause of your injury – this is the element known as causation. You must show you would not have suffered an injury had it not been for the acts or omissions of the defendant.
How to Prove a Personal Injury Case
In any personal injury case, it is one thing for you to say what you believe happened. If all you have is your word, you may not get army for the liberation of rwanda when filing a claim or lawsuit. The winder to any successful personal injury claim is the proof that you have of what happened .
Gathering testify after a personal wound is not constantly easy. You have limited time before this tell disappears. At the same time, you are dealing with physical injuries that may limit what you can do alone .
How Our Personal Injury Lawyers Work for You
When you hire a personal injury lawyer, we will immediately work to collect evidence and build the proof you need to win your case.
When you hire a personal injury lawyer, we will immediately work to collect testify and build the proofread you need to win your case. Lawyers prove personal injury cases with :
- Witness testimony from people who saw what happened
- Expert witnesses who can testify that the defendant breached their duty of care
- Pictures from the scene of the accident
- Wreckage from the accident
- Security camera footage that captured what happened
once your lawyer has the necessity evidence, you must still meet the load of proof, which rests squarely on you. In a personal injury lawsuit, you must show that your side of the floor was more probably than not to have happened .
numerically, if you can show that your history was 51 percentage likely to have occurred, you should win. This is a lower standard than a criminal case, where the prosecutor has to prove the charges beyond a fair doubt .
Your Options in a Personal Injury Case
When you have suffered a personal injury, you have several legal options for how to proceed. In many cases, you deal with a defendant with an insurance policy. Whether it is auto insurance, commercial liability insurance, or a homeowners insurance policy, the common element is that you are dealing with an insurance company.
When you have suffered a personal injury, you have several legal options for how to proceed. In many cases, you deal with a defendant with an indemnity policy. Whether it is car insurance, commercial liability policy, or a homeowners insurance policy, the common element is that you are dealing with an policy company. practically all policy companies operate the same way. They try to make your life sentence equally difficult as potential to make their own business profitable. You can count on having to fight to get a reasonable colony of your case, and it will take time. indemnity companies look for any apologize potential to deny your claim. They will besides make meager settlement offers, forcing you to reject them and make further demands .
many people opt to file an indemnity claim – despite its difficulties – because it is a quick and less hazardous route to money than a lawsuit. however, you always have the choice to file a lawsuit without even exploring the claims route. The choice is up to you, working with your lawyer .
Damages in a Personal Injury Case
The damages principle in a personal injury case is besides the lapp, no matter what character of case it is. If you can prove that person else was negligent, they must pay you for everything you have suffered .
personal injury damages break down into :
- Economic damages – These pay you for your financial damages. These cover things like lost wages, property damages, and all of the costs of medical expenses. Even though these seem straightforward, there is room for significant disagreement when the insurance company tries to estimate what they think you deserve.
- Non-economic damages – These damages use the money to estimate how you have suffered and what you have lost in your life since your injury. The type of non-economic damage that everyone knows about is pain and suffering. In addition, you can recover damages for things like emotional trauma and loss of enjoyment of life. Non-economic damages are highly subjective, no matter how “objective” the insurance company tries to be about them.
- Punitive damages – These damages send a message and punish the defendant for atrocious conduct. Punitive damages are uncommon, and you should not expect them in every case. They are assessed by a jury when the defendant has been extraordinarily careless or reckless. Insurance companies will not pay punitive damages as part of a settlement.
Receiving Your Full Damages Almost Always Takes a Fight
You must besides prove your damages, just like you need to prove liability. The challenge is that damages can lend themselves to multiple opinions. You can receive fiscal compensation for both past and future damages. however, an indemnity caller does not want to pay you what you are entitled to in full .
One of the critical parts of your personal injury claim happens before you even file it. Your lawyer will review your damages and come up with an estimate of what you are seeking. Without knowing how much your claim is worth, you risk being tempted by a first gear extend from the insurance company because it is immediate cash. Hiring an lawyer can help prevent this because an experience lawyer will identify low-off offers and answer consequently to the insurance company .
You Don’t Have to Hire an Attorney, But You Certainly Need One
There is no official legal requirement to hire an attorney in your personal injury case. However, you have every reason to do so, and you always should. When filing a compensation claim, you have suffered a physical injury. Your injuries mean that you are not in the best shape to handle a complex legal claim. Then, a lack of knowledge of the process will also handicap your ability to get full and fair compensation on your own.
