Filing Your Claim
Your attorney will help you with important issues at every step of the case. The first concern is to make sure you file your premises liability lawsuit within Georgia's time limit (statute of limitations). If you don't file within the time set by your state, you lose all of your right to recover, even if you've been seriously injured. Knowing the time limit isn't just a matter of looking it up; there are exceptions and extensions that an experienced Georgia premises liability lawyer can help interpret. Consult your lawyer as soon as possible after the injury to make sure you have plenty of time to prepare and file your lawsuit.
There are other preliminary issues to resolve, such as where to file, which defendants to name, and how much in damages to ask for. These are more complicated questions than you might think. Who you can sue can depend on where you file your lawsuit. Your Georgia premises liability attorney can represent you from the time you are injured all the way to collecting your court judgment.
Preparing Your Case
After the preliminaries are completed, your attorney's work really begins. He or she will negotiate on your behalf during the entire process, even during the trial. This is one of the most important reasons to hire an experienced lawyer. An experienced negotiator is equipped to convince the opposition that you have a winning case and that it will be wise for them to agree to a good settlement early in the process.
Your Georgia premises liability attorney will also prepare your case for trial, interviewing witnesses, gathering documents and physical evidence, and finding experts. A good attorney knows how to interview witnesses to get information and how to screen out those witnesses that might be harmful your case. It takes experience to choose the right witnesses. Your attorney will also know how to get medical records, police reports, leases, deeds, and other documents you might need. She or he will have contacts with effective expert witnesses. Choosing the wrong expert, such as one with shaky credentials or who looks bad on cross-examination, could cost you your case.
Your Georgia premises liability lawyer will also have experience with the sophisticated techniques used to present evidence to juries, including computer graphics, animations, videos, and scale models. Your attorney must be as sophisticated as any insurance company or corporation and not be intimidated by corporate lawyers and large litigation budgets.
If your case comes to trial, your attorney will know how to choose the most favorable jury, how to question and cross-examine witnesses, how to deal with the rules of evidence, and how to make arguments in your favor.
If you decide to represent yourself, you will do well to at least have a good Georgia premises liability attorney available for coaching and advice. But since these cases are done on a contingency fee basis—i.e., you don't pay any lawyer fees unless you win—it is much wiser to hire the best attorney you can find.
If You Have A Claim
If you would like to have your case evaluated by an experienced Georgia premises liability attorney, fill out our case evaluation form at no cost or obligation.