The Necessary Steps to Take After a Car Accident

Despite numerous car and road safety enhancements, the chances of getting into a car accident remains high. The worst thing apart from sustaining possible injuries is the financial mess one can get into. To prevent the current problem from escalating, the first wise move you can do is to contact the police even if there are no signs of injury. This way, you can easily deal with your insurance company with a police report at hand.

If your camera still works after the accident, use it to take pictures of the scene, vehicle damage, and your injuries. Take note, however, that you should not get in the way of the police investigation. Keep these photos as supporting documents. Moreover, you should get all the pertinent information such as the contact details of all individuals, including the drivers and other passengers involved in the accident. Personal information of the witnesses, if there are any, should also be obtained.

Lastly, don't forget to always consult a lawyer because you have to protect your rights and the evidence you have gathered. Since insurance companies usually seek victim statements after an accident, legal advice should be sought prior to any statement release to ensure that in the end, you will get the compensation you deserve. 

A Closer Examination of Personal Injury Legal Cases

Nobody wants to get into an accident. They can happen to anyone, however, and the worst kind is when the accident wasn't your fault. How prepared are you to deal with the hassles that it may bring your way?

Hopefully, you at least know what to do and where to get help, especially when you're the aggrieved party. Getting into an accident, whether it's your fault or not, is stressful to say the least. Then again, you can take comfort in knowing that there are people willing to be of help to you. One of these is a personal injury lawyer.

Let's say you have already contacted one. Do you know what to expect when dealing with him or her? If not, here are some things to keep in mind:

Lawyers who offer legal assistance in a personal injury case charge differently. There are those whose rates are computed on a per hour or by percentage basis. Others put a price on specific types of problems they're going to deal with.  

Their rates may vary but the purpose that they serve is the same. Personal injury lawyers help you get the claim you deserve under the law. Their profound understanding of the law can give you a better perspective of your stand. 

These lawyers assumes the role of partner, support system, and defender in your fight for justice in a misfortune that isn't of your own negligence.

A Close Look at the Challenges of Driving in Toronto

If you drive along Toronto's roads on your way to work or school and back, you know how much of a hassle it can be to get caught in a nightmarish jam. Having to deal with drivers prone to road rage can be a headache, but trying to understand careless pedestrians or bicycle riders who act like they're driving a truck can also be very frustrating.

“Count your blessings”, you might tell yourself. “At least I don't have to take public transport.” Even so, driving your own car is fraught with challenges, and one of those challenges is to prevent clueless but gutsy pedestrians from bumping into your car.

When countdown timers were put up in some Toronto intersections, many people believed that it was going to make both motorists and pedestrians more careful on the road. It seems that cautiousness, however, is relative. If a pedestrian has all the time in the world to spare, he is will be willing to wait for his turn to cross the street. Otherwise, you, as a driver, should not let go of the patience you were taught to adapt in driving school.

If you somehow figured in an accident that is by no means your fault in the first place, consult a local car accident lawyer. He'll be able to prove that you abide by Toronto's traffic rules.

A Guide to Getting Good Wind of the Defense’s Strategy

Slip-and-fall cases are usually tough to see through to the end. There are various tactics employed to see which side is at fault. If you are the victim of a slip-and-fall in another person's property, you may have an idea of how hard it is to seek damages. However, there are ways to see through the defense’s walls and ensure your lawyer can act accordingly.

One major card the other side is expected to play is to argue that the owners are not at fault. For example, if the accident was caused by an object lying around in the victim’s immediate vicinity, they can say that another person dropped the item before the accident. As a result, the person in question may have to be put on the witness stand. Take note that the property owners can claim there was not enough time to prevent the danger.

Be prepared for the possibility that they will try turning things around on you. The defense can allege that you were forewarned about the possibility of loose objects in the area and therefore you should exercise caution. It can be worse if there were warning signs but you may have chosen to ignore it.

It is paramount to seek redress for your woes. However, you should anticipate the defense’s plan of action as well.

