Hickory Personal Injury Lawyer

Personal Injury Attorney in Hickory, NC

If you get severely injured and must face mounting medical bills, lost wages, and ongoing trauma, it can make a bad situation worse. The good news is that you can work with a Hickory personal injury lawyer to seek compensation for your accident, making it easier to get treatment and move on with your life.

Trust Butler, Quinn & Hochman, PLLC

The team here at Butler, Quinn & Hochman, PLLC, has been practicing personal injury law for years. In that time, we’ve taken on all kinds of cases, from slip-and-fall accidents to car crashes, work accidents, and more. We can help you hold the person who caused your injuries accountable and get you the compensation you need to heal and move on with your life.

Why Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer?

Personal injury cases vary significantly in their details. Some of them are car accidents; 276,026 occurred in North Carolina in 2021. Some are from falls, which make up 11% of the unintentional injuries reported in the state. Workplace injuries are also common, with 68,600 cases reported in 2023. All of these types of personal injury cases have unique considerations and can be handled by a Hickory personal injury attorney.

When you hire a personal injury lawyer, you get more than just help with filing paperwork. Your attorney can help you gather and evaluate evidence, build a case, and negotiate with insurance companies on your behalf to get you a good settlement. If the case must go to trial, your attorney can also provide you with courtroom representation. In most cases, personal injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, so you have nothing to lose by hiring one.

Common Types of Personal Injury Claims

You can file a personal injury claim for any physical harm incurred as a result of another person’s negligence or active malfeasance. Some of the most common reasons for personal injury claims include:

• Car, truck, bicycle, and pedestrian accidents
• Slip-and-fall accidents from poorly maintained properties
• Product liability claims stemming from dangerous consumer goods
• Injuries caused by dog bites or other animal attacks
• Workplace and construction site accidents

A personal injury lawyer will be able to help you with all of these common types of claims and others.

Contributory Negligence in North Carolina

North Carolina follows a pure contributory negligence rule, which can have a dramatic impact on your claim. As in any other state, you’ll need to prove that another person’s actions or negligence directly caused you harm to win a personal injury case, but that’s not all. You’ll also need to show that you were in no way to blame. If you are deemed even 1% liable for the injury you sustained, you will be unable to recover damages.

While contributory negligence applies only to civil claims that go to court, not to insurance claims, in practice, it impacts both. Insurance adjusters evaluate cases and decide whether they might be able to convince a jury that you contributed to causing your injury, should the case go to court. If they believe that to be the case, they’ll offer much lower settlements during the negotiation stage. A skilled personal injury lawyer can help you navigate this complex issue.

Damages You Could Claim

No matter the type of personal injury claim you need to file, there will most likely be both economic and non-economic damages you can claim. They include:

• Medical bills. Your settlement should cover all past, current, and future medical expenses associated with your injury.
• Lost wages. It should also make up for any wages you’ve lost as a result of taking time off from work to heal.
• Property damage. Certain types of cases, such as car accidents, also allow you to claim property damage. If your car or anything of value within it was damaged, that could add to your compensation.
• Non-economic damages. Non-economic damages include things like pain and suffering, emotional distress, and reductions in quality of life resulting from the injury.
• Punitive damages. In some cases, people are also awarded punitive damages. The point of them is not to further compensate the victim but to punish the responsible party, who must have either acted intentionally or with exceptional negligence to merit this solution.

You can work with your lawyer to ensure that your settlement covers 100% of the damages you’ve incurred as a result of your accident.

The Role of Your Personal Injury Lawyer

Your lawyer can handle many of the day-to-day aspects of managing your case, allowing you to focus on what’s important: healing. You can expect your lawyer to:

• File paperwork. You’ll need to fill out various forms throughout the claim-filing process and submit them all on time. Your lawyer can track deadlines and ensure everything is completed properly.
• Gather evidence. The types of evidence you’ll need to prove your case will vary depending on the cause of your personal injury. Medical records are almost always necessary, as are pay stubs showing lost wages. If you were in a car accident or need to file a premises liability claim, photos or videos of the accident scene can also be helpful. If you were bitten by a dog, proof that it was considered a dangerous animal might help.
• Construct a case. You’ll need to prove two things: that someone else was to blame for your injuries, and that you deserve no liability for them. Your lawyer will evaluate the evidence and interview witnesses to get an idea of what happened, then construct a narrative that shows you in a positive light.
• Negotiate with insurance companies. Insurance companies are known for offering unacceptably low settlements to people without lawyers. Your lawyer can negotiate with insurance companies to make sure your settlement covers all of your damages.
• Provide courtroom representation. In some cases, settlement negotiations don’t lead to a resolution, and personal injury cases must go to trial. If that happens, your lawyer will be able to represent you throughout the legal proceedings.

While you’re not legally required to hire a lawyer to file a personal injury claim, it makes good sense to work with a professional.

Understanding Fee Schedules

Most personal injury lawyers work on what’s known as a contingency basis, meaning that they only get paid if they win your case. Your lawyer will then take their previously agreed-upon cut of your settlement before you receive the rest of the money. Factors that affect how much you’ll pay include:

• Your case’s complexity
• Your lawyer’s experience level
• Whether the case goes to trial

Simple cases that can be resolved in settlement negotiations typically cost less because there’s no need for court fees and witnesses. These expenses are typically also taken out of your eventual settlement. Expect all of this information to be offered in writing as part of your contract with your lawyer.

FAQs

Can I File a Claim for Emotional Distress in North Carolina?

You can file a claim for emotional distress in North Carolina, but it is difficult to prove. You’ll have to show that you’ve suffered severe and disabling distress in the form of PTSD, chronic depression, or another mental health disorder, and that it directly resulted from another person’s negligence or intentional malfeasance. A Hickory personal injury attorney can help you strengthen your claim.

What Should You Not Say to an Injury Lawyer?

There are several things you should not say to an injury lawyer. You should not downplay your injuries, nor should you exaggerate them. Don’t speculate about the accident, and don’t admit fault. Be honest with your lawyer, provide them with the facts of the case, and trust them to handle communications with insurance companies.

What Are the Signs of a Good Settlement Offer?

The sign of a good settlement offer is that it covers all of your damages. This can include past, present, and future medical expenses and lost wages, as well as non-economic losses such as pain and suffering and emotional distress. Don’t accept the first settlement offered to you by the insurance company. They often make extremely low settlement offers to people without lawyers, knowing that they won’t know any better than to take them.

How Much Are Most Personal Injury Settlements?

How much most personal injury settlements are depends on the type of injury and accident in question, how severe the injury is, whether the person has been permanently disabled, and what other damages were accrued during the accident. Your settlement will be the largest if you have suffered a severely disabling injury with impacts that will last the rest of your life, disrupting your ability to work and function in daily life.

Your Hickory Personal Injury Lawyer

If you’ve been hurt due to no fault of your own, a Hickory personal injury lawyer may be able to help you get compensated for the harm you’ve suffered. The team here at Butler, Quinn & Hochman, PLLC, has extensive experience interpreting personal injury laws and applying that knowledge to maximize our clients’ claims. We can help you with your personal injury claim, too. Contact us to schedule an initial consultation today.

Hickory, NC Personal Injury Resources

• North Carolina Personal Injury Statute of Limitations & Laws
• How Much Does Personal Injury Lawyer Cost In North Carolina?