CAN I MAKE PERSON WHO INJURED ME PAY MORE THAN THEIR INSURANCE?
Our personal injury lawyers handle many serious personal injury cases. We help clients with the civil litigation part of their case. In other words, we do not have anything to do with criminal prosecution.
The criminal part of a case is handled by the state, usually through a prosecutor. What we do is make sure our clients get appropriate financial compensation for their injuries. For example, payment of medical bills, lost wages etc. In most cases, the money comes from the insurance of the person who caused the injury. But what if the insurance is not enough? Can you get more from the person who caused the accident?
Theoretically, the answer is yes. However, in reality, the answer in most cases is no. The theorectical part is that you can refuse to settle with the insurance company and sue the person who caused the accident. But at the same time, you have to determine whether it is worth it. Does the person have any money or assets to satisfy a judgment you may get? Federal and state law allow a person to bankrupt out of most judgments. Also, the federal and state exemptions are pretty generous. That means that even in bankruptcy, most people can keep their house, car, and retirement accounts. In many cases, that is all they have.
At the same time, there is a cost to pursuing the person who caused your injury. There are filing fees, legal fees, expert fees, and more. In addition, it can take many months or years to finish the case.
PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS
When our injury lawyers work on a case involving very serious injuries, we look for all possible insurance and assets to compensate our client. This includes investigating the person or company that caused the accident to see if they have assets that could be used for compensation. However, in most cases, people with significant assets have the most insurance and people with the least assets have the least insurance. There have been a few cases where our lawyers obtained direct payment from the person causing the accident. But this is the exception and not the rule. Mostly those cases involve catastrophic injury or death caused by someone with substantial assets.
Having a limitation on compensation is frustrating for the victim and the lawyer. However, it is a fact of life and must be dealt with. Be assured that our accident injury lawyers will look at every avenue of compensation for you and then advise you of your best options. Our lawyers have more than 25 years’ experience representing hundreds of people throughout Minnesota. When you call our office, the first consultation with a lawyer is free. Further, we are only paid a percentage of what we collect for you. This is additional incentive for us to do everything possible to find all available resources.