You just left the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts and you’re traveling west on West 5th Avenue. You approach L Street, where a commercial truck is going over 60 miles per hour, the driver on his cell phone and missing the traffic signals. BAM! You need a Vehicle Accident Injury Lawyer.
Thankfully, nobody was killed. You suffered a broken arm and concussion. Your wife, in the passenger seat, required spinal fusion and other surgeries to correct the injuries she suffered. Her life will never be the same. Now what?
The facts are clear—the driver of the other vehicle was negligent (or not using the care an ordinary driver in his situation should have used) and, as such, he is going to be liable for monetary payments to you and your wife for your injuries and other incidental financial losses. Thankfully, his employer is a major international company and, because he was driving during the course of his employment, there are million-dollar insurance limits available to you and your wife.
It is important to consult a Vehicle Accident Injury Lawyer to learn about how to pursue your claims and to have them actually prosecute them so that you are sure to be in compliance with all requirements and time deadlines. For example, if you don’t actually start your lawsuit within two years of the date the accident occurred, you are likely to be barred from ever recovering any monies.
As for the process, your attorney will first gather as much information as possible, from you, police and other accident reports, private investigators, photographs, surveillance cameras in the area, weather reports, medical records, and so on. With that information, she will draft a “complaint”—a document laying out the allegations against the defendants which must be filed with the court and served upon the defendants.
Within a certain amount of time, any defendants must “answer” the complaint, where they will typically deny the allegations and bring counterclaims alleging fault on your part, in an effort to either reduce or eliminate liability on their part.
Following this, the “discovery” process takes, place. This several-month-long period usually involves the exchanging of written information followed by depositions of all parties, where the opposing lawyer asks oral questions of the other party in front of a court reporter, who makes a transcript (or record) of everything stated.
After discovery concludes, “motions” may be made to the court, asking for certain relief, such as the elimination of certain claims or even “summary judgment,” where the case may be decided without even having to go to trial because the evidence is so obviously in one party’s favor.
Finally, there will be the trial, which is essentially a far more boring version of the courtroom dramas you see on television.
At any time during the process, the parties may agree to avoid a trial or any continuing litigation by reaching a “settlement.”
A competent vehicle accident lawyer knows how to handle each step of this complicated process, which is why it is important to hire one. With over 2,000 attorneys in Alaska, there are multiple ones available to assist you with your auto accident case.
