Milwaukee Personal Injury Lawyer

A personal injury can put your health, finances, and future in danger. Make sure you get a fair and full settlement to cover your losses. Talk to a personal injury lawyer in Milwaukee.

Getting injured in an accident can quickly result in significant medical debt, emotional trauma, and many other losses. It’s frustrating dealing with a person or insurance company that refuses to cover the costs of your injuries.

If you have been hurt in an accident, the financial burden can be tremendous. You deserve to have it compensated completely. To get a fair and full settlement, you may need a Milwaukee personal injury lawyer from The Law Offices of Gary S. Greenberg. We will work diligently to win your claim.

Causes of Personal Injuries

Personal injuries can be caused by just about anything. The damage they cause can be just as varied. Whether you were hit by a car while riding a bike or suffered an illness after taking a defective drug, any personal injury scenario could easily result in serious injuries. Below are some common types of personal injuries our clients have experienced:

  • Car, motorcycle, and commercial truck accidents can be caused by distracted, drunk, or drowsy drivers. They can lead to major injuries. Insurance companies may also make these motor vehicle cases, especially motorcycle accident claims, more complex. 
  • Boating accidents are often due to operator error, failed equipment, or improper maintenance. If people are injured or killed in the accident, they or their families may have a chance to seek funds for their devastating accident.
  • Construction accidents are often caused by defective machinery or safety equipment, toxic exposure, government agencies, or errors made by third-party contractors.
  • Defective products include heaters that catch fire, brake failures, tire tread separation, and any other design or manufacturing flaw causing an injury.
  • Slip-and-falls usually mean negligence on the part of the property owner. If someone failed to warn you about slippery or dangerous areas of the property, reach out to let us handle your case.
  • Dog bites are the fault of the owner. Reach out to a lawyer for help to seek justice after a dog attack.
  • Work accidents may be the fault of a worker, but they’re not always the at-fault party. Worker accidents that resulted in injuries may be the responsibility of their employer. 

Many of these accident types can include multiple at-fault parties. Identifying the cause of yours is key to determining if you have grounds for an injury claim. Naming every responsible party in your lawsuit will maximize your potential award.

What Should I Do After I’m Hurt? 

After a serious injury, you may feel traumatized, scared, and unsure where to turn. That leads many injury victims to make mistakes that can put a lawsuit in jeopardy. Because of this, you need to ensure you’re taking the right steps forward after your hurt.

No matter what type of personal injury you’ve suffered, you need to seek medical attention as soon as possible for your injuries. Medical care can prevent your injuries from worsening, as well as creating documentation that you were injured in the accident.

If applicable, you’ll also need to contact the insurance company. While you should always be careful about what you say, you need to report that an accident happened at all in a short time period.

Once you’re safe and your accident has been reported, it may be time to consider a lawyer. Your attorney can help you determine whether you’re eligible for compensation, gather evidence, and file your claim in court. Your lawyer can represent you throughout the process, easing the pressure on you so you can focus on your recovery.

Types of Personal Injuries

Your injuries could be life altering or merely painful. But every injury has financial, professional, personal, and emotional costs. Putting dollar amounts to some of these can be difficult. That makes the critical eye of a personal injury lawyer in Milwaukee key to finding the true value of your claim.

Regardless of whether you suffered head, neck, or back injuries; severe bone breaks or burns; or even seemingly mild nerve damage, you deserve to heal without the burden of paying for someone else’s mistake.

Personal injuries often include brain or spinal damage that lead to paralysis and other disabilities. Severe limb damage can require amputations. Burns may need painful skin grafts. Persistent nerve pain is a terrible thing to live with.

Your Wisconsin injury lawyer will work with your doctors to determine how long your recovery will take and what sort of treatment you will need to make the fullest recovery possible. When you’re ready, our lawyers can provide representation for even the most difficult personal injuries. 

Mental Trauma Is a Type of Personal Injury

Unfortunately, it’s not just the physical pain you’ll need to worry about. Head trauma or bone fractures are major injuries. But the mental toll of a serious injury can be hard to deal with, too. A serious accident can leave you suffering from the symptoms of anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression. All of these trauma-induced conditions can affect your life for years following the injury.

Although we often think of combat and war zones when we think of PTSD, a serious accident can leave you with emotional and physical scars. For example, you might have been attacked by a dog while on an afternoon stroll. The physical damage might have been severe, but the mental damage should be considered, too.

After your bite, you might go to extreme lengths to avoid dogs. You might no longer enjoy parks, spending time with friends who own dogs, or being in places where you might come across a dog. The worry and trauma can leave you struggling with nightmares and sleeplessness. All of this impacts the quality of your daily life.

How Much Is My Personal Injury Case Worth?

