Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota
The Land of 10,000 Lakes is also the state with thousands of different accidents, some of which leave victims with serious injuries.
As the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area (more commonly known simply as the Twin Cities) continues to grow, Minnesota has seen an increase in the number of new residents as well as annual visitors. Whether a person is in the home, at the office, or on the road, unexpected negligence of other parties can result in accidents that profoundly impact the lives of innocent people.
Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota helps the victims of all kinds of accidents that have caused catastrophic injuries or possibly even the wrongful death of a family member. We work tirelessly to hold negligent parties fully accountable.
Dedicated Minnesota Personal Injury Attorneys
Our experienced personal injury lawyers understand the tremendous financial and physical stress that severe injuries can place on accident victims. We vigorously pursue case resolutions that provide victims with full and fair compensation for all of their medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages.
Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota represents clients in the greater Minneapolis-St. Paul area as well as many surrounding areas, such as Rochester, Duluth, Bloomington, Brooklyn Park, Plymouth, Maple Grove, Woodbury, St. Cloud, and many others. We help both residents of and visitors to these communities.
Our firm provides legal representation on a contingency fee basis, which means that you pay us nothing unless you receive a monetary award.
You will want to contact a personal injury attorney before you speak to a negligent party’s insurance company—the party that will be most likely to try to contact you and get you to make some kind of recorded statement about your accident. While representatives for insurers may express seemingly sincere concern about the nature of your injuries, these agents often ask questions specifically designed to get respondents to make very damaging claims about their injuries that are later used to justify reduced compensation.
Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota can speak to these representatives on your behalf and fight to get you every last penny you are entitled to. If an insurance company is unwilling to provide an adequate settlement that fully compensates you for all of your past, presents, and future, losses, our firm will not be afraid to file a lawsuit.
Common Types of Accidents in Minnesota
Individuals can sustain serious injuries in any one of a number of different kinds of accidents. Some of the most frequent cases that Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota handles include, but are not limited to:
- Car Accidents
- Driving While Impaired (DWI or DUI) Accidents
- Motorcycle Accidents
- Commercial Vehicle Accidents
- Uber Accidents
- Bicycle Accidents
- Pedestrian Accidents
- Bus Accidents
- Wrongful Death
Minnesota Personal Injury Laws
Minnesota Statute § 541.07 establishes a statute of limitations of two years for most personal injury claims. The statute of limitations is essentially a time limit that begins on the date that an accident (the cause of a victim’s injuries) incurred. Actions filed after the statute of limitations has expired generally will not be heard by courts.
The statute of limitations can be different for certain kinds of very important exceptions. For example, Minnesota Statute § 466.05 provides that a victim only has 180 days to file a personal injury claim against a municipality or one of its employees. A lawyer can help ensure that you file the appropriate paperwork to meet important deadlines.
Minnesota Statute § 604.01 creates the comparative fault system that is used in personal injury matters in the state. Under this law, a victim’s own contributory negligence does not bar him or her from recovery of damages in a personal injury claim—so long as his or her percentage of fault is not greater than the defendant’s. Jury awards may be reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to the plaintiff.
Virtually all personal injury actions require a plaintiff to prove by a preponderance of the evidence (meaning the greater weight of the evidence presented, or more than half, supported the plaintiff) the following four elements:
- Duty of Care — The defendant had a legal or moral duty of care to conduct him, her, or itself in a reasonable manner;
- Breach — The defendant breached said duty of care to the plaintiff;
- Causation — The defendant’s breach directly caused the plaintiff’s injuries; and
- Damages — The plaintiff suffered physical or financial harm as the result of these injuries.
Damages in Minnesota Personal Injury Lawsuits
Personal injury attorneys will often engage in lengthy settlement negotiations with insurance companies because taking a case to court can be another lengthy—and extremely costly—process for both parties. When an insurer proves unwilling to provide an adequate settlement, the personal injury lawyer can file a lawsuit and attempt to prove the negligent party should be held civilly liable for the damages that the victim suffered.
A personal injury case can involve the plaintiff’s attorney presenting his or her case to a jury, who—if it rules in the plaintiff’s favor—can award plaintiffs many different kinds of damages. Generally, damages are either special damages (economic losses) or general damages (non-economic losses).
Special damages are far easier for juries to calculate because they are quantifiable losses. Common kinds of special damages include medical expenses, lost income, and property damage.
General are much more subjective. Non-economic damages can include pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and disfigurement.
When a person suffers catastrophic or fatal injuries as the result of a defendant’s “deliberate disregard for the rights or safety of others,” a plaintiff may be awarded punitive damages. Punitive damages are rarely awarded but are usually done so strictly to punish particular defendants for extraordinarily egregious conduct.
Find a Minnesota Personal Injury Attorney
Need an Injury Lawyer Minnesota serves residents and visitors in communities all over Hennepin County, Ramsey County, Dakota County, Anoka County, Washington County, Saint Louis County, and many other surrounding areas of the Gopher State. Our firm is available 24/7 to take your phone call and help you understand all of your legal rights.
You can take advantage of a a free, no obligation consultation that will allow our experienced personal injury attorneys to provide an honest and thorough evaluation of your case. We are committed to helping you get justice.