What Happens After a Deposition in a Car Accident Case?

What Happens After a Deposition in a Car Accident Case?

A deposition in a car accident case usually leads to either a settlement or trial. Several other steps may happen between the deposition and the settlement agreement (or trial), such as a court reporter providing a transcript and you undergoing a medical evaluation. Ultimately, though, a deposition is one more step toward the resolution of your case.

Always hire a skilled car accident lawyer to protect you, especially if your case requires a deposition. Opposing counsel will likely try to trip you up, and an attorney’s protection will prove priceless.

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A Deposition Is Only Necessary if You File a Car Accident Lawsuit

You may have filed an auto insurance claim before and never had to undergo a deposition. This is because a deposition is a step in car accident lawsuits, not claims.

Car accident victims may need to file a lawsuit for several reasons, which include:

• After an accident with an uninsured motorist, you cannot seek compensation from the driver’s insurance company (they don’t have one)
• Severe injuries may cost more than insurance coverage limits provide for
• Egregious conduct by at-fault parties (like drunk driving) lead you to seek a full measure of justice through a lawsuit
• A wrongful death typically causes damages that are too costly for insurance policies to cover
• Bad-faith tactics by insurance companies, who often refuse to offer a fair settlement to auto accident victims

You should not worry about whether you’ll sue, or any deposition for that matter. When you hire a car accident lawyer, your legal team handles those details. Your car accident attorney will also ensure you’re totally prepared for any deposition your case requires.

A Car Accident Lawsuit (and Deposition) Could Lead to Trial

Depositions are part of the larger discovery process, which may include:

• Interrogatories, which are like depositions but in a written format
• Requests for one side or the other to provide evidence, documentation, or other materials
• Requests for admissions, in which your car accident attorney may ask parties involved in the lawsuit to confirm or deny certain claims or allegations
• The filing of various other motions and requests

Throughout the discovery process, each side can negotiate a settlement. Those parties may even agree to mediate after discovery concludes, which involves a third party helping opposing sides settle.

If your attorney and opposing counsel do not settle, you may need to go to trial.

What Happens at a Car Accident Trial?

Considering the high cost of car accidents that result in injury, the liable parties may resist paying you a fair sum.

If your attorney exhausts settlement negotiations, the discovery process, and other pre-trial proceedings without receiving a fair offer from liable parties, they will:

• Explain to you that you may need to go to trial
• Prepare you for trial
• Finish all pre-trial proceedings
• Create a comprehensive trial strategy
• Represent you in every aspect of the trial (which will include presenting evidence, questioning witnesses, cross-examining witnesses, making motions and objections, and arguing for the jury to award you a fair award

A relatively small percentage of car accident cases require trials. Even so, your car accident attorney will prepare for the possibility if your case goes to court. If trial proves the right strategy for you, let a lawyer lead the way.

You May Be Able to Secure Fair Compensation Through an Insurance Claim

Many car accident victims do not even need to file a lawsuit to secure fair compensation.

While insurance companies are not always willing to pay auto accident victims fairly, they may do so:

• If they act in good faith
• If evidence of who is at fault for the accident is cut-and-dry
• If your attorney presents a compelling overall case

Even if you ultimately receive a fair settlement from an insurance company, the insurance claims process can take a long time. Even the smallest error or misjudgment on your part could prove financially costly.

When you hire a car accident lawyer, they will handle every aspect of the claims process and any necessary lawsuit. You will focus fully on recovery.

Insurance Companies Do Not Always Handle Claims in Good Faith

Insurance companies’ bad-faith tactics are one of the many reasons why car accident cases end up in court.

Your lawyer will combat any such tactics, which could include:

• The accusation that you caused the accident: Insurance companies are generally liable for accident-related losses when their own policyholder is at fault. Therefore, the at-fault party’s insurance company may accuse you of causing the accident—if you don’t contest, this could free the insurer from financial responsibility. Your attorney will respond directly to any such accusation with evidence related to your accident. 
• One or more lowball offers: Car accident victims do not always understand what their losses are worth. Many of them face great financial hardship, too. This is a recipe for insurance companies to offer lowball settlements and talk the claimants into accepting. Your attorney will ensure this doesn’t happen to you.
• Delays: Insurance companies may use delays to pressure claimants. This is especially true if the insurer has extended a lowball offer it wants you to accept. Your attorney will remain in frequent contact with the insurance company, ensuring that no avoidable delays slow the processing of your claim.

You might also face direct attempts to deceive you if you do not have a lawyer. This may include leading questions that could lead to an insurance company denying your claim if you aren't careful.

