Personal Injury Law in Honolulu, HI
Were you hurt due to another’s negligence in Honolulu? If so, it may have far-reaching consequences such as a loss of wages or extensive medical treatment. Personal injury law allows an injured person to get damages if the responsible person acted recklessly. A personal injury attorney in Honolulu, HI can help navigate the lawsuit to make sure you receive all of the compensation you deserve.
What Is Personal Injury Law?
Personal injury law in Honolulu relates to the legal process of getting compensation for an injury caused by someone else’s negligent behavior. These cases involve one party, the plaintiff, trying to seek financial compensation for expenses incurred and money lost as a result of the defendant’s reckless behavior. These cases involve both parties’ insurance companies and may even settle before proceeding to litigation.
Examples of Personal Injury Claims in Honolulu, HI
Some personal injury claims are more common than others. However, almost any incident that ends with a physical or mental injury could qualify, depending on the circumstances.
A few of the most common personal injury claims are:
- Car Accidents
- Slip and Fall
- Dog Bites
- Medical Malpractice
- Workplace Accidents
- Burn Injuries
Most Common Injuries in Honolulu
According to the Hawaii State Department of Health, fatal injuries are a major public health problem in Hawaii, constituting the 4th leading cause of death among state residents. In Honolulu, the state’s population epicenter, rates of injury per population are surprisingly lower. In addition, 91% of injuries were treated in emergency rooms, and 95% of nonfatal injuries were traffic-related, occurring on public roads.
Steps in a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Honolulu, HI
Once you determine that you wish to proceed forward with a personal injury action in Hawaii
A lawsuit begins when a complaint is filed with the court and served on the defendant. The complaint alleges your assertion as the plaintiff that the defendant’s negligent behavior resulted in damage to your body or mental state. As the process proceeds forward, you may have to go through depositions, independent medical evaluations, and document production. This discovery process is lengthy and ends in either a settlement or a court appearance. In Hawaii, the defendant will be served once you file a complaint with the court. Then the defendant will review the allegations listed against them. Next, is the discovery process where attorneys gather evidence to support their claims. At any time during the process, the defendant can offer to settle the lawsuit. However, if no settlement is reached, then you can take the matter to trial. With most personal injury cases, insurance companies and injured parties prefer settlement negotiations rather than going to court for a trial. You may wonder how much you should seek in your settlement and the factors that impact the final amount. Patients injured in Hawaii on average, were hospitalized for about 1 week. In addition, the average medical charges per patient was a staggering $46,000 according to the Hawaii State Department of Health’s Executive Summary. The bottom line is that injuries can be costly. Even if they aren’t severe. The severity or type of injury that you incur, is a huge factor in any personal injury settlement. If the other party has insurance, the insurance company likely wants to settle out of court to avoid leaving the final settlement decision to a jury. Settlements benefit injured parties as much as they do insurance companies. This is because accepting a settlement means you receive compensation sooner rather than later. Also, by going to court in HI, that means you risk not receiving any compensation at all. If your Hawaii personal injury lawsuit goes before a judge or jury, your legal team will be ready with a request for damages. In personal injury cases, there are three types of damage awards a court may order the defendant to pay. To compensate you for the damage he or she inflicted. Special compensatory damages are intended to reimburse tangible losses like lost wages, medical expenses, and insurance deductibles. To claim these damages, you must provide receipts or other documentation to verify your losses. General compensatory damages, on the other hand, address more subjective losses. If you are awarded special damages, you may also be eligible to receive general damages. For instance, if your injury caused significant pain or emotional distress, you can request compensation for the pain and suffering you endured, subject to the judge’s discretion. Punitive damages are the most rarely awarded and are up to the court. The judge or jury may determine that the defendant’s negligence was particularly heinous and the resulting injury to you was equally horrific. Although there is no cap on economic damages, like medical bills, in Hawaii, there is a $375,000 cap on pain and suffering or non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases. The injured party may have a set amount of time to file suit for a personal injury case. State law establishes statutes of limitation. Commonly, the plaintiff’s injury or discovery of the injury begins the statute of limitations. However, the latter factor is trickier, as the plaintiff will have to prove when the injury was first realized. In most Honolulu personal injury cases, the Hawaii State Code states that you have two years from the date of the injury to file a suit. We recommend you speak with a personal injury lawyer for this matter. Don’t wait too long and miss out on receiving the compensation you deserve for your injury. Pursue a personal injury claim in Honolulu against the responsible person if you are dealing with an injury caused by someone else. One of our experienced lawyers can help you navigate your personal injury claim. We can even help you connect with an attorney across Hawaii state lines. Submit a request online or call us today at (866) 345-6784 to get in touch with an experienced lawyer in your area! Aaron is a professional legal writer with a B.S. in English Education from Southern Illinois University – Carbondale. He has written, published, and edited thousands of legal articles for RequestLegalHelp, which has connected over 5 million people to legal help in the United States. With over five years of experience writing thousands of legal articles for law firms across the U.S. and Canada, Aaron specializes in covering federal, state, and city-level legal issues ranging from auto accidents to wrongful terminations. Have doubts about whether this area of law fits your situation? Learn about other areas of Honolulu law!Hawaii Personal Injury Settlement
Damage Awards in Hawaii
Statute of Limitations in Honolulu, HI Personal Injury Law?
Work With an Experienced Honolulu, HI Lawyer
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