The World's Biggest Personal Injury Payout at a Glance

Did you know that the Guinness World Record for the highest personal injury payout to an individual is valued at more than $160 million? This is just four-fifths of the overall personal injury payout settled in 1993 in the Supreme Court of the State of New York.

Six years prior to the verdict, nine people in a rent-a-car station wagon were involved in an accident with a tractor trailer that had broken down that day. Among them was a couple from Sri Lanka; the wife was so severely injured as to require nursing care for almost fifty years.

Details of the court describe future pain and suffering comprising the biggest part of the huge payout ($92 million). The rent-a-car dealership and the company where the tractor trailer driver reported to were found equally liable in the accident.

How did an ordinary accident case yield millions in compensation? As mentioned earlier, the severity of her injuries came to the point that she needed nursing care for the next several decades, including labor and medical equipment expenses.

Ontario has had its fair share of personal injury awards. However, the payouts were a fraction of this world record. Nevertheless, given the right circumstances, personal injury settlements can reach into the millions.

Should You Hire a Lawyer After a Car Crash?

There's good news for drivers: according to Statistics Canada, the number of casualties in vehicular accidents has been slashed by half over the last 25 years, despite the growing number of vehicles on the road. Having said that, these accidents are still a fact of life, with over 120,000 related injuries reported in 2009 alone.

Aside from vehicle repairs following these mishaps, drivers and passengers also have to deal with expensive medical bills for treating their injuries. Granted, victims can seek damages from the driver proven to be at fault, but the process is rarely smooth. Insurance adjusters can use every trick in the legal books to low-ball a settlement claim. After all, they work for insurance companies and also look to save more money for their employers. If you feel that you aren't being given a reimbursement commensurate to the damage and injuries you sustained following a vehicular accident, a Toronto personal injury lawyer will ensure that you do.

Your lawyer can also help if there are disputes over who caused the accident. Saying “I'm sorry” after an incident will often be taken by the other party as an admission of fault, even when you are the victim. Personal injury lawyers will ensure that the erring party is the one who pays the aggrieved.

Just Compensation for Disabled Employees

Employees who sustained an injury in the course of their jobs that resulted in permanent partial disability are entitled to personal disability benefits. Such benefits come in the form of medical provision and financial assistance to answer for hospital and legal expenses. These are meant to serve as just compensation for the pain, suffering, and loss of amenity that was endured by the employee. Benefits are especially important if the injury or disability rendered employees unable to resume work or to return to their original state of health before they were hurt.

Personal disability lawyers can provide the necessary legal assistance that injured or disabled workers require in order to gain the benefits that they are legally entitled to. The lawyers will first study the employee's medical records and review the accounts of the involved parties and witnesses, if any, in order to know the nature and extent of the injury.

Afterwards, personal disability lawyers will evaluate the compensation necessary based on the degree or severity of the sustained injury. Compensation also depends on factors such as how fast the employee can recover physically.

In some cases, medical insurance providers attempt to deny employees' claims so as not to provide for them financially and thereby reduce their own company costs. It is thus the job of disability lawyers to create a case for their clients and ensure that just compensation is given to them.

Hire a Lawyer When Applying for Disability

Canadian citizens who are suddenly unable to work at any job due to a disability may want to apply for a Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability benefit. The CPP disability benefit is a monthly payment available to people who regularly contributed to the Canadian Pension Plan while they were working. The main objective of the pension plan is to subsidize the earnings of people who recently paid into the CPP.

If your application is approved, you can collect CPP benefits until you are 65 with minimal paperwork to prove that you are really disabled. That said, the entire application process can be very time consuming and cumbersome which is why some people prefer to work with a disability attorney. Lawyers who specialize in this field can guide you through the entire process and prevent the possibility of committing errors in the paperwork that could slow down the process.

According to the Service Canada website, disability benefit is approved not on the nature of your disability or disease but rather how the condition (along with the treatment involved) affected your ability to find regular employment. A lawyer can help prove your claim by correctly establishing your circumstance so there is a stronger chance of approval. However, in the event that your application is rejected, a lawyer can likewise help you with your appeal so you can get the benefits that are rightfully yours.