Shelby Township Personal Injury Lawyers

Personal Injury Cases We Handle in Shelby Township

Personal injury claims can arise from traffic crashes, unsafe property conditions, medical errors, animal attacks, and other forms of negligence. Our Shelby Township personal injury lawyers handle a range of cases involving serious injuries and disputed liability.

Why Hire Our Shelby Township Personal Injury Lawyers?

Serious injuries have the potential to affect you for life. Even those that heal more quickly can leave you with high medical bills and extended time away from work. At LegalGenius, our Shelby Township personal injury lawyers fight to win. We negotiate aggressively and are prepared to take your case to court to get the compensation you need.

When you work with our trusted Michigan personal injury law firm, you benefit from the following:

• Decades of Personal Injury Experience: LegalGenius has represented injured people throughout Michigan for over 25 years. That experience helps us identify issues that can affect your claim and make it as strong and compelling as possible.
• Millions Recovered for Injured Clients: While past results don’t guarantee the outcome of another case, we’ve recovered millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for injured clients. We assess medical expenses, lost earnings, future treatment, reduced earning ability, pain and suffering, and other recoverable losses when valuing a claim. 
• Direct Access to Your Attorney: LegalGenius gives clients direct access to the attorney handling their case. You can ask questions, discuss changes in treatment, review settlement proposals, and receive updates as your claim progresses. 
• Experience Dealing With Insurance Companies: Insurers may dispute fault, question medical treatment, challenge causation, or minimize your losses. We handle insurer communications, respond to disputes, submit documentation, and negotiate for compensation. If settlement talks fail, we’re prepared to pursue the case in court. 
• No Attorney Fees Unless We Recover Compensation: LegalGenius handles personal injury claims on a contingency-fee basis. You don’t pay upfront attorney fees. We also offer a free initial consultation so you can discuss your claim before deciding how to proceed.

Do You Have a Personal Injury Claim?

A viable personal injury claim generally depends on proving that another party acted negligently and caused your injuries through that negligence. The evidence must also show that you sustained losses for which compensation may be available. Here are the criteria to keep in mind:

• Another Party Owed You a Duty of Care: A duty of care is a legal obligation to act with reasonable caution. Drivers must operate vehicles safely, property owners must address certain hazards, and healthcare providers must meet applicable professional standards.
• That Party Breached the Duty: A breach occurs when someone fails to meet the required standard of conduct. Examples include running a red light, failing to repair a dangerous condition, or making a medical error that falls below the applicable standard of care.
• The Breach Caused Your Injury: You must be able to connect the negligent conduct to the injuries or illness you suffered. Medical records, accident reports, witness statements, photographs, and other evidence can help establish causation.
• You Sustained Compensable Losses: Recoverable losses may include medical bills, lost wages, reduced earning ability, pain and suffering, disability, and other damages allowed under Michigan law.

What Compensation Can You Recover After a Personal Injury?

The value of a personal injury claim depends on the severity of your injuries as well as their long-term effects, your financial losses, and available insurance coverage. Compensation may include several categories of damages, many of which are outlined below.

• Medical Expenses: You may seek compensation for emergency care, hospitalization, surgery, rehabilitation, medication, and follow-up treatment related to your injuries. Future medical care may also be included when your condition requires ongoing treatment, therapy, or medical equipment. Medical records and billing statements can help document these expenses.
• Lost Income: If your injuries prevent you from working, your claim may include wages you lost during your recovery. Lost income can also include missed overtime, bonuses, commissions, or reduced hours when supported by employment records. Pay stubs, tax records, and employer statements can help establish these losses.
• Reduced Earning Capacity: Some injuries may limit the type of work you can perform or affect your ability to earn income in the future. This type of damage may apply when you can return to work but can’t perform the same duties, work the same hours, or earn the same pay. Medical records, employment history, and vocational testimony may help establish the amount of future income loss.
• Pain and Suffering: Noneconomic damages may compensate you for physical pain caused by your injuries. They may also account for emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and limitations on daily activities. The amount can depend on the severity, duration, and long-term effects of the injury.
• Disability and Disfigurement: Permanent injuries may support further damages when they affect your mobility, independence, appearance, or ability to perform daily tasks. Examples include loss of function, scarring, amputation, paralysis, and permanent movement restrictions. Medical evidence can help show how these injuries affect your life now and in the future.
• Property Damage and Out-of-Pocket Losses: Motor vehicle claims may include the cost of repairing or replacing damaged property. You may also incur expenses for transportation, medical equipment, home assistance, or other accident-related needs. Receipts, invoices, repair estimates, and payment records can help document these losses.
• Wrongful Death Damages: When an injury is fatal, eligible family members or the estate may pursue damages allowed under Michigan’s wrongful death statute. These damages may include funeral and burial expenses, loss of financial support, and loss of companionship. The amount available depends on the losses suffered by the estate and qualifying survivors.

