Last updated on August 8th, 2023
Most of us have a “movie version” of a courtroom we dream up when the topic of lawsuits is introduced. We’ve all watched Law and Order – the lawyers put together their complicated briefs, deliver rousing statements to the jury, and get witnesses and criminals to admit to the truth, sometimes under cross-examination. On an hour-long TV drama, it’s all very exciting. However, in real life, that hour of TV drama is backed by weeks, months, or even years of hard work.
Of course, all that work can be very expensive. In some areas of the law, clients pay attorneys by the hour, and the bills can add up fast. Hourly fees can range into the hundreds of dollars and preparing a lawsuit takes months.
If you’re short on cash, what are your options? Can you do it without an attorney? If not, how can you afford it? So, let’s figure out when to hire a personal injury lawyer.
The good news is that personal injury attorneys, in recognition of the fact that their clients are going through hard times, charge fees only when they win. This type of arrangement is called a “contingent fee” arrangement and usually means that a victorious law firm will take ⅓ of the damages collected from the insurance company as payment for their services.
However, some who have suffered an injury, unaware that they can hire an attorney on a contingent basis, may decide to “go it alone,” and represent themselves.
This usually isn’t a good idea.
A personal injury lawsuit is a type of legal case initiated by an individual who has suffered harm from the negligence or intentional actions of another party. These lawsuits aim to recover compensation for the damages and losses incurred as a result of the injury.
The underlying principle of a personal injury lawsuit is that individuals who are harmed due to someone else’s negligence deserve compensation to cover their injuries and related costs. The process involves proving that the defendant was at fault and directly caused the plaintiff’s injuries.
Hiring a personal injury lawyer in Ohio can be crucial to the success of your case. It is particularly important because, in most situations, the injured party may not have the experience to handle legal proceedings on their own or even calculate what their claim is worth.
Here are some cases where hiring a personal injury lawyer is essential:
Medical malpractice involves a healthcare professional giving substandard care that brings harm to the patient. This could involve the following:
Proving medical malpractice often requires expert testimony and a thorough understanding of medical standards. Thus, it is recommended to work with a medical malpractice lawyer who will organize the necessary evidence to build a winning case.
Slip and fall accidents occur in diverse settings, such as grocery stores, workplaces, or private properties. If the property owner’s negligence caused the accident, the injured party might be entitled to compensation. A personal injury lawyer will gather and organize evidence to build a strong case.
Burn injuries result from various incidents, including house fires, industrial accidents, or faulty products. These injuries can lead to huge medical expenses and long-term rehabilitation. A personal injury lawyer is key in identifying the responsible parties and securing compensation for the resulting losses.
Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) can have life-altering consequences. They often occur in severe accidents, such as truck crashes. Proving the extent of a TBI and its impact on the victim’s life requires medical expertise and thorough documentation, which a lawyer can coordinate.
Dog bite incidents are known to cause severe physical and emotional trauma. In Ohio, dog owners, keepers, or harborers are held strictly responsible for the actions of their pets. A personal injury lawyer will interpret the local laws and pursue compensation for the injuries and losses suffered as a result.
Premises liability cases denote injuries that occur on someone else’s property due to unsafe conditions. Examples include poorly maintained walkways, inadequate security, or hazardous building features. A personal injury lawyer can investigate the property conditions and establish the property owner’s liability.
Defectively designed, manufactured, or marketed products or medical devices can cause serious injuries. Cases involving defective products often require specialized knowledge about product safety standards and regulations. Most personal injury lawyers have a network of experts who can help prove that the product was faulty and caused the injury.
Auto, truck, and motorcycle accidents can result in extensive injuries and property damage. Liability determination and negotiations with insurance companies can present significant challenges due to the many moving parts of such accidents. An attorney can help gather accident reports, interview witnesses, and negotiate settlements to ensure fair compensation.
Construction sites are hazardous environments, and accidents can result from various factors, including equipment failure, lack of safety protocols, and improper training. An Ohio personal injury lawyer helps the injured workers handle the workers’ compensation claims or pursue additional legal action if third-party negligence is involved.
