What Makes a Strong Personal Injury Claim

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What Factors Make up A Sound and Viable Personal Injury Claim?

The three factors that are needed for a good personal injury claim are large damages or injuries, clear liability, and deep pockets. Someone might be negligent but without permanent or objective injuries, there is no case. You cannot have one without the other. They co-exist.

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The same is true with respect of large damages or severe injuries. Someone who has suffered a severe injury such as spinal cord injury or traumatic brain injury, likely has a very large amount of medical bills. In other words, they have high damages. Without liability though or someone else who was negligent, like another driver who was at fault, there isn’t much of a case. Unless someone else is at fault, there is no recovery. Again, damages and liability co-exist.

A source of recovery is the third element. If someone has suffered a spinal cord injury or brain injury, and the liable defendant only has a $100,000 of insurance coverage but their bills total hundreds of thousands, unless the liable party has independent wealth or has property, $100,000 is going to be the most the injured person is likely to see unfortunately.

How Important Are Evidence and Witnesses in A Personal Injury Case?

Without evidence, you don’t have a case. If someone is injured as a result of someone else’s negligence, documentation and evidence are very important. The injured person or someone close to them should take pictures of the entire scene and the injured person immediately.

Personal Injury Lawyer Terry Dodds

Contacting an attorney right away is also critical. A personal injury attorney knows what to look for and what to do. They may want to send out a preservation letter to ensure that the automobile or the other instrumentality that caused the injury is preserved and not recycled or disposed of, as it may happen in some cases. Another example of this would be video footage from a surveillance camera, stop-light camera, or any other source of video. Electronic Data from a semi or automobile also fits into this category. This data is retrieved from what some people refer to as the “Black Box” or event data recorder (EDR) or electronic control module (ECM). Retrieving the electronic data from a tractor-trailer shortly after an accident is especially important. This is another important reason to hire an Illinois lawyer. Data from a tractor-trailer’s black box or event data recorder (EDR) can disappear or be overwritten. A preservation letter from an Illinois attorney is very important in an automobile accident such as this.

An automobile or motorcycle can be shipped to salvage, or even to another country. This is especially true in automobile cases. Perhaps there was something faulty with the truck or car or perhaps the fault was with the semi-truck. There are a variety of reasons to contact a good and competent attorney.

An experienced lawyer will often go to the scene of accidents themselves so that they know what people are referring to when it is being discussed. Attorney Terry Dodds located in Bloomington, Illinois has visited many intersections, city streets, county roads, junkyards, and more in order to get a sense of the damage or the scene of the accident.

Should You Ever Keep a Diary or A Journal of What Happens in The Accident?

Keeping a diary or journal of these events is often a very good idea, especially so the attorney knows what doctors and hospitals were visited. A physician or a doctor might also forget to put something in the records that was very important. If confronted with the journal or a diary entry of the patient, they may suddenly recall it. Keep in mind diaries and journals can also be admissible sometimes. They are an exception to the hearsay rule if the entries are made at or near the time of the event.

Read about the Factors That Make A Strong Personal Injury Claim, contact the Dodds Law Office, PC for a free 30 minute consultation at and get the information and legal answers you’re seeking.

Attorney Terry Dodds has been protecting the rights of the people of Bloomington, Illinois for over 20 years. Whether you were injured in an accident, or you have been charged with a crime, Terry Dodds can tip the scales of justice in your favor.

Years of Experience: More than 20 years
Illinois Registration Status: Active
Bar Admissions:Illinois State Bar Association Missouri State Bar Association McLean County Bar Association