Michigan Car Accident Claims – an Overview

In Michigan, car accident claims can involve both no-fault benefits and claims against an at-fault driver. Here’s an overview of the system in this state and criteria you should be aware of.

Michigan’s No-Fault Insurance System

Michigan no-fault insurance can provide benefits after a crash regardless of who caused it. These benefits are separate from a liability claim against an at-fault driver. The available benefits depend on the policy and the losses caused by the accident.

Personal Injury Protection Benefits

PIP medical coverage pays allowable expenses for care, recovery, and rehabilitation after an auto accident. Michigan drivers may select unlimited medical coverage or limits of $500,000, $250,000, or, for qualifying Medicaid enrollees, $50,000 per person per accident. Some people with qualifying health coverage may exclude PIP medical coverage, while qualifying Medicare enrollees may opt out entirely.

Wage-loss benefits, replacement services, and certain funeral and burial benefits are separate from the selected PIP medical limit. They remain part of the auto policy even when someone excludes or opts out of PIP medical coverage.

Claims Against the At-Fault Driver

In Michigan, you may be able to pursue an at-fault driver for noneconomic damages if the crash caused death, permanent serious disfigurement, or a serious impairment of body function. The at-fault driver may also be responsible for certain economic losses that exceed the benefits available through no-fault insurance.

Note: A serious impairment of body function has three parts:

• The impairment must be objectively manifested, meaning it can be observed or medically documented. 
• It must affect a body function that is important to your life, such as walking, lifting, working, driving, or using an arm or leg.
• The impairment must affect your general ability to live your normal life. 

What Should You Do After an Accident in Shelby Township?

• Get Medical Attention: Seek medical care as soon as possible if you’re injured. Prompt treatment can identify injuries that may not be immediately apparent and create a record linking your condition to the accident. Follow-up appointments can also document how your symptoms change over time.
• Report the Accident: Call law enforcement after a traffic crash when required or appropriate. If you’re injured at a business or other property, report the incident to the owner, manager, or employee in charge. Ask for a copy of any police or incident report when one is available.
• Document the Scene: Take photographs or video of the area, vehicles, property damage, hazards, traffic signals, weather conditions, and visible injuries. Capture the scene before vehicles are moved or hazards are repaired when you can do so safely. These records may become useful if the parties later disagree about what happened.
• Get Witness Information: Ask witnesses for their names and contact information. Independent witnesses may provide valuable accounts of the accident, especially when the parties give conflicting versions of events. Their statements may also help confirm dangerous conditions or negligent conduct.
• Preserve Records and Receipts: Keep medical bills, treatment records, pay stubs, repair estimates, transportation receipts, and correspondence from insurers. Save photographs, emails, text messages, and other records related to the accident. Organized documentation can make it easier to calculate your losses and respond to insurance disputes.
• Be Careful When Speaking With Insurance Companies: Insurance adjusters may ask for recorded statements, medical authorizations, or information about your injuries soon after the accident. You should answer required questions accurately, but you don’t have to speculate about fault or the full extent of your injuries. Review settlement offers carefully before accepting payment or signing a release.
• Speak With a Shelby Township Personal Injury Lawyer: An attorney can review the accident, identify potentially liable parties, examine insurance coverage, and preserve evidence. LegalGenius can also handle communications with insurers and evaluate the compensation available for your injuries. Getting legal advice early may help prevent avoidable problems with your claim.

