How Your Lawyer Decides How Much to Ask for in Your Case
Posted Thursday, March 20, 2014 by Chris Thayer
A client of a Seattle personal injury accident attorney often asks how the amount of money requested as compensation will be determined.
A Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer Will Assess the Medical BillsThe medical bills will be recorded, and the lawyer will try to show that injuries like a broken arm, torn muscle in the knee or an injury that requires surgery deserve compensation that multiplies the medical bills. This can be from between two to five times what the bills cost. It is contingent on how long it takes for the claimant to return to full health. It also depends on the medical documents and if there were symptoms exhibited to the injured body part before the injury.
If there were injuries to the same area of the body before, it will reduce the multiplication amount. If there were no injuries before and it took significant time to heal, the multiplication amount will be higher.
Income Lost Due to the InjuryA claimant who loses income because of the injury will also have that factored in by the attorney. This has to be documented fully so the opposing attorney cannot call it into question. The most effective way this is usually done is to calculate how much money will be lost for a specific amount of time. A poor way to do this is if the claimant is self-employed and has little or no documentation as to how much money he or she lost.
If the amount is logical and is in line with the medical issues, the amount can be multiplied by between two and four times of the lost pay.
Contact an Experienced Seattle Personal Injury LawyerIf you have questions about how your Seattle personal injury accident attorney comes to the conclusion as to how much money will be requested as compensation in your case, call Chris Thayer at (206) 340-2008 today.