Of course, you can technically file a lawsuit without the help of an attorney. You’re not required to have legal representation. When you represent yourself in court, it’s called a “pro se” filing. Ohio Courts even maintain a Pro SE Handbook available for litigants who choose to represent themselves.
Just because it’s possible, however, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.
Lawyers go to school for an extra 3 years on top of their undergraduate degrees to earn their law degrees. That’s because the law is a complicated thing. The issues involved in a lawsuit go far beyond the simple facts of the case. They include the proper jurisdiction in which to bring the suit, what evidence is allowed and what it means, and how to handle the actions of your opponent. Lawsuits typically involve numerous motions, which are actions designed to tease out information, dismiss cases, or extend deadlines. A procedural mistake in any of those areas can jeopardize your entire case.
The thing to remember here is that you don’t just file a case and then you’re done. Representing yourself successfully involves multiple filings and mountains of work. Any slip on the details and your case if in trouble.
Personal injury lawsuits can be particularly complicated. If you’re bringing a lawsuit, you’ll need to figure out where to bring the lawsuit.
Should you file the case in state court in your home state, the state court where the defendant is incorporated, the state court where the injury occurred, or federal court?
File your suit in the wrong place and you’ve wasted a lot of time and money in travel and court fees. Jurisdiction is tough – even experienced attorneys get it wrong. The law isn’t always well settled and an argument over proper jurisdiction can go either way.
Of course, the laws differ in each jurisdiction.
You may have a claim under the state law of Ohio but not under the state law of Indiana. That means the jurisdiction in which your case belongs is really important – it can make the difference between winning and not having a claim at all.
Jurisdictional issues may depend on the legal arguments involved in your case. The law determines whether you have the right to file a claim at all, so you’ll need to work out what law applies.
Then, you’ll need to actually go about litigating your case. That means filing a brief with the court about the relevant issues of law and fact. You can likely find the correct formats for those documents on the internet, but getting the content right is tough. Attorneys have access to huge databases of legal research to use in their arguments, but if you decide to go without an attorney, you’ll be limited to whatever you can find online. This puts the pro se filer at a major disadvantage vs. an experienced law firm.
A lawsuit may be simply a question of facts. If A did, in fact, murder B, then that’s obviously a crime. Unfortunately for the pro se filer, that’s rarely the case. Lawsuits are usually a mixed-up bundle of factual and legal issues. You’ll need to prove the facts of the case – what actually happened. Then you’ll need to prove that those facts are a violation of the law. That means you’ll need to dig into legal theories to work out what the law means.
In personal injury cases, you’ll typically have to prove that the defendant had a duty of care, that the defendant breached that duty, and that the breach caused your injuries.
So, you’ll need black letter law (the laws on the books) and case law (the law interpreted by judges in other cases, also called “precedent”) to prove that the defendant had a duty to you. Then you’ll need more black letter law and legal precedent to show that the defendant’s actions were a breach of that duty. Then you’ll need still more to show the link between the breach and your injuries. There is a whole body of law on issues of causation, so you’ll have to work out what the relevant legal standard is and how to apply it in your case.
Finally, you’ll need to be able to manage procedural issues. That includes what forms to file, what they should include, and where and when to file them. It also includes dealing with motions made by the other side.
They may file a motion to dismiss your case for any number of reasons. You’ll need to file an answer to show that your case should not, in fact, be dismissed. They may file motions to delay proceedings or to move them to another jurisdiction. You’ll have to field all of those motions to keep your case where you want it and to prevent it from being dismissed.
An expert tip from Doug Mann
You’ll also have to manage the discovery process. That’s when you and the other side gather your evidence. Both sides must share requested evidence with each other, subject to certain rules and procedures. You’ll need to work out what to request and how to request it. Then you’ll need to dig through it to determine how it affects your case.
At every stage of a lawsuit, you may be faced with more procedural and legal issues. You’ll have to juggle the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in addition to your court’s local rules. You’ll have to work out the proper jurisdiction and the laws that apply under it, then how those laws apply to your case.