The costs of your injury, both immediate and future, can and should be completely covered by your final settlement amount. Many damages and non-economic losses are difficult to turn into precise dollar values. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you list all your losses and figure out what they are worth.

Let’s say you were hurt in a serious motorcycle accident. Your losses may impact many areas of your life, from your financial wellbeing to your mental state. If you’re struggling to get compensated fairly, your lawyer can act as an advocate for your recovery, seeking the funds you’re due. Below are a few types of loss your personal injury might involve:

  • Any lost income incurred by the accident or during recovery time
  • Any permanent changes in your ability to work
  • Any medical costs, including hospital stays, specialist visits, over-the-counter and prescription meds, rehab, and equipment
  • Any home or car modifications made to accommodate new disabilities
  • Pain and suffering, whether from the accident or your injuriesEmotional distress, such as PTSD or anxiety
  • Damage done to your marriage and personal relationships

Seeking Punitive Damages in Your Milwaukee Injury Claim

In many cases, your compensatory damages are enough. You’ll have the monetary funds you need to heal in peace. However, some claims are especially serious. In these cases, you might seek punitive damages, as well. 

Punitive damages may be awarded if the at-fault parties are shown to have acted with malice,  egregious negligence, or otherwise deserve excessive punishment of some kind. For example, if you were attacked by another person, they intended to cause you harm. You’ll need to seek damages for that intended harm.

Unfortunately, these damages are difficult to seek on your own. They’re also limited in value. Punitive damages in Wisconsin are capped at $200,000 or twice your compensatory damages. You’ll need to contact your lawyer and discuss your options. Punitive damages can help you and your family recover. But you’ll need evidence to show the person was acting maliciously.  

Proving Your Milwaukee Personal Injury Claim

When you’re hurt by another party’s actions, gathering evidence that they injured you is an important first step. You and your lawyer must prove they caused your injuries to get the compensation you’re due because of their negligence or intent to harm you. 

Gathering witness reports can help your claim. This may include eyewitnesses, who saw the accident and whose stories match your version of events. It can also include expert witnesses, whose expertise helps prove the other party was at fault, such as an accident reconstruction expert. 

Struggling to get the evidence you need? Speak with a personal injury lawyer in Milwaukee. They have the tools you need to gather evidence and support your claim in court.

What Your Insurer Can Do for Your Personal Injury

A serious injury can cause immense suffering. Often, you just want this difficult time to be behind you. You want to get on with your recovery rather than fight another person for the money you deserve. Fortunately, for many people, your insurance should cover your injuries.

After your accident, you’ll need to contact the appropriate insurance provider. In the case of a car accident, you might file a third-party claim with the other driver’s insurer, or you’ll simply contact your own. The insurance company’s responses should give you the answers you need about your claim. 

Once they’re ready to investigate your claim, the insurance adjuster will review the accident and your injuries. They’ll gather evidence that you were injured as you claimed in your demand letter. Then they’ll send you a letter of approval with a settlement check. In some cases, getting one of these responses is all you need. But it’s possible that the insurance company won’t work with you on your claim. 

In many cases, this settlement offer is all you need for a full recovery. The insurance provider will cover the necessary expenses, and, as long as that’s the full settlement you deserve, you won’t need to do anything more than focus on healing. Unfortunately, if your insurance company isn’t cooperating, this won’t be the end of your personal injury journey.

Going to Court in Milwaukee vs. Settling Through Negotiations

By far, the most important reason to work with a personal injury lawyer is to avoid being taken advantage of by insurance companies and opposing lawyers. The sad truth is that these parties may care little about your recovery. They may want to pay you the smallest amount they can get away with.

Your Wisconsin personal injury lawyer will handle the negotiations on your behalf. That way you don’t risk having a statement you made used against you later. We are able to settle most cases out of court. As long as the other side is willing to make a fair settlement offer, trial won’t be necessary.

But sometimes, setting a court date is needed to get the insurer to negotiate in earnest. And if a good offer still isn’t made, we’ll let you know. We’ll be prepared to go to trial and represent you. However your case turns out, you can count on your Milwaukee lawyer to give you sound legal advice and capable representation in the legal process.

Costs of Hiring an Attorney

When you’re hurt, you need experience on your side to get useful representation and the tools you need to recover. But is turning to a lawyer’s office your best option? In many cases, our lawyers can help push the at-fault party to compensate you, but you may still be worried about the costs. 

Free consultations aren’t the only financial aid we offer for injury victims. We’re also paid through contingency fees. If your accident resulted in injuries, and you hire our lawyers to represent your case, your fees will be taken out of your settlement. Our plan doesn’t involve out-of-pocket fees you have to pay for our services. 

