Created: 22 May 2019
Mahoney Law PLLC of Idaho provides these basic tips and strategies as to personal injury lawyers, personal injury attorneys, and personal injury law firms in Idaho. If you are searching for information on personal injury law in Idaho, here are several bullet points and pieces of quick information from our personal injury lawyer. We strive to be your one stop shop for answers on the Idaho personal injury process. First, be aware that there are time deadlines, referred to by personal injury attorneys as “statutes of limitation.” These time deadlines apply to personal injury cases in Idaho. These can be short and time-bar potential claims, so do not delay in consulting with a good personal injury law firm. Second, our Idaho personal injury attorney will tell you that one of the most important things to take care of is your health and recovery. Follow your healthcare provider’s instructions. Third, as Idaho a personal injury attorney, we would advise against giving a statement to the at-fault party’s insurance company unless and until you have consulted with a personal injury attorney. The liable party’s insurance company is not your friend and its obligations are to its own insured not to you. Fourth, another piece of basic advice for a personal injury case in Idaho is to keep good records in a file so that you can bring the paperwork for your meeting with a Idaho personal injury firm. Fifth, a top Idaho injury lawyer will tell you that you need to be patient and that if you are interested in a quick, cheap settlement, to look elsewhere. It takes time and work to properly maximize recovery for a client on a good faith, meritorious personal injury claim. Sixth, note that lawyers in Idaho are regulated by the Idaho State Bar for protection of prospective clients; the lawyer must clearly communicate with you and provide a written contract for contingency fee (commission) based representation. We encourage everyone to put safety first and to treat others as you would like to be treated – that will go a long way to minimizing the types of things that require people to consult us. You can call us for more information or to schedule a meeting to discuss your Idaho personal injury lawyer matter.
In your search to hire a top Idaho personal injury attorney near me, people are often confused about what to look for. In searching for the best Idaho personal injury lawyer, you should look at whether the Idaho personal injury law firm has a proven track record of success in terms of results. In deciding whether a firm is the best Idaho personal injury law firm, you should also look at how long that firm has been serving Idaho. Another factor to consider in deciding on a top rated Idaho personal injury lawyer is whether the highly ranked Idaho personal injury law firm is accredited by recognized groups in the profession. And, look at the level of customer service provided in hiring the best Idaho personal injury attorney. For basic, straightforward information on personal injury attorneys and personal injury lawyers in Idaho, contact Mahoney Law PLLC, Idaho’s go-to law firm for personal injury claims and cases, especially those involving motor vehicle collisions. We can provide answers to common personal injury claim questions, such as: how do I hire a top personal injury lawyer?; how do the attorney fees work?; what if the other driver was at fault but was not cited?; how much will it cost?; how long does it take?; will this affect my car insurance?; how does this work with my healthcare insurance?; and how much money can I expect to recover if I go forward with a personal injury matter? When you call, have the basic facts of your situation well in mind and have collected a file of any paperwork related to your injury matter.
If you would like to conduct additional personal injury related research, here are some links that you might find helpful. For Idaho’s “rules of the road,” click here to review motor vehicle safety statutes: https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title49/. For road conditions, try the Idaho Transportation Department: https://hb.511.idaho.gov/#roadReports?timeFrame=TODAY&layers=roadReports%2CwinterDriving%2CweatherWarnings%2CotherStates.For insurance information, the Idaho Department of Insurance can provide information: https://doi.idaho.gov, and also explore Idaho’s insurance claim laws: https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title41/T41CH18/. The Idaho Supreme Court’s website lists the actual jury instructions that courts typically give in personal injury cases, including the negligence instructions, cause instructions, and damages for personal injuries. https://isc.idaho.gov/main/civil-jury-instructions. Idaho has special statutes that may apply in personal injury cases against governmental entities. https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH9/. And, Idaho has statutorily established time deadlines that apply to personal injury claims. https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title5/T5CH2/. Medical malpractice is a type of personal injury that has special statutes in Idaho, https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH10/, as does product liability which is also a type of personal injury, https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH14/. Idaho has certain damages limitations that apply in personal injury cases by statute. https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title6/T6CH16/. The American Association for Justice provides information that may be of interest to those seeking information on personal injury matters, https://www.justice.org. Idaho has various resource groups, such as for brain injury victims, https://biaid.org, and https://www.traumaticbraininjury.com/resources/idaho/, for example.
