Personal Injury Lawyers in Utah

Personal injury law allows plaintiffs to file a civil lawsuit that gets them the compensation they deserve to pay for out-of-pocket expenses. The type of personal injury claim that you file is one of the factors involved in calculating what your claim should be worth.

Premise Liability

Premise liability represents a type of personal injury claim that compensates a plaintiff for suffering injuries that were caused by a dangerous or defective condition on the defendant’s property. A common type of premise liability case involves construction sites. Let’s say you walk by a construction site and an object falls on you from a platform. You have the right to file a lawsuit against the construction company for not exercising the duty of care it is supposed to exercise according to Utah's personal injury law.

Utah is home to several natural wonders that attract visitors from all over the world. The federal government runs a majority of the popular destinations. This means that if a visitor suffers an injury on government property, the federal government might be held liable for allowing a dangerous or defective condition to contribute to a visitor’s injury. For example, if you grabbed onto a railing that broke free of its support, the federal government might be liable for allowing the dangerous condition to cause you harm.

If you suffered one or more injuries while on state or federal government property, contact a personal injury lawyer in Utah to review your case.

Auto Accidents

From minor traffic violations to driving under the influence of alcohol, a car collision can send you to the nearest hospital for emergency medical care. Life-threatening injuries such as severe brain trauma and a ruptured internal organ can run your medical bills into tens of thousands of dollars. On top of the bills piling up, you might miss a significant amount of time from work.

At Morgan & Morgan, we conduct thorough investigations into auto accident cases to determine liability. If we discover the other party committed one or more acts of negligence while operating a motor vehicle, we will not hesitate to initiate a civil lawsuit that seeks monetary damages.

Slip and Falls

You walk into a convenience store and head straight for the beverage station. Right before you reach the counter, you slip and fall on a slick floor. You do not see a “Wet Floor” sign, nor do you see anyone employed at the convenience store acting with a sense of urgency to see if you are okay.

Slip and fall accidents can produce lingering injuries that can take weeks to heal. The first reaction that we have when we start to fall is to stick one or both arms out to slow down our falling momentum. Unfortunately, our instincts can cause us to fracture a wrist or an arm. Fractured arms and wrists take a considerable amount of time to heal. Rehabilitation costs alone can put you in a financial hole.

If you were a victim of a slip and fall incident, speak with a personal injury lawyer in Utah to determine the best course of legal action.

Our goal at Morgan & Morgan is to recover every last cent of what you lost because of an injury that was caused by the neglect of another party.

Monetary damages fall under two categories: special and general compensatory damages.

Special Compensatory Damages

Also called economic damages, special compensatory damages help you recover financially after suffering from one or more injuries. Medical expenses represent the costliest type of special compensatory damages. Diagnostic tests, treatment regimens, physical therapy, assistive devices, and prescription drugs can rack up medical bills that exceed $10,000.

Property damage is another type of expense that special compensatory damages cover. Damage to your vehicle is a common type of property damage that deserves to be reimbursed. If you missed work because of your injuries, special compensatory damages can help you recover lost wages.

To improve your chances of getting compensated for economic losses, save every receipt to allow your attorney to determine an accurate valuation of special compensatory damages.

General Compensatory Damages

Non-economic damages fall under the category called general compensatory damages. As the most common type of general compensatory damages, pain and suffering does not come with a price tag. A personal injury lawyer in Utah reviews your claim to determine how much you should ask for when it comes to pain and suffering.

General compensatory damages often pay for mental anguish and emotional distress. This type of monetary damages is especially helpful if you suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

You have to file a personal injury claim before the deadline in Utah expires. Utah grants plaintiffs four years to file a personal injury claim, which is two more years than what many other states grant plaintiffs. Despite the amount of time that you have to file a personal injury claim in Utah, you should file your claim as soon as possible after a personal injury incident.

If you fail to meet the four-year deadline established in Utah for filing a personal injury claim, the attorney representing the defendant will inform the court of your legal predicament. The outcome of failing to file a personal injury claim before the deadline is to have your claim dismissed.

If you believe a government agency should be held liable for negligence, you have one year from the date of the personal injury incident to file a lawsuit.

Like many states, Utah operates on the comparative fault model when determining which party is to blame for a personal injury incident. Let’s say you win an $80,000 civil judgment, but the judge presiding over the case decides you should assume 40 percent of the blame. Instead of receiving $80,000, you receive 60 percent of the judgment that comes out to $48,000. If the court rules that you should bear 50 percent or more of the responsibility for causing a personal injury incident, you might not receive any compensation at all.

Many types of personal injury cases are difficult to resolve. From collecting enough evidence to interviewing witnesses, the discovery phase of a personal injury lawsuit can take months to conclude. If the court docket in the jurisdiction where you live is full for months on end, you might have to wait more than a year to get your case heard by a civil court judge or jury.

One effective strategy that expedites the personal injury claim process is for your personal injury lawyer in Utah to negotiate a favorable settlement. A settlement helps you avoid a costly and time-consuming civil lawsuit. Costly does not mean paying legal fees; it means losing wages because you have to spend time in court.

Perhaps the better question is: “Can you afford not to hire a personal injury attorney?”

Litigating a personal injury case is all about helping you receive monetary damages. Because of the potential for a lump sum payout, most personal injury lawyers operate on a contingency fee basis. This means your attorney gets paid when you receive just compensation for your injuries. You do not pay any upfront legal fees, which includes not having to pay to meet with an attorney from Morgan & Morgan for a free case evaluation.

You should not hire just any attorney; you should hire a personal injury lawyer from Morgan & Morgan to handle your case.

We will conduct a thorough investigation to determine if negligence caused your injuries. Our team of highly-rated personal injury attorneys helps you gather and collect evidence, as well as obtain a copy of the formal police report. You provide us with a list of witnesses, and we interview each one to build a stronger case. If negotiations fail to get you a resolution, we will prepare you for the civil trial.

Schedule a free case evaluation with a personal injury attorney at Morgan & Morgan.