A lawyer neutralizes all insurance companies’ bad-faith tactics.

However Your Car Accident Case Unfolds, Allow an Attorney to Help You

When all is said and done, you may receive a settlement from an insurance company, a settlement from at-fault parties, or a verdict awarded by a jury. Whatever outcome occurs, an attorney will fight to obtain the compensation you deserve.

As soon as you hire a lawyer, they must present the best case possible. Their duties will likely include:

Researching All Relevant Insurance Policies

Your attorney needs to know the details of your own auto policy and the policies of those who caused the car accident.

They will determine:

• How much compensation you should seek from each insurance company
• The coverage limits on every applicable policy
• Whether insurance is a viable option for covering your accident-related losses

Lawyers are fluent in the insurance language. They will quickly obtain copies of, and read, all policies that relate to your car accident.

Representing You in Communications with Insurers

Insurance companies sometimes act in good faith, but they have their own financial interests to consider. Your lawyer will represent you with the insurers so they cannot violate your rights, delay your claim, or undermine your claim in any other way.

Securing Evidence to Prove Who Caused Your Car Accident

Lawyers document car accidents with:

• Any available video footage of the accident (they may scour nearby businesses’ cameras, traffic cameras, and other video sources)
• Eyewitness testimony
• Reconstructions of the accident
• Your own account of how the collision happened

At-fault parties may change their account of the accident after the fact. A police report may document if this happens, and your lawyer will obtain such a report.

Obtaining Documentation to Prove Your Damages

Your car accident attorney will follow your recovery and secure all proof of your accident-related damages, including any relevant:

• Medical records (and images such as X-rays and CT scans)
• Medical bills
• Testimony from medical providers about the nature of your symptoms, current and future healthcare needs, and other relevant facts
• A mental health expert’s diagnosis of any post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and other types of pain and suffering from the accident
• Bills related to the repair of your vehicle

Attorneys document damages. Let a personal injury lawyer handle this critical responsibility for you, as proof of your damages can secure fair compensation.

Calculating the Precise Value of Your Case

Different car accident cases have substantially different financial values.

Some factors that may affect the financial value of your case include:

• The injuries you suffered because of the car accident
• The type and severity of your pain and suffering
• The type of medical and mental health treatment you need
• The extent of damage to your vehicle
• Whether any of your injuries are maiming or disabling

Attorneys use legally accepted methods to calculate damages, including non-economic damages like pain and suffering. If you hire a capable lawyer, you can trust them to calculate your case value accurately.

You must get the case value correct, as this will ensure you don’t have to pay out of your pocket for medical care or any other expenses related to the accident.

Negotiating a Settlement

Your lawyer may obtain a settlement covering all your economic and non-economic damages. They will present their case to the liable insurance company.

If the insurance company does not agree to your lawyer’s demands, your attorney may speak with you about filing a lawsuit.

Leading Any Depositions and Other Pre-Trial Processes

Once they file a lawsuit, your lawyer can continue to seek a settlement. In the meantime, they will lead you through any necessary depositions and other pre-trial steps.

Fighting for You at Trial

You may need to go to trial if your attorney does not receive a fair settlement offer throughout the pre-trial process.

Your lawyer will:

• Have a detailed discussion about what going to trial means
• Explain the potential benefits of going to trial
• Explain the potential timeframe for completing the trial
• Represent you in court, if you decide to move forward with trial

When you go to trial, you put your case in the hands of a jury. However, your lawyer can convince the jury to award you the compensation you deserve. If you trust your lawyer, you can trust them to succeed in court.

Damages Your Lawyer May Seek in Your Car Accident Case

Your car accident can cost you a lot of money. Your lawyer will fight to secure compensation that covers all accident-related costs, including both economic and non-economic damages.

Some common damages in car accident cases include:

• Healthcare costs: Regardless of the severity of your injuries, you will almost certainly need medical treatment. Your lawyer will fight to ensure you don’t pay out of pocket for that treatment.
• Pain and suffering: Accidents cause trauma, even if you aren’t fully aware of the extent of that trauma yet. Your lawyer will demand fair compensation that reflects your pain and suffering.
• Mental health treatment: Your lawyer will seek money to cover any counseling, medication, and other mental health treatment you need following the collision.
• Property costs: Your lawyer will demand compensation for vehicle repairs and replacing other damaged property.

If you have any other damages, your lawyer will include them in your claim or lawsuit.

Retain Your Car Accident Attorney as Soon as Possible

You face a strict filing deadline for your car accident case. Don’t wait to find a Port Richey personal injury attorney with a sterling reputation to fight for you and recover the compensation you deserve.