There is no official legal requirement to hire an lawyer in your personal injury case. however, you have every argue to do so, and you constantly should. When filing a recompense claim, you have suffered a forcible injury. Your injuries mean that you are not in the best shape to handle a complex legal claim. then, a lack of cognition of the march will besides handicap your ability to get fully and bonny compensation on your own. An indemnity company loves dealing with unrepresented claimants, and there is a perfective rationality for that. On average, people who try to handle their claims receive far less in compensation than those who have lawyers. This calculation is evening true after you account for the share of any colony that a lawyer will get. Trying to deal with your own title plays right into the hands of the policy company. It is what they hope for with every claim .
What Happens After You Contact Abels & Annes
This broadly happens after you contact an lawyer in your personal wound character :
- The lawyer talks to you to learn more about your case, asking you questions to find out more about your situation.
- They work to prepare your claim or lawsuit, gathering evidence that can show that someone else was responsible for your injuries.
- The attorney negotiates with the defendant or their insurance company to get you total compensation for your injuries.
- If the insurance company denies your claim or will not offer you appropriate compensation, your attorney will file a lawsuit in court on your behalf.
The personal wound process is complicated enough. You need an know lawyer who will pityingly deal with your case while fighting hard on your behalf. insurance companies may take a different tone when they see that you have hired a lawyer .
They know personal wound lawyers by their reputation. When you retain an aggressive lawyer who will hold them accountable, you go from being an easy tag to person they must take seriously. This transformation happens when you approach them with a lawyer.
Do Not Worry About the Cost of Hiring an Attorney
One worry you may have is how you will pay an lawyer. After all, you are probable dealing with mounting bills and less money coming in after your wound. The good newsworthiness is that paying a lawyer is something you do not have to worry about .
A personal injury lawyer works for you on a eventuality basis. You do not have to pay them out of your pocket during your case. If you do not win your case, you will not be billed for their time subsequently. If you do win your case, your lawyer collects their payment from the proceeds of your settlement or jury award .
There is no hazard to you. The lone danger is that you try to handle matters on your own and end up being one in a long course of people on whom the insurance company has imposed their will in the diagnose of profits .
Contact an Experienced Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer
If any accident injured you, contact the attorneys at Abels & Annes on-line or call us today at ( 312 ) 924-7575. We offer complimentary consultations where we will learn about your case and explain how you may proceed. Your call to an lawyer is one you can not afford to delay .
Learn More
car Accidents
If you are injured in a car accident, you may be able to recover damages in a personal injury lawsuit. Drivers can breach the duty to use fair manage while operating their cars in many unlike ways, including rush, texting, intoxicated drive, fatigued drive, and tailgating. In Illinois, drivers only need to carry $ 25,000 in indebtedness insurance for the wound or death of an individual, and checkup bills are much far higher. Sometimes drivers are operating their cars on the road without the want insurance. When an uninsured or underinsured driver causes an accident, you can turn to your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. Our personal injury attorneys can guide Chicago residents through either type of claim .
Truck Accidents
due to the burden and size of commercial trucks, hand truck accidents can result in devastating injuries to multiple drivers and passengers in smaller vehicles. It is not rare for a hand truck accident to happen because an interstate truck driver violated the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ( FMCSA ) regulations. however, it is important to look at all of the conducive causes of the accident when determining whom to pursue for compensation. A hauling company may bear either vicarious or send indebtedness, or both. It can be held directly responsible for negligent lease, train, or supervision .
motorbike Accidents
There is no buffer between a motorcyclist and a larger vehicle should they come into collision. tragically, motorcyclists may suffer catastrophic or tied fatal injuries. even when indebtedness for a motorcycle accident seems clear, the driver of a larger vehicle may point at the motorcyclist as being partially or in full to blame. Illinois follows a change adaptation of comparative negligence. This means that your damages will be reduced by your percentage of fault, and you will be barred from recovering at all if you were 50 % or more at fault for your injuries. Our Chicago personal injury attorneys are experienced in fighting rear against these arguments .
