Various situations may lead to a personal injury lawsuit. These include accidents, product malfunction, defamation, and even intentional acts such as assault and battery. In cases where the offense was inflicted or caused by someone else, filing a personal injury case helps compensate the plaintiff for the damages they endured.
To win a personal injury lawsuit, the plaintiff must provide substantial evidence to support their claim through the help of their personal injury attorney and legal team. It validates the extent of the injury and its surrounding circumstances, increasing the chances of getting a favorable verdict.
It is advisable to document any potentially useful evidence as soon as possible after the incident. If this leads to you filing a personal injury lawsuit, check out the different types of evidence your legal team can present to support your claim below.
Physical Evidence
If the personal injury is physical, it follows that physical evidence will be investigated first. This is tangible material that will explain why, how, and when the incident occurred.
In an auto accident, car dents, cracked windows, and broken mirrors are examples of physical evidence. In a slip and fall accident, it can be a torn and bloody piece of clothing and broken stairs or a platform where the mishap took place.
For product malfunctions, the defective item is the strongest proof you can have. In defamation lawsuits, documents can be introduced during the trial. These can be emails or text messages containing the defendant’s defamatory statement.
Important note: Physical evidence must be preserved exactly the way it was during the incident. If it’s extensively damaged from the time of your injury to the court proceedings, it may be dismissed as invalid for supporting your claim.
Photos and Videos
One way to preserve evidence is to take photos or videos. If you are physically capable of doing so, the best time to do this is immediately after the incident. If not, you may seek assistance from attending medical staff, your legal team, or a personal investigator to do this for you. This way, the authenticity of your proof will not be compromised.
Photo and video evidence will best represent your case if they’re thoroughly documented, taken from various angles at the scene. They should not be tampered with or edited in any way, especially with digital media.
Detailed documentation of bruises, burns, lacerations will also help establish the extent of your injury. These can be presented in personal injury cases involving accidents, assault, and battery.
During your pre-trial consultation, your legal team will select the materials that will best validate your claim in court, as solid supporting evidence for your case.
Medical Records
Aside from detailed photographic proof of your injuries, medical records can also document the presence and severity of physical duress. For legal use, this will extend to hospital bills and medication expenses since they are quantifiable financial losses you have incurred due to the incident.
Your record may also indicate the type of treatment you underwent. In court, this will be the basis for the “pain and suffering” you experienced as part of the general damages you have sustained.
Ultimately, your medical treatment costs are critical in establishing the amount of compensation that you must demand from the defendant. Make sure that every penny spent on your care and recovery is well-documented, so you can retrieve the maximum damages for your personal injury.
Police Reports and Witnesses
There are situations where police officers may be indirectly helpful in a personal injury case. If they are investigating your incident, they’re required to file a report documenting important information such as the time and date of the incident, weather, and witnesses.
While considered inadmissible in personal injury law, police reports can specifically strengthen your case by providing your attorney with leads to witnesses. In turn, they can provide statements that will support your claims.
Written or oral testimonies are strong evidence, especially for a defamation lawsuit. If the police report identifies a witness who heard or read the slanderous remark directly from the defendant, they are the best choice for testifying in your favor.
Expert Support
In cases where your efforts in gathering proof are exhausted and you still need additional support for your case, it’ll help to hire an experienced lawyer.
Once your initial consultation verifies that your claim is valid and you decide to proceed with your case in court, a seasoned personal injury attorney will help you navigate the proceedings more effectively. They can spot loopholes that a novice lawyer cannot. They can also provide better insights into the presented evidence, helping ensure that the final verdict will rule in your favor.
This is when an experienced attorney with a skilled legal team can bolster a viable personal injury case with otherwise insufficient evidence. They can derive a strong and convincing argument from minimal data. This will help increase your chances of winning your case and receiving maximum compensation.