The following questions are among the most frequently asked of our firm relating to Personal Injury Law and how the Nashville Tennessee Law Firm of Ingraham, Pautienus, & Tidwell addresses these issues.
If your questions are not answered here or you need more information please call us or send them through our Contact Form.
At Ingraham, Pautienus, & Tidwell our firm knows the finer details of Personal Injury Law, what to do and what to avoid, and how to protect our clients so that they can experience the best of possible outcomes.
Our firm assures that our clients get the full protection that PI Law allows. If you need Personal Injury legal advice to help you get your life back together, you want the Nashville firm of Ingraham, Pautienus, & Tidwell at your side!
Our firm's partner, Nick Tidwell, leads our team for all matters related to Nashville and Tennessee Personal Injury Law concerns.
You may contact Nick directly through this website at Contact Nick, you may use our firm's on-line Contact Form, or call us at (615) 370-3010 for immediate action on your case.
F.A.Q.
Frequently Asked Nashville Tennessee Personal Injury Law Questions
The following questions are among the most frequently asked of our firm relating to Personal Injury and how the Nashville Tennessee PI Law Firm of Ingraham, Pautienus, & Tidwell addresses these issues.
If your questions are not answered here or you need more information please call us or send them through our Contact Form.
You may click on each FAQ below to see or hide an answer or ...
Personal injury involves damage to your body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. Personal injury may result from the negligence or intentional acts of another. Personal injury may also arise in defamation torts known as slander, libel, and invasion of privacy.
If you think that another party may be responsible for your personal injury then the best way to find out whether you have a valid personal injury claim is to schedule a free initial consultation with one of our personal injury attorneys. We will help you by examining your potential case and giving you guidance based upon the facts and the applicable law.
This is a very good question. A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets forth the maximum time after an event that a claim may be initiated, based upon the event. After the expiration of this period, unless a legal exception applies, the injured person loses the right to file a lawsuit seeking monetary damages or other equitable relief.
In Tennessee, there are many statutes of limitations which apply to a variety of injuries and potential civil actions. Until we know the specifics of your case, we cannot tell you how long you have or when that period starts. Statutes of limitations may be as short as six months in some cases; however, many, but not all, personal injury actions must be commenced within one year of the date of injury. As with many aspects of the law, there are always exceptions.
The bottom line is that it is very important to talk with a personal injury lawyer as soon as you suffer or discover an injury to ensure your rights are protected.
In its most simple definition in civil law, it essentially means that someone had a duty to exercise care, was careless, and as a result of being careless, someone else was injured. Negligence serves as the basis for a large number of personal injury lawsuits. Negligence is any conduct that falls below the recognized standards of behavior established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risks of harm.
To establish negligence, an injured person must be able to prove or demonstrate in court that the defendant (the person being sued) had a duty to the plaintiff, the defendant breached that duty by failing to conform to the required standard of conduct, the defendant's negligent conduct was the cause of the harm to the plaintiff, and the plaintiff was, in fact, harmed or damaged.
Tennessee law operates on a system called "modified comparative fault." This means that even if you may have partly caused an accident yourself, you may still be able to receive compensation from the other party who was more at fault for the accident through his/her negligence. The amount of another person's responsibility is determined by comparing his or her negligence with your own. Any recovery would also be reduced based upon your level of assessed fault by the jury. Generally in Tennessee, if a party is 50% at fault, there is no recovery.
This is a question that cannot be answered accurately by any attorney in the early stages of a claim. Each claim must be considered on its own merits. Depending upon the complexity of the issues, nature of damages, and necessary medical proof, some cases may be resolved in a few months, while others may take much longer to fully develop and prove the extent of damages and recovery sought.
We recommend that you should never rush settlement of an accident claim. It is of ultimate importance that you get the right compensation award for your personal injury and this can only happen when the full facts have been considered and you are certain as to how your recovery will proceed. Making a personal injury claim should not about trying to make easy money or getting quick compensation. You may have years or a lifetime to live with the results of your injuries.
First, we will need to know more about your medical condition. You will need to supply us with a list of all doctors and hospitals you have visited as a result of the incident. While comprising the medical proof, we will coordinate with the defendant's insurance company and attorney. We will walk through each step of the process with you, and as additional information is needed, we will coordinate and counsel with you.
This is one of the most common questions we get. We can tell you what clients with circumstances similar to yours have been awarded, but no two cases are ever the same. Our job is to collect all of the facts and circumstances surrounding your injury, including medical charges, pain and suffering, earnings loss, and future income loss, if you are unable to work because of your injury. While no attorney can guarantee success, we will provide caring, compassionate, competent representation in order to maximize your recovery either through a settlement or at trial.
Insurance agents and adjusters work for the insurance company, not you. Therefore, they are not likely to be working in your best interests. Your lawyer will serve as your advocate and adviser as to your best interests and will work to obtain the compensation that you are entitled by law.
It depends on whether a person dies as a result of the injuries or from unrelated causes. If a person injured in an accident subsequently dies because of those injuries, that person's heirs may recover money through a lawsuit because of the incident. If a person with a claim dies from unrelated causes, the tort claim survives in most cases and may be brought by the executor or the personal representative of the deceased person's estate or heirs, although the amount that can be recovered may change.
If you are not already a Personal Injury attorney then the answer is simple - at Ingraham Pautienus & Tidwell, PLLC we have handled numerous personal injury claims, including catastrophic losses and wrongful death cases. We know the process, the possible pitfalls, and the likely counter arguments that the insurance adjusters and defense attorneys will assert. We will prepare the best possible legal case to present to a Tennessee judge and/or jury.
At Ingraham Pautienus & Tidwell, PLLC, we thoroughly investigate your claim by gathering evidence, prove who is responsible for the accident, estimate what your claim is worth, and prepare solid arguments on any possible legal issues. We then prepare and submit a formal demand letter to the insurance company of the person that we believe is responsible for your injuries. The demand letter may need to be sent to your own insurance company if you are covered by an automobile policy and need to make a claim for uninsured or under insured motorist coverage. At this point, we will engage in negotiations with the insurance company in an attempt to reach a settlement that is agreeable to you. If settlement discussions are unsuccessful, we can prepare, file, and take your lawsuit to trial before a jury.
Yes, Christians should certainly forgive the wrongdoer. However, forgiveness is a different Biblical concept than restitution. Restitution is the concept of restoring a person to his or her original position prior to a loss or injury. The concept of restitution was given by God in the Mosaic Law (the Ten Commandments and the other laws given to Moses by God) and the Mosaic Law is the basis for most of our legal system.
At Ingraham Pautienus & Tidwell, PLLC, as Christian attorneys, our goal is to represent you in the process of receiving restitution, not retribution. Contact us today to learn more.
Disclaimer
The information you obtain at this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation. We invite you to contact us and welcome your calls, letters and electronic mail. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not send any confidential information to us until such time as an attorney-client relationship has been established.
At Ingraham Pautienus & Tidwell, PLLC, we represent people throughout Middle Tennessee, including clients in Nashville, Brentwood, Franklin, Murfreesboro, Gallatin, Clarksville, Davidson County, Williamson County, Rutherford County, Robertson County, Sumner County, Wilson County, Putnam County, Maury County, Coffee County, and Cheatham County.
