You need the best Orange County personal injury lawyers by your side if you or a loved one has sustained an injury caused by the actions of another party. When you work with an attorney, you will have an advocate who can fully examine every aspect of your claim, conduct an extensive investigation, and vigorously negotiate to recover compensation for your losses.
At DiMarco | Araujo | Montevideo, we have been practicing law since 1979 and are fully integrated into the communities that we serve. Our team has an extensive track record of success and name recognition because we continuously recover major settlements and verdicts on behalf of clients.
Our team offers peace of mind to every client that comes through our door. We focus on a client-centered approach to every case that we take, which means that we listen to your goals and needs as we move forward with developing the appropriate case strategy. We have no problem standing up to aggressive insurance carriers or legal teams to ensure that you are properly cared for.
Ultimately, our trial attorneys in Orange County have no problem taking a case to trial if that is what is necessary to secure full compensation for a client. We are available 24 hours a day, and every initial case evaluation and consultation is absolutely free. You will meet with and speak to an attorney, and you will not incur any fees for our time and assistance upfront.
Our attorneys are dedicated to recovering compensation for those who have sustained injuries caused by the careless or negligent actions of others. Additionally, we also work with individuals who have sustained on-the-job injuries to recover the compensation they are entitled to.
But what exactly is a personal injury lawsuit?
The vast majority of injury claims are resolved through settlements with insurance carriers. This could include insurance carriers of other parties or workers’ compensation insurance carriers. However, in the event the insurance carrier refuses to offer a fair settlement, or if they deny a claim altogether, it may be necessary for an injury victim to file a personal injury lawsuit in civil court.
A personal injury lawsuit is a civil claim filed by the injury victim (the plaintiff) against the alleged negligent party (the defendant). For example, if a distracted driver runs a red light and slams into the side of a vehicle, causing injuries to the other driver, then the injured victim may be able to file a personal injury lawsuit against the distracted driver to recover compensation.
In these cases, it is crucial for a plaintiff to show that a defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff in the given situation and that the duty of care was violated in some way. Additionally, the plaintiff will have to show that they suffered some sort of monetary loss (damages) as a result of the defendant’s negligent actions.
At DiMarco Araujo Montevideo, we have experience handling a wide range of types of injury cases. This includes every type of vehicle accident that can occur, including Orange County car accidents, commercial truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, pedestrian and bicycle accidents, bus accidents, and more.
Additionally, our team also handles a range of other types of injury cases. This includes medical malpractice incidents, product liability and defective product claims, premises liability incidents, dog bite claims, workplace injuries, workers’ compensation, and more.
Our attorneys also help family members who have lost a loved one as a result of the careless or negligent actions of other parties. Our compassionate wrongful death lawyers are ready to sit with your family and discuss your case so we can determine the best path moving forward for recovering closure and compensation.
We are also currently investigating business loss, property damage, and injury claims associated with the Amplify Energy Orange oil spill in Orange County.
If a person sustains injuries caused by the negligent actions of another individual or entity in Orange County, they may be able to recover various types of compensation for their losses. At DiMarco Araujo Montevideo, our goal is to recover both economic and non-economic damages on behalf of our clients.
There is no set amount of compensation awarded to personal injury victims in Orange County. Regardless of whether or not a person recovers compensation through an insurance settlement or through a personal injury lawsuit verdict handed down from a jury, there are various factors that will be taken into consideration when determining dollar amounts. Some of these factors include the severity of the injuries, the level of property damage, whether or not there was any shared fault for the incident, and how much pain and suffering can be documented.
Ultimately, a skilled Orange County trial lawyer can help you move towards the best path of recovering total compensation. At DiMarco | Araujo | Montevideo, our clients know that we are the best at what we do, which is why we get so many referrals for our services.
