Edmond Personal Injury Attorney
No one anticipates getting injured in an accident. If this happens to you, know that help is available. Dan Davis Law is a trusted personal injury law firm that serves Edmond, Oklahoma, and the surrounding cities, including Oklahoma City, Moore, and Norman. Our personal injury attorneys can protect you and your family through every phase of the recovery process. As your representatives, we will fight to achieve justice and hold a wrongdoer accountable on your behalf. We care about your health, finances, family, and future. Call today for a free case consultation to learn more about how we can help. We are prepared to come to you if you cannot visit our local law office.
The Benefits of Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney
Hiring a personal injury attorney in Oklahoma is an effective way to get what you need after a serious accident or injury. The right attorney will have the experience, knowledge, and resources to successfully handle your case from start to finish. You won’t need to deal with the legal side of things after you hire an attorney to represent you. You will have the freedom to focus on your recovery and future while a skilled attorney negotiates your claim for you.
An insurance company is much less likely to try to take advantage of you after you’ve hired a lawyer. Our Oklahoma City injury lawyers will know exactly how to go up against insurance claims adjusters for you in pursuit of maximum financial compensation – combatting the tactics often used by insurers to save money on claims. A lawyer can help you obtain the results that you and your family need to move forward, especially if you suffered a major injury that leaves you with a future of mounting medical bills.
Counteracting Common Insurance Company Tactics
Insurance companies never happily write out checks for compensation. Instead, they hire adjusters who seek to undervalue claims or deny them completely in order to protect their profits. Some common practices from insurance companies in personal injury claims include the following:
- Calling within days of the injury with a low settlement offer before you know the full extent of your damages. You’ll have to sign away your right to a lawsuit in exchange for the settlement
- Recording friendly phone conversations and then using your words out of context against you
- Claiming you bear a high percentage of fault for your injury in order to minimize their payout percentage
- Seeking medical authorization to review your injury record and then combing through your medical history to seek a pre-existing condition they can claim as the true cause of your injury symptoms
- Following your social media accounts to catch you appearing fit and healthy even if you were smiling through your pain
Insurance adjusters use these and other methods to protect profits rather than pay out the compensation you deserve. It’s best to hire an Oklahoma personal injury attorney and then direct all communication with insurance representatives to your lawyer.
Can I Ask for Punitive Damages in Oklahoma Personal Injury Cases?
Oklahoma allows injury victims to seek punitive damages if particularly egregious recklessness with willful disregard for injury to others caused the injury, or in cases of intentional violence. While other damages in personal injury cases serve to compensate the injury victim for their financial losses and pain, punitive damages are the civil court’s way of punishing wrongdoers. This claim moves forward separately from any criminal charges proceeding in the criminal justice system. Punitive damages also help to deter repeats of the egregious action that led to the injury.
Oklahoma caps the amount of punitive damages available in personal injury cases at $100,000 or limits it to match the amount of actual damages awarded to the victim.
How Much Does a Personal Injury Lawyer Cost?
It is normal to be worried about the price of hiring an attorney as an injured accident victim who is already facing expensive bills and lost wages. Dan Davis Law puts the client first in all things – including our prices. We ensure that our clients have everything that they need to put their lives back together after serious accidents, including affordable and high-quality legal services set at a reasonable rate.
Our personal injury lawyers in Edmond operate on a contingency fee basis. This means you will never pay your lawyer out of pocket, win or lose. If we do not succeed in securing financial compensation for your bills and losses, you won’t owe us a dime – no hidden fees and no catch. If we do win your case, we will charge for our services as a percentage of the settlement or judgment award achieved rather than billing you directly.
Types of Cases We Accept in Edmond, Oklahoma
With over a quarter of a century of experience exclusively practicing personal injury law, Dan Davis Law can handle many types of cases, including complex and challenging lawsuits. We are a dedicated personal injury law firm that can help victims and family members after many different types of preventable accidents in Oklahoma. This includes:
- Car accidents
- Truck (commercial carrier) accidents
- Rideshare accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bike and pedestrian accidents
- Premises liability accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Dog bite injuries
- Product liability accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Workers’ compensation claims
- Veterans Affairs benefits claims
- Catastrophic injuries
- Wrongful death
This is not a full list of all of the types of cases that we accept in Edmond and throughout Oklahoma. If you don’t see your type of accident on this list, please contact us to discuss your specific case in more detail with one of our attorneys.
