Serious Injury Claims *

Serious injury is a form of personal injury * which can result in a fracture, disfigurement, loss of an organ or in extreme cases can be fatal. It can also have consequences emotionally, causing trauma and psychological injuries * for a person. Unfortunately, everyone is susceptible to a serious injury *. Injuries can happen at any place and at any given time. Serious Injury * can heavily impact on the quality of life of a person and considerably disrupt their daily routine. At Tracey Solicitors, our team of personal injury solicitors * are available to answer any queries you may have on the matter. If you suffered from a serious injury * you may be able to seek a legal remedy for the injury.

When do serious injuries happen?

Serious injuries * can usually be categorised under specific headings. Some of these headings include:

**When do I need a personal injury solicitor*?**

Accidents and injuries can occur when we least expect it. If you have been involved in an accident where you suffered a serious injury * and the cause of the accident was not your fault, then you may need to contact a personal injury solicitor * for help with the personal injury claims * process. Personal injury * can occur in a number of different ways, whether it be a slip trip or fall in a public place, an accident at work, a car accident or other. Being out of work due to an injury of any kind can affect your monthly household income. As your solicitor *, Tracey Solicitors can:

Help accessing whether or not you are eligible for making a personal injury claim *
Talk you through any costs of making a claim *, and,
Ensure that you fully understand the legal position you’re in at every stage of the process

Making a claim

In order for a solicitor to advise you on whether you are eligible to seek a legal remedy the following information and details are necessary to provide:

A detailed and accurate description of the accident is required. Every detail memorable is necessary such as where it happened, how it happened, who was involved, what you were doing at the time and contact details of any witnesses that were there at the time.
Any medical reports carried out by a qualified medical practitioner and also a list of the personal injuries * which were suffered as a result of the serious injury *. If any Gardaí reports or statements were taken these should be requested.
A document of any expenses incurred since the accident. This document will be kept with regard to special damages.

Case Settlement

The settlement of a case will vary as each case will be different. Generally, the settlement procedure would work as follows (of course, this is subject to change and your solicitor will keep you informed at each stage of the process):

Your solicitor will submit your claim to the Injuries Board for assessment
The Injuries Board assess your case and revert with a suggested compensation amount
You then decide whether to accept the amount suggested or to reject and move the next stage of the process
- If both parties accept the compensation suggest, then your case will be settled at this point.
- If one of both parties decline the suggested settlement amount then you move to the next stage of the settlement process
In cases where the Injuries Board assessment is not agreed to, then legal proceedings are issued and your case moves forward to a court hearing.
Before the court hearing, settlement talks do take place. In most cases, a case is resolved, settled and compensation agreed at the settlement talks before having to step foot into a courtroom.
If your case is not settled at the settlement talks stage then your case moves to a court hearing where a Judge will make a decision on your case.

Settlement talks are a good opportunity for your legal team to talk to the other side’s legal team to settle any disagreements on what costs are to be awarded. Costs awarded usually consist of an amount for the injury itself and added expenses you may have incurred, these claims are called damages:

General Damages: Non-financial damages such as pain and suffering and/or physical and emotional injuries following the incident and impact of the injury on your quality of life.
Special Damages: Out of pocket expenses incurred as a result of the accident * for example, loss of earnings (if you were out of work), future loss of earnings for extended time out of work, medical bills, future medical bills, and any added travel costs as a result of the injury, for example, travel to and from the hospital.

Legal time limits

The typical rule for all personal injury cases * is that a person has two years following the date of the accident or knowledge of the injury to bring forward legal proceedings from the date of when the accident occurred. The exceptions to this rule are if the person lacks the capability to make a claim themselves, a family member can then bring proceedings forward. The second exception is if a child suffers a serious injury *. The child then has two years to make a claim from their eighteenth birthday. All personal injury claims * must first be assessed by the Injuries Board to see who was liable for the accident. Some personal injury * cases may proceed to court while in some cases the party who was at fault will offer a settlement.

Contact a serious injury solicitor *

If you have suffered from a serious injury *, our team of local personal injury solicitors * in Dublin are available to answer any queries you may have. For a confidential discussion, please call Tracey Solicitors on 01 649 9900 or email ask@traceysolicitors.ie and to tell us about your case.

With 30 years’ experience as specialist personal injury solicitors *, Tracey Solicitors, ensure not to overwhelm you with legal jargon and can provide you with legal advice and guidance with your best interest at heart, in a language that you can understand.