Our lawyers are also only paid for a win. Personal injury victims shouldn’t have to pay out of pocket if they didn’t get the justice they deserve. If our office of lawyers can’t get you the funds you deserve, you can focus on using your funds for your recovery, not our payments. Reach out to our office to learn more about our policies and how we can push back when the at-fault party doesn’t want to compensate you.

Talk with a Personal Injury Lawyer in Milwaukee

When you’re hurt in a serious accident, you may not have the experience needed to win your case. But that doesn’t mean you’re out of options. You can protect your interests and your future by filing a personal injury lawsuit.

We work hard to protect the rights of our clients. Injury victims shouldn’t have to pay out of pocket for their suffering. Luckily, a lawyer can provide you practical guidance and representation in the courtroom. Our consultants can review your rights, what the at-fault party owes if they didn’t compensate you, and how we can help improve your situation. 

Call 414-206-6553 or complete the form at the bottom of this page to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation with a Milwaukee personal injury lawyer from The Law Offices of Gary S. Greenberg. Act now to secure the settlement you need for your recovery.

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Milwaukee Personal Injury FAQ

The aftermath of a serious injury can be confusing and overwhelming. You likely have many concerns. Here, we’ve answered some of the questions we hear the most. Don’t see your problem addressed? Please contact us to speak with a Milwaukee injury lawyer.

How much time do I have to file a personal injury claim?

Each state has firm timelines set in place limiting the amount of time one has to file a lawsuit. The length of time allowed differs based on what type of case you are involved in. Wisconsin has a statute of limitations of three years from the date of your injuries for personal injury claims. If you wait too long and exceed this time limit, your case could be thrown out of court without ever being heard. Some exceptions to the three year statute of limitations is if your suit is against a municipal entity. This would include a city or a county. If this is the case you have 120 days to notify the government of your injuries and they require it be in writing. The city or county where your injury occurred also needs to be notified prior to filing a lawsuit.

What are non-economic damages in an injury claim?

Non-economic damages are any losses you suffer that don’t have an obvious dollar value. They tend to be intangible and affect your quality of life. Examples include pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and lost enjoyment of life. These general damages are not measurable with receipts and documents. They are subjective and vary from case to case. This is one reason that a lawyer who takes the time to get to know you and listen to the individual details of your case is of the utmost importance. Assigning a dollar amount to these unseen scars takes skill and experience. After a catastrophic injury, some of the greatest losses may fall under non-economic damages. If you are seriously injured, pain resulting from your accident may follow you for the rest of your life.

Can I still sue if I was partially at fault for my injury?

Even if you are partially at fault for your accident, you may still be able to receive a settlement. As long as someone else was more at fault than you, you can file a claim. However, the amount you get will be reduced by your own percentage of fault.

What if my injured loved one is a minor or can’t sue on their own?

If you are a minor at the time of your accident or an individual who has been deemed mentally incompetent, the three year limit may be extended. If you or an injured loved one falls into either of these categories, you have up to five years after you have sustained your injury to file for damages.

The at-fault party doesn’t live in Wisconsin. What can I do?

In all personal injury cases, fault and liability needs to be established. If the responsible party either leaves the state or resides outside of Wisconsin after the accident in question and before the lawsuit is filed, this period of absence may stall the time clock. Your best chance at a favorable outcome in a personal injury claim is quick action and trusted legal representation. Do not get dangerously close or pass the time period where you are able to seek damages for your injuries. The longer you wait, the longer you continue to suffer from the negligence of another.

What are economic damages in an injury claim?

Economic damages are tangible and can be easily quantified with documentation. Depending on the severity of your injuries, many needs can be included. Medical bills should include the total cost of all medical expenses due to the injuries arising from your accident. It is reasonable to ask for coverage for future medical costs as well if the need can be sufficiently proven. Lost wages and lost earning capacity can be recovered in injury cases. If your injuries are severe, you may have lost the ability to return to your prior career and earn the salary you once did. Any cost to you due to the necessity of hiring someone to do things around the house while you are recovering also qualifies for reimbursement. Talk to your lawyer about these damages and more when seeking compensation.

Is there a limit to my damages following a personal injury?

There is no cap on economic damages. With focused personal injury representation, you will be able to recover the total of these costs due to your needed treatment from your accident. Hospital bills, both physical and emotional therapy charges, medication bills, and ambulance fees are just a few of the bills that can add up quickly impeding your recovery.

What is loss of consortium?

Loss of consortium refers to the inability to relate to your loved ones as you did before your injuries occurred. Both severe physical injuries and emotional distress may leave you unable to be intimate with your romantic partner. You may be unable to play with your pets or grandchildren in the manner you were accustomed to and previously enjoyed. Emotional distress is a very common remnant of a traumatic injury. The stress of the accident itself, coupled with the health issues caused by the incident take a toll on your mental health and ability to recover. Post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, changes in your personality, anxiety, and impaired memory or cognition are serious long term complications.