bicycle Accidents
In Illinois, bicyclists have the same right to be on the road as cars and trucks do. Bicyclists often are topic to collisions because of distract or careless drivers. besides, there are many situations in which person in a car opens their car door into a cyclist ’ s path. Under Illinois Vehicle Code, 625 ILCS 5/11-1407, cipher is supposed to open a fomite door on a side available to moving traffic unless it is reasonably safe to do so and can be done without interfering with the other traffic. Failing to abide by the Vehicle Code can be impregnable evidence of negligence. If you are injured in a bicycle accident, you may be able to recover damages from the at-fault driver .
pedestrian Accidents
In Illinois, pedestrians have the right of way over cars or trucks stopped at a red abstemious or sign at an overlap with a crossing. The driver of a car is supposed to yield to a pedestrian who has the proper of way in the crossing. At an intersection, it is illegitimate for a pedestrian to cross the road somewhere other than the crossing. even sol, drivers owe a duty of reasonable manage to avoid colliding with a pedestrian. pedestrian accidents unfortunately prove fatal on many occasions. The kin members of a die victim can recover damages through a wrongful death title when this happens. Our personal injury lawyers can represent Chicago families in these ambitious situations .
Premises Liability
When you go to the memory or the plaza or another place outside your home, you probably trust that it is kept in a safe condition and full animate. In Illinois, property owners owe a duty to use ordinary care to keep the property sanely safe for lawful visitors. A property owner or occupier that does not take appropriate measures to keep the property condom can be held apt through a premises liability claim for failing to adequately protect people from dangerous conditions on the property. dangerous conditions can include spills, cracks, break steps, broken rails, pavers, and black ice .
medical Malpractice
medical malpractice occurs when a health caution provider ’ south lead in diagnosing, treating, or otherwise handling a affected role ’ mho caution falls below the professional duty of care, such that it causes injuries. There are numerous ways in which this may happen. Examples include diagnostic errors, misdiagnoses, operating on the incorrect body depart, performing the incorrect procedure, or failing to provide appropriate post-operative concern. Health care providers whose actions may fall below the professional standard of wish include surgeons, doctors, nurses, dentists, and therapists. Your Chicago personal injury lawyer credibly will need to retain an adept to testify about what the professional duty of care was and how it was breached .
Nursing Home Abuse
When you put a love one in a nursing home, you trust that they will be given care and care. In Illinois, nurse home residents are protected by both union and state of matter laws. Under the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act, residents have rights such as the right to complain, the right to choose their doctor, the right to be informed of possible consequences of aesculapian treatment, the right to be free of physical restraints, and the correct of exemption of communication, among others. If a nurse home fails to uphold its residents ’ rights, it can be liable civilly and criminally. Some admonition signs of nursing home maltreatment or neglect admit bedsores, personality changes, withdrawal, unexplained fractures, and bruises .
sexual abuse
sexual abuse can have meaning effects, particularly on a child. sometimes these effects are permanent. It is authoritative to retain an experienced personal injury lawyer in the Chicago area to pursue recompense after suffering intimate maltreatment by an authority calculate, whether that authority figure is a clergy member, teacher, staff member, health professional, coach, or even a family member. It may be allow to pursue recompense not only from the actual abuser but besides from an institution whose negligence or intentional misconduct ( such as negligent hire practices or deficient base hit practices ) made the mistreat potential .
Workers ‘ recompense
In Illinois, workers ’ compensation is a system that covers most employees in the state of matter. If you suffer a job-related injury in Illinois, you may be eligible for workers ’ compensation. This system may pay for the medical costs of the job-related injury or illness. It besides may pay some replacement wages in the phase of disability pay. The government agency that handles workers ’ recompense claims is the Illinois Workers ’ Compensation Commission .
Consult a Personal Injury Attorney in Chicago or Surrounding Cities
It is apprehensible to feel changeable, isolated, and anxious after suffering good injuries in an accident caused by person else. Often, merely the serve of being confronted with insurers, employers, and other companies trying to limit their exposure to indebtedness can be overpowering. If you work with the have personal injury attorneys at Abels & Annes, P.C., we will explain your legal rights. We will take steps to protect your interests and serve as patriotic representatives in negotiating with others involved in the accident .
Call us at ( 855 ) 529-2442 or use our on-line form to set up a detached consultation .
Chicago Office
100 N LaSalle St # 1710
Chicago, IL 60602
Map and Driving Directions
Toll Free : ( 855 ) 529-2442
phone : ( 312 ) 924-7575
facsimile : ( 312 ) 924-7555