How Long Do You Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

For many personal injury claims, you generally have three years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit. That deadline usually applies to claims such as car accidents, slip and fall injuries, and other negligence cases. Missing the filing deadline can prevent you from recovering compensation.

There are some exceptions to this three-year statute of limitations:

• Medical malpractice actions generally must be filed within two years of the act or omission, although a six-month discovery period may apply in some cases. 
• Claims involving public agencies can require notice before a lawsuit is filed. For example, a claim involving a defective public highway generally requires written notice to the responsible governmental agency within 120 days of the injury.
• In general, you must file an action for PIP benefits within one year of the accident unless the insurer received written notice of the injury within that year or previously paid PIP benefits. If notice was given or benefits were paid, other rules govern how long you have to sue and how far back unpaid benefits may be recovered.

The deadline can also change based on factors such as the injured person’s age, the type of defendant, or when an injury was discovered, so speak to an attorney as soon as possible to protect your rights.

How LegalGenius Builds a Personal Injury Claim

• Investigating the Accident: We examine how the accident happened and who may be responsible. This may include reviewing police reports, photographs, video footage, witness statements, property records, vehicle data, and other available evidence. We also identify insurance policies and other sources of compensation that may apply.
• Documenting Your Injuries: Medical records can show your diagnoses, treatment, restrictions, and recovery. We review those records to connect your injuries to the accident and document how they affect your daily activities. If future treatment is expected, medical opinions may also help establish those anticipated costs and limitations.
• Calculating Your Losses: We review medical expenses, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, property damage, and other financial losses. We also evaluate noneconomic damages such as pain, disability, and loss of enjoyment of life. The goal is to account for both losses you’ve already sustained and those expected in the future.
• Presenting the Claim to the Insurer: We prepare a demand supported by records, bills, employment documents, medical evidence, and other relevant materials. The demand explains why the insured party is liable and identifies the compensation being sought. If the insurer disputes fault, causation, treatment, or damages, we can respond with additional evidence and legal arguments.
• Negotiating a Settlement: Insurance companies may make offers that don’t account for the full value of a claim. We compare settlement proposals against the documented losses and continue negotiations when an offer is inadequate. You decide whether to accept or reject any settlement.
• Filing a Lawsuit When Necessary: If negotiations don’t resolve the claim, LegalGenius can file a lawsuit and continue pursuing compensation in court. Litigation may include written discovery, depositions, expert testimony, motions, mediation, and trial preparation. A case may still settle after a lawsuit is filed, but we prepare to present it at trial if necessary.

Get a Free Consultation With a Shelby Township Personal Injury Lawyer

If someone else caused your injury, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other losses. Our Shelby Township personal injury lawyers can review the accident, determine who may be liable, and explain the options for pursuing a claim. We handle personal injury cases on a contingency-fee basis, so you don’t pay attorney fees upfront. For more information, call 800-209-4000 or fill out our Ask the Genius™ form, and a personal injury attorney will contact you within five minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Shelby Township Personal Injury Cases

Can I Still Bring a Claim If I Had a Pre-Existing Medical Condition?

Yes. A pre-existing condition doesn’t prevent you from recovering compensation if the accident aggravated or worsened it. The key issue is separating the condition you had before the accident from your new symptoms, limitations, or treatment needs

Medical records from before and after the injury can help show that change. Insurers may argue that your current symptoms came from the earlier condition, so thorough documentation from your doctors and other medical providers can be important when responding to that argument.

What Happens If More Than One Person or Company Caused My Injury?

Some personal injury cases involve multiple responsible parties. A truck crash, construction accident, multi-vehicle collision, or unsafe property claim may involve several people or businesses whose conduct contributed to the injury. In this type of case, each party’s role must be evaluated separately, as it can affect how fault is