While it is our job to help people involved in personal injury cases, including car crash cases, we always encourage safe, responsible driving. Do not drive distracted, put the cell phone down (it can wait), leave a safe following distance, obey the speed limit, do not pass when it’s not safe, drive defensively, and never drive on drugs or alcohol. For more information, contact Mahoney Law PLLC in Idaho — we provide free initial consultations and confidential case reviews.
What constitutes a personal injury claim for which you need to hire a personal injury attorney, personal injury lawyer, or personal injury law firm? In a nutshell, a personal injury claim arises when one person injures another by way of unreasonable or careless conduct. Personal injury law refers to unreasonable conduct that hurts another as “negligence.” The at-fault person must have had a duty to use care to not harm the injured party, such as we have when operating a car, running a business that is open to the public, or the like. Car accidents and injuries on a business’ property (“premises liability” cases) are what may be thought of as “garden variety” personal injury claims. Medical providers have a duty to not violate the standard of care and harm their patients, a specialized area of personal injury law referred to as “medical malpractice.” Product manufactures who design unreasonably dangerous and unsafe products that harm consumers may be subject to a unique type of personal injury law called “product liability.” The injuries in any of these types of cases may be physical, mental, or both. If negligent conduct results in the death of the victim, that type of injury claim is referred to as a “wrongful death” action. All of these types of personal injury cases have certain, very specific things that must be proven under the law, otherwise known as the “elements” of the claim. All require that the conduct at issue be shown to have been a cause of the injury, and all require proper, documented proof of injuries and resulting money damages. Damages may include medical bills, loss of income, as well as more intangible things such as pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. Often, personal injury cases involve insurance issues as well if the at-fault party has liability insurance. Each type of case is unique given the circumstances of the victim and how the injuries occurred, and each has short time deadlines (“statutes of limitation”) that can bar a claim if legal action is not taken in a timely manner.
As Idaho personal injury lawyers, we follow current issues in personal injury law. As Idaho personal injury attorneys, we track trends in personal injury law. As an Idaho personal injury law firm, we work to keep abreast of the latest developments in personal injury law. One of the most significant trends we see in Idaho personal injury law are increased verdicts on meritorious personal injury cases resolved through jury trial here in Idaho. There are several possible reasons for this, including an increase in Idaho’s population, a diversification of Idaho’s population, a higher education level of Idaho’s population, and informational awareness on the part of Idahoans due to traditional media coverage as well as social media. Another development we see is a greater availability of top level expert witnesses who can assist us in understanding and presenting personal injury cases. A third development we notice is that some personal injury lawsuits are taking longer to resolve because of crowded court dockets, as Idaho’s population grows so too does the strain placed on the federal, state, and local legal systems which are in need of increased resources to expand and keep up with growth. The cost of healthcare is another interesting trend we see, in keeping with reported trends on the national level as to this issue. Healthcare bills are greater and more expensive, from ambulance transport, to hospital stays, to imaging, and to specialist costs. A night in the hospital, with associated care, from a car accident can result in bills of $25,000 or more. This can make it more challenging to resolve meritorious personal injury claims. Unfortunately, one thing we do not see materially changing are Idaho’s liability insurance limits for motor vehicles, which are lagging decades behind the increased costs associated with being in a motor vehicle crash. Likewise, although increased for inflation, Idaho’s statutory general damages caps for pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life associated with personal injury claims remain too low for reasonable and just expectations here in our Idaho community.
