At Deldar Injury Attorneys, we want to express our sincere gratitude to all of our clients—past, present, and future—who joined us for our inaugural online personal injury legal conference. We are honored that so many of you participated, and we hope the information shared was both helpful and insightful. Your trust in our firm means everything to us, and we are thankful for the opportunity to guide you through these important topics!
For those unable to attend, we wanted to provide an overview of the key issues covered during the legal conference. We hope this will be a valuable resource for anyone currently navigating a personal injury case or needing legal guidance. And don’t worry if you missed it—there will be more opportunities to join our next legal conference soon.
How Personal Injury Cases Work
First, we discussed the essential steps involved in personal injury cases during the legal conference. Personal injury law can seem complex, but the main goal is to help individuals harmed due to someone else’s negligence. These cases often involve navigating legal processes, negotiating with insurance companies, and evaluating medical records. During the legal conference, we wanted to clarify these steps so clients could better understand what to expect when pursuing a personal injury claim. Here are the four steps:
1. Free Consultation
At the beginning of any personal injury case, an initial consultation with an experienced attorney is critical. During this meeting, we review the facts of the case, assess the evidence, and determine if there is a valid claim. As discussed in the virtual legal conference, gathering documents such as medical records, accident reports, and witness statements is vital. Deldar offers free consultations to all potential clients, giving you the chance to understand your legal options from the start.
2. Filing A Claim
Once we establish that a client has a viable personal injury case, we file the necessary legal paperwork to move forward. This involves submitting a complaint to the court detailing the injury and seeking appropriate compensation. It’s essential to act promptly since California law requires most personal injury cases to be filed within two years of the incident.
3. Negotiating With Insurance Companies
One of the most lengthy parts of any personal injury case is dealing with insurance companies. Adjusters often aim to minimize payouts or deny claims. At Deldar Injury Attorneys, we are skilled at negotiating with insurers to ensure our clients receive the compensation they deserve. While we strive for efficient settlements, we are fully prepared to take cases to trial when necessary.
4. Litigation & Trials
When settlement negotiations fail, litigation may be required. As we explained during the legal conference, this involves filing a lawsuit and preparing for trial. Our team gathers evidence, conducts depositions, and works with expert witnesses to build the strongest case possible. While trials can be lengthy, we prioritize securing maximum client compensation.
After walking through the steps of a typical personal injury case, we started to dive into specific practice areas. Our goal is to make personal injury law digestible for everyone, so to do that, it helps to provide specific examples. In our virtual legal conference, we divided cases into three practice areas: Motor Vehicle Accidents, Product Liability, and what we call “Billboard Material Cases” for the sake of the lesson.
Motor Vehicle Accidents
When pursuing a car accident injury claim in California, one of the first things clients should understand is California’s comparative negligence law. This rule allows individuals to seek compensation even if they are partially at fault for the accident. Your percentage of fault will reduce your total award. For instance, if a driver is found to be 20% at fault and their damages total $100,000, they can still recover $80,000. Because fault plays a crucial role in determining compensation, collecting as much evidence as possible at the accident scene is important, including photographs, witness statements, and police reports.
Another key aspect of car accident claims in California is the statute of limitations, which sets a strict deadline for filing a lawsuit. Injured parties usually have two years from the accident date to file a personal injury claim. Missing this deadline can prevent you from recovering any compensation. However, there are some exceptions. If the claim involves a government entity, like a city or state vehicle, the filing deadline is reduced to six months. Understanding these timelines is critical to ensure that legal technicalities do not jeopardize your claim.
Dealing with insurance companies is another obstacle personal injury clients face. Insurance adjusters may offer quick settlements far below what victims truly need to cover medical expenses, lost wages, and long-term rehabilitation costs. It’s important not to accept an initial offer without consulting with an attorney who can accurately assess the value of your claim. An experienced personal injury lawyer will negotiate on your behalf to secure a fair settlement, and if negotiations fail, they will be prepared to take the case to court to maximize your compensation.
Product Liability
When it comes to product liability claims in California, the focus shifts to holding manufacturers accountable for the safety of the products they sell. Unlike motor vehicle accident cases, these claims typically revolve around proving that a product was defective in one of three ways:
- Design Defects
- Manufacturing Defects
- Failure to Warn
Design defects occur when the product’s blueprint is unsafe from the start, while manufacturing defects arise from errors during production. The third category, failure to warn, involves cases where a product’s labeling doesn’t adequately caution consumers about potential risks. Knowing which type of defect caused the injury is crucial to building a solid case.
What sets product liability apart is California’s strict liability rule. This means you don’t have to prove the manufacturer was negligent—just that the product was defective and caused your injury. This rule provides significant consumer protection, making it easier to seek compensation without diving into the company’s internal practices or motivations. However, the strength of your claim depends on the evidence you present. This is why preserving the defective product, any purchase documentation, and medical records related to your injuries is essential.
Billboard Material Cases
We closed our legal conference by playfully referring to dog bite injuries and slip and fall accidents as the “Billboard Cases.” You might see the types advertised on catchy billboards or wonky late-night TV commercials. However, behind the slogans and catchy phrases are real people suffering from serious injuries. In our discussion, we emphasized how these cases are far from frivolous. Dog bites can leave victims with lasting physical and emotional scars, especially when children are involved. These injuries can result in painful medical treatments, disfigurement, infections, and even long-term psychological trauma.
Slip and fall accidents also carry a weight far beyond what might be implied by a quick commercial. During the seminar, we shared stories of clients who suffered broken bones, head injuries, and spinal cord damage from slipping on wet floors or tripping over poorly maintained walkways. These accidents may seem minor, but they can have devastating consequences. For those affected, recovering from a slip and fall can mean losing the ability to work and struggling with daily tasks, all while trying to manage the financial burden of their recovery.
In humanizing these cases, we talked about the real impact they have on individuals and families. These aren’t just headline-grabbing lawsuits; they involve real people whose lives are turned upside down by circumstances beyond their control. Our role as attorneys is to fight for those who have been wronged, whether it’s due to a dangerous dog or a negligent property owner. We don’t just see these as legal cases—we see them as opportunities to help people get back on their feet.
Closing Thoughts & Appreciation
We designed our first online legal conference to empower you, our valued clients, with the knowledge needed to make informed decisions about your personal injury case. Your engagement and questions helped create an interactive environment that benefited all participants. Informed clients are better equipped to make the right decisions for their futures, and we are here to support you every step of the way!
Once again, we extend our thanks to everyone who attended and contributed to the success of the legal conference. Moving forward, Deldar will look to schedule another one of these events in the near future. If you have further questions or need help with your personal injury case, please contact us at (844) 335-3271. Stay tuned for future updates and more virtual events we host!