Marc Whitehead & Associates

Winning Personal Injury Cases:
Do You Have A Reasonable Claim? How Can You Tell?

What are "legitimate" personal injury cases?

In other words, what differentiates situations where a victim deserves to get monetary compensation for damages, costs, and losses from “non-cases”?

The answer depends on hundreds of factors. In general, to build and win a case, you need to show that some person, party, or organization did something (or failed to do something) that caused harm or destroyed your property and thus led to substantial losses.

An Example

For instance, say a negligent driver in a pickup truck dinged your fender in traffic and caused a few hundred dollars worth of damage to your paint job. You wouldn’t bring a lawsuit because the damages are not substantial enough. But say that person dinged your bumper and gave you significant whiplash, which caused you to miss weeks of work, and undergo intensive rehabilitation and physical training. In the second case, you might have a case, even though the event itself -- the “bump” -- was identical in both hypotheticals.

Factors Which Influence the Viability of Personal Injury Cases

• Whether an individual, company, or other organization acted in a negligent, careless, or even malevolent fashion;
   
• Whether there is enough evidence to link that “bad action” (or inaction) with your injuries or damages;
   
• Whether you can prove that you were in fact significantly hurt by the event or other stimulus in question. An older woman who shatters her hip in a slip and fall accident, for instance, might have more difficulty winning compensation if the defendant can show that she had chronic osteoporosis and she had broken her hip in the same place multiple times before;
   
• Whether your Houston personal injury attorney can adequately construct a compelling case for you; referencing critical case law, marshalling evidence, witness statements, and expert testimony; and assembling and then executing a cohesive case for you.

Speculation “On Your Own” is Not Productive – and Maybe Counterproductive

Accident injury victims – or family members of victims – in personal injury cases can accidentally do themselves a tremendous disservice by discounting their potential to bring a case before enough information is known.

For instance, let’s say that you suffered lacerations and broken bones, after a DUI driver hit your car. The DUI driver lacks insurance and also lacks personal assets to cover your medical bills. So now you might believe that, no matter what you do, you won’t be able to collect damages.

But a deeper investigation might show that the driver’s brakes failed. If that were the case, then the mechanic who last worked on the brakes -- or even the company that designed or engineered the brakes -- might ultimately be accountable, indirectly, for all your injuries. Thus, this investigation could unearth a “hidden” defendant, who could, indeed, pay you.

So Where Does This All Bring Us?

In general in personal injury cases, if you have any questions or doubts, it does not hurt – and it costs you literally nothing – to connect with the team at Marc Whitehead & Associates, LLP. Call us now at 800-562-9830, and we will help you figure out whether you indeed have a case. And if so, we can suggest a strategic way to proceed.

Learn more about personal injury cases on our Free Resources page.

We represent clients on a contingency basis (you don’t pay us until we win for you) in personal injury cases, and you can learn more about us online at on our About Us page.

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