What to Do After Suffering an Injury
After a sudden, unexpected injury, you may feel shaken and uncertain about how to protect yourself. If you’ve been seriously injured, you may be able to do little other than wait in place until help arrives. However, if you’re able to move safely and use your phone, taking some proactive steps immediately after your injury can help protect your physical and financial future. If you can’t move without causing further injury, you can also hand your cell phone to someone else to use for you to do the following:
- First, call 911 or your local EMT service for help
- Then, use your phone’s camera to take photos of whatever caused your injury, whether it’s a loose shelf in a store, a vehicle after a collision, or a defective product
- Take photos of any visible injuries you have
- Record a quick statement about how the injury occurred while it’s fresh in your mind
- If the injury occurred at work or on a commercial property, ask the manager to write out an accident report
- Add the contact information of the property owner or manager and/or any eyewitnesses to the accident
- Go to a hospital as soon as possible either with EMS or through the emergency room and ask for a full medical evaluation. Tell the doctor about every symptom
- Ask for a medical report detailing your injury, treatment recommendations, and prognosis for recovery
- Keep all medical bills and receipts for related expenses
- Contact the Edmond personal injury attorneys at Dan Davis Law for a consultation before speaking to any insurance company representatives
It can be difficult to keep a clear head when you’ve just experienced a painful injury, but what you do immediately after your injury can be the key to your later recovery.
Do You Have a Case?
Personal injury law is a complicated subject. If you are wondering whether you have grounds for a claim, you can gain a better understanding of your rights by learning the basic principles of personal injury. One of the main doctrines to know is negligence. If someone is negligent, they have failed to use proper care, causing injury or harm to someone else. When negligence results in an injury or death, the victim or surviving family members can file a civil lawsuit against the at-fault party in Oklahoma. Speak to our OKC truck accident lawyers to learn more.
In the civil justice system, the party that files a claim (the plaintiff) is the one that must bear the burden of proof. The plaintiff or his or her lawyer must establish – based on a preponderance of the evidence – that the defendant more likely than not caused the injury or damage in question. Only then will the plaintiff be awarded a settlement or financial compensation by the courts. Hiring an attorney to represent you can make it easier for you to meet the burden of proof as an injured accident victim.
Proving Liability Against a Negligent Party in Oklahoma
Once your Edmond Oklahoma personal injury attorney determines that negligence, reckless behavior, or wrongdoing directly caused your injury, they’ll gather the evidence needed for your claim, including proving liability. Under Oklahoma’s comparative negligence insurance laws, the liable party must pay for your damages. In personal injury claims, the compensation typically comes through the defendant’s liability insurance on their auto insurance, property insurance, or product liability insurance.
Proving liability requires demonstrating the following:
- That the party at fault owed a duty of care to take reasonable measures to prevent injury to others
- That they breached this duty through an act of negligence, recklessness, or purposeful wrongdoing
- That the breach of duty to prevent harm directly caused your injury
- That you’ve suffered financial damages from the injury as well as pain and suffering
Proving liability and recovering financial damages may not erase pain and suffering from an injury, but it can help open doors to the best medical care and ease financial burdens so you can focus on healing.
What Is a Fair Settlement for a Personal Injury Accident in Oklahoma?
The answer to this question depends on the specific case. No single amount is fair or appropriate for every personal injury claim. Some lawsuits result in millions of dollars given to the victim and his or her family, while others receive awards in the thousands. Case values are based on several factors that are unique to each victim and claim, including:
- Injury type and severity
- The victim’s age at the time of the injury
- The victim’s prognosis for recovery
- His or her earning potential at the time of the accident
- Whether the victim contributed to the accident
- The number of defendants and insurance policies available
- The defendant’s actions
In general, more severe injuries will receive higher compensatory awards. It is important to always consult with an attorney before accepting a settlement, however, as an insurance company may try to underestimate the value of your claim. An attorney can give you an accurate and fair evaluation of your case, then help you pursue maximum financial compensation for your economic and noneconomic losses.
What Damages Can I Recover in an Oklahoma Personal Injury Case?
Injuries can quickly become expensive. Besides emergency treatment, there are often procedures, surgeries, followup treatment or physical therapy, and sometimes equipment and home health care. This also comes with many days of missed work or you may not be able to return to work at all. A successful personal injury claim can help you recover damages including:
- Medical expenses and future medical expenses related to the injury
- Lost income and future lost wages
- Compensation for a reduced earning capacity if your injury was disabling
- Pain and suffering
- Any other appropriate non-economic damages that apply such as emotional trauma, PTSD, disfigurement, loss of limb, or diminished life quality
A successful claim for personal injury damages in Oklahoma also helps victims to achieve a sense of justice after suffering the pain and expense of a preventable injury.
Do I Have to Go to Court For a Personal Injury Case in Oklahoma?
Over 90% of Oklahoma personal injury claims settle out of court through negotiations with the insurance company of the liable party. Only in cases of insurance company bad-faith practices that unfairly lowball or deny claims does the case proceed to a lawsuit in court. If this is the case, your Edmond personal injury lawyer will file a lawsuit within the Oklahoma 2-year statute of limitations and then gladly represent your rights and best interests in court. Though this is a longer process, the good news is that jury awards for compensation are typically higher than you can expect from a settlement.
Injured in an Accident in Edmond? Find Out How We Can Help
If you’ve been injured in an accident in Edmond, Oklahoma or a nearby city, don’t hesitate to contact our Oklahoma City accident lawyers for a free consultation about your legal options. We can help you get back on your feet and pursue the financial compensation that you deserve. We are always available to answer any of your questions or concerns and will treat you with consideration and respect as our client. Please call (405) 930-4210 today to speak to one of our attorneys.