What Evidence Do You Need to Win a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Have you suffered a personal injury? Are you looking to file a personal injury lawsuit in Houston, TX? Our lawyers are ready to help you.

What Evidence Do You Need to Win a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

If you have received a personal injury because of someone else’s negligence, then we understand how difficult and frustrating a situation like this can be. Not only do you need to deal with the recovery involved in your personal injury, but you may also lose out on money because of missed wages and medical bills.

You might be entitled to compensation if you have been injured in an accident. However, it falls to you to provide the burden of proof if you are seeking out this compensation from your personal injury lawsuit. That means that you will need to provide evidence to show that you have sustained an injury and that this injury has affected your life. Here are a few examples of evidence you and your lawyer will need to gather.

Documentation of the Injury

One of the most effective pieces of evidence you can bring before the jury is documentation of your injury. These documents can be medical bills and notes from your doctor, forms for insurance, and incident reports.

Documents that are from officials like doctors or insurance providers will do a lot to strengthen your case in front of the jury. One of the first things you’ll need to do if you’re filing a lawsuit is to gather these documents to help prove that you have sustained an injury.

Photos and Video

If you have sustained an injury, you should try to take photos and video as soon as this incident has occurred. Gathering evidence of what happened immediately after the accident will help make your case easier to prove. You may also be able to get photographic or video evidence from any security or traffic cameras that were in the area where the incident occurred.

You may also want to provide photographic evidence of your specific injuries to the jury. Even as you heal, you should periodically take pictures of the injuries that you have received.

Treatment Journal

One of the things you need to prove to the jury is how your injuries have impacted your life since you’ve received them. That means it’s your job to record your injuries and the way they have healed, as well as how they have affected all areas of your life.

It’s a good idea to keep a journal or record. In your journal, you should detail how your injuries have been recovering, what treatment has been like, how you feel each day, and information about your doctor’s visits. Your lawyer can use your journal to better present what injuries you’ve suffered and how you have been dealing with them physically and emotionally.

Witness Statements

If any witnesses were present when you got your injury, they might be able to provide you with some extremely important evidence for your case. When you get into an accident, you should make sure to request the names and contact information of the witnesses present.

This way, you and your lawyer can request written statements from these witnesses. This will help considerably with your personal injury lawsuit, so it’s very important to make sure you are getting this information as soon as possible.

Expert Witnesses

An expert witness is someone who has been hired to testify during a trial because they have expertise in a particular field. Depending on how you sustained your injury, it might be helpful to hire an expert witness to testify.

The expert witness will be able to explain in depth how you got your injury, what the injuries are like, and what your prognosis is like. The witness might also provide a written report which you will bring in front of the jury. This report can provide crucial support for your case.

Work Information

Part of a personal injury lawsuit is proving ho the injury has affected your life overall. And a huge part of your life is probably your job. Your job is what gives you the financial ability to pay your bills, eat healthy food, and go out and do the activities you love.

But depending on your injury, your work life may have been hugely affected. You may have missed wages because of time needed off work to treat your injuries. You might also have been given a demotion due to not being able to perform your old duties at your job because of your injury. Whatever the reason, if you can show via pay stubs or notes from your boss that your injury has affected your job, that’s important evidence to show the jury.

Other Complaints or Accident Reports

If you suffered your injury at a business or a workplace, then you might want to look into whether there have been other accidents in the same place. You might be able to find a police file or report.

If other accidents have occurred at the site where yours happened, that could be hugely beneficial for supporting your claim. It could help demonstrate or solidify that the other party was at fault for your accident.

What Will This Evidence Prove?

As you’re gathering your evidence for your lawsuit, you are looking to prove a few things.

Physical Pain and Suffering

Of course, one of the major things you are looking to prove during your lawsuit is that you have suffered physical injury and that this injury has led to pain and suffering. “Pain and suffering” is a legal term referring to the pain you have experienced because of the accident.

Physical pain can last for a few days to several months. It’s also possible for this pain to become chronic, and something that you end up having to deal with for the rest of your life. You may have suffered a fractured bone, pulled muscle, or you may have even received brain injuries or become paralyzed. It’s important to document your injuries and recovery to prove that you have endured physical pain and suffering.

Emotional Pain and Suffering

The term “pain and suffering” doesn’t only refer to physical pain. It’s also possible to experience emotional and mental pain as a result of your injury. You may find that your emotional distress lasts for months or even years after your accident has occurred.

After suffering an accident and injury, you may find that you begin to experience mental health issues like anxiety, depression, or even post-traumatic stress disorder. You could also qualify for compensation if you have experienced cognitive changes because of a traumatic head injury. Notes and bills from a medical health professional like a therapist or counselor can help prove emotional pain and suffering.

Loss of Consortium

If someone else’s negligence resulted in the loss of the life of a loved one, you could be entitled to compensation. If your family has experienced a wrongful death, then you may be able to file a lawsuit on behalf of the deceased. The compensation you receive for this will help with the loss of consortium.

When you lose a family member, you lose important emotional and physical support. If the death of your loved one has resulted in the loss of companionship, care, spousal intimacy, or parental guidance, then you can be compensated financially for this loss.

Contact the Experts

If you’re looking to file a personal injury lawsuit, it’s important to talk to the right people. Get in touch with us at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner in Houston, TX. We’re ready to help.