If you call up an expert witness, the other side may file a procedural objection. You’ll have to fight it to get your expert witness onto the stand. You’ll also have to fight objections to get the rest of your evidence admitted. If you go to trial, you’ll have to prepare a whole new set of briefs and arguments in the proper format. You’ll have to manage jury selection. You’ll have to deliver your own arguments to the court. Most courts offer some resources to pro se filers in the form of guides to forms to fill out and procedures to follow, but they’re no substitute for multiple years of law school and courtroom experience.
This is all for a simple, straightforward lawsuit. If you want to appeal or if your suit may be part of an MDL, you’ll have a whole new raft of issues to deal with.
Worst of all, your opponent will almost definitely have a trained attorney. That attorney knows that you don’t know the ins and outs of the legal system and will throw every possible objection at you in an attempt to wear you down and force you to settle early. They have legal teams to back them up every step of the way and are likely to take advantage of you.
Essentially, the issue is that filing pro se doesn’t mean you don’t need an attorney. It means you have to become your own attorney. You have to follow all the same rules and handle the case in all the same ways an attorney would. You won’t get any special treatment from the court.
All of this information likely seems disheartening. If it’s so expensive to hire an attorney and so difficult to manage a lawsuit, what are your options?
The good news is that the legal system recognizes that hourly attorney’s fees put legal help out of the reach of many people. So, law firms often handle personal injury cases on a “contingent fee” basis. A contingent fee is usually a percentage of the final amount won in the lawsuit. If you don’t win anything, you don’t pay anything. If you do win, the lawyer or firm takes its percentage from those winnings. That allows you to file a lawsuit without ever having to pay an attorney out-of-pocket.
Personal injury lawyers’ services can greatly impact the outcome of your case. In many cases, claimants who hire a lawyer recover more in settlements than they would have if they handled their claims themselves.
Here is how a personal injury lawyer can be of help:
You don’t want to waste your time filing a claim that has no merit. A personal injury lawyer will check out your case to see if you’ve got a legit claim. They will keenly check the circumstances surrounding your injury and identify the potential legal avenues to pursue adequate compensation.
Building a winning case requires substantial evidence. Your lawyer will collect medical records, accident reports, witness statements, and other pertinent documents. They may also consult with experts to provide testimony that supports your case.
One headache of handling a personal injury claim is dealing with insurance companies. Insurers often aim to minimize payouts, and without legal representation, you might receive less than you deserve. Your attorney will conduct detailed negotiations with the insurance companies for just compensation.
If your case has to go to trial in pursuit of fair legal recovery, your attorney will make compelling arguments before the judge to achieve the best possible outcome.
If you’re considering filing a personal injury lawsuit, contact us today for a free consultation and case evaluation. We handle all personal injury claims on a contingent fee basis, so we never get paid unless you do.
Before establishing Dyer, Garofalo, Mann & Schultz L.P.A., Doug Mann, a top Ohio Injury Attorney served as a bodily injury claims adjuster at a major insurance firm. With over 40+ years of experience, Doug’s background has proven invaluable in securing maximum cash settlements for his clients swiftly. Since leaving the insurance industry, Doug has devoted his entire legal career to assisting injured clients during their times of greatest need.
My attorney was/is Dominic Zambelli and from the very start, my experience with him was amazing. He explained what I needed to do for the case, the timeline, and put my mind at ease immediately. Fast forward six months, my case is settled and I am very happy with the result. If you are ever, and I mean EVER, looking for an honest, transparent, and diligent lawyer, call DGM&S and ask for Dominic. You will not be disappointed.
Mr Bruder and his assistants were extremely professional and knowledgeable. They kept me informed on the progress of my case. After all was done I received a settlement that was fair and reasonable. Would recommend their services 100%
This will be the second review I have written. Can not say enough about Mr David Marquis, he has went above and beyond for me with my case. From day one, he has worked very hard for me to ensure that I would get what I was deserved. Also, his paralegals, Amy Smith and Allison was a God send. Whenever I had a question, they would get back with me within minutes.
I would highly recommend you to anyone. Thank you Mr Marquis and your staff for all you have done for me.
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Doug Mann who has more than 20 years of legal experience as a practicing personal injury attorney.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured, please fill out the form below for your free consultation or call us at 1.937.222.2222