As personal injury lawyers, we often receive calls from prospective clients inquiring about representation. Often, these individuals are still in the middle of recovering from their injuries or are still undergoing treatment for their injuries. The most important thing at this point in the personal injury process is your physical and mental health. And, the best way to address that is: follow your treating healthcare providers’ advice as to recovering from your personal injuries. Attend all appointments. Describe to your doctors all problems you are experiencing. If you are given orders to get imaging done, get the imaging done. If you are in need of a second opinion, get the second opinion. Follow the instructions as to prescriptions. If you are supposed to follow-up with a specialist, make the appointment and attend it. If you are to complete a course of physical therapy, complete the physical therapy. If you are under medically documented restrictions, abide by those restrictions. Far too often, as personal injury attorneys, we see people who have failed to do these things. Not only does it complicate their personal injury claim, but it can compromise their health and recovery. So, put your health and recovery from injuries first, follow doctor’s advice, attend appointments, and get to a point of maximum medical recovery and stability.
Here are a few additional tips on hiring an Idaho personal injury attorney: (1) Be sure not to simply hire the first law firm that sends you flyers in the mail. These days, many so called “trial law firms” are routinely sending direct mail advertisements to injury victims. These lawyers troll the police reports and other sources to find the names of people who have been involved in car accidents. They send out catchy mailers, brochures, guidebooks, etc., etc. trying to convince you to hire them. Ask yourself: if they are really that good would they need to send out direct mailers to me? Probably not the firm to go with. (2) Look for a firm with a track record of actual results that they share. Results speak louder than words. (3) Look for a firm with the resources to actually go the distance. The only way you will obtain maximum value on your claim is to have an attorney who has the resources to fight to the end, versus a lawyer looking for a quick settlement. Even if your case is one that should settle relatively quickly, you will only get maximum value if your lawyer is of the sort that is prepared to go to trial, that way the opposing insurance company knows that if they low ball you, they are in for a fight.
A brief summary on automobile accident personal injury claims: If you have been in an auto accident or car crash and have sustained personal injuries through no fault of your own, it makes sense to consult a personal injury law firm. Mahoney Law offers free case evaluations, free initial consults, and contingency fees where you pay no attorney fees unless we win your case through settlement or trial to verdict. The deadline for filing a lawsuit arising from an injury accident is usually two years in Idaho, although this may be longer in certain cases (such as those involving minor children). You should not give statements to the opposing driver’s insurance company because, often, they will try to obtain admissions from you to establish fault on your part, and they may try to minimize your injuries or recovery process. You should always follow your medical doctors’ advice and seek follow-up appointments with appropriate specialists. Your first order of business is attending to your health and reaching maximum medical improvement and stability. We will need to gather police report documents, insurance information, and relevant medical records. Often, car accident cases can be resolved through the insurance claim process, particularly with strong legal representation. We are often successful in getting your healthcare insurance company to reduce the amount it must be paid back from any settlement, leaving more net settlement proceeds for our clients. If you, a family member, or other loved one have been injured, take the time to know your legal rights in the area of personal injury law and injury claims so you can make an intelligent, informed decision on how to best move forward.
Here are some of the more common types of personal injury claims: motor vehicle accident cases; injuries on property caused by dangerous aspects of the property; boating accidents; motorcycle accidents; trucking accidents; bicycle accidents; drunk driving accidents; trumatic brain injury personal injuries; concussion cases; product liability is a specialized type of personal injury; medical malpractice is a unique type of personal injury; and other types of conduct that is unreasonable, unsafe, and negligent that leads to harm. If you think you or a loved one might have a personal injury claim, please call us here at Mahoney Law to discuss the facts of your situation. We provide personal injury lawyer services to all of Idaho, including Boise, Meridian, Nampa, Caldwell, Mountain Home, Twin Falls, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, McCall, Grangeville, Lewiston, Moscow, Coeur d’Alene, and Sandpoint. http://www.patrickmahoneylaw.com
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