When working to calculate total damages, we will gather various bills and receipts as well as pay stubs, tax returns, letters from employers, and more. However, calculating non-economic damages is a bit more challenging. To do this, we may use what is called a “multiplier method,” which means we will add up all of the economic damages and then multiply that total by a set number to reach the non-economic damage total. For example, if you sustain $500,000 worth of economic damages as a result of your injuries, we may use a multiplier of “three” to reach a non-economic total of $1.5 million. Overall, we would ask for $2 million in compensation on your behalf.
It is crucial for any personal injury victim in Orange County to know that they have a limited amount of time to file these claims. Overall, the California personal injury statute of limitations is two years from the date an injury occurs. This means that an injury victim has a two-year window with which to file a lawsuit against the alleged negligent party in their case. If the claim is not filed within this timeframe, the plaintiff will be unable to recover compensation for their losses because their case will be dismissed by a judge.
However, the statute of limitations for personal injuries is not the only time frame that individuals need to be aware of. If there is an insurance carrier involved in the case, you can be sure that there are other deadlines in place. Every insurance carrier will want an injury to be reported to them fairly quickly after the incident occurs. For example, car accident insurance carriers typically require an injury to be reported within a day or two after the crash. Failing to promptly file an insurance claim could result in the insurance carrier delaying or denying the claim unnecessarily.
We strongly encourage you to work with an attorney who can get involved in the case quickly and get the claim filed with the insurance carriers and in the court system on time.
We understand that many individuals avoid contacting attorneys after sustaining injuries because they are worried about the cost. However, we want you to know that our team takes Orange County personal injury and work injury claims on a contingency fee basis. This means that clients never have to worry about any upfront or out-of-pocket costs related to their case. We handle all of that on behalf of our clients.
Additionally, clients will not pay any legal fees until after we successfully recover the compensation that they are entitled to. It is as simple as this – if we do not win the case, our clients do not pay a dime. We want you to have the compensation that you need before you even think about having to pay a legal fee.
It is not uncommon for insurance carriers or at-fault parties to push back against the claim by blaming the injury victim (the plaintiff) for causing their own injuries. In reality, there are times when more than one party will be at fault. Sometimes, two, three, or more parties could share blame for a single incident. This can certainly complicate an injury claim.
California operates under what is called a “pure comparative negligence” system. This is different from how other states handle shared fault. In California, a person can recover compensation even if they are up to 99% at fault for the incident. In other states, the cut-off is typically at 50% or 51%. What this means is that a person partially at fault may still be able to recover compensation, even if the other party tries to use shared fault as a reason not to pay a claim.
For an example of how this works, let us suppose that a person is T-boned by a drunk driver at an intersection after the drunk driver runs a stop sign. Let us presume that the injury victim sustains $100,000 worth of medical bills. In theory, the injury victim should be able to recover full compensation from the drunk driver’s insurance carrier. However, what if it is discovered that the injury victim was 20% at fault for the incident because they or distracted by their cell phone and would have otherwise seen the drunk driver running the stop sign?
In this scenario, if a jury decides to assign 20% of the blame to the victim, $80,000 would be awarded in compensation instead of the full $100,000 to account for the percentage of fault. Comparative negligence can significantly alter the total value of a claim, which is why it is crucial for injury victims to work with a skilled attorney who can push back against any allegation of fault.
Most personal injury claims are resolved through settlements with insurance carriers, which means you would not have to actually go to court to recover compensation. However, if a claim cannot be settled with an insurance carrier or with the legal team of the other party, it may be necessary to move forward with a jury trial, which means you would have to go to court. To allay any fears you may have, we encourage you to speak with one of our attorneys about this entire process.
If you or somebody you care about has sustained an injury caused by the careless or negligent actions of another individual or entity in Orange County, reach out to an attorney immediately. At DiMarco Araujo Montevideo, we have extensive experience handling complex injury claims, and we will stand by your side until you are properly cared for. We have every intention of standing up to aggressive insurance carriers, and we have no problem taking your claim to trial if that is what it takes to recover the compensation you need. When you need an Orange County trial lawyer for your personal injury claim, you can contact us for a free consultation by clicking here or calling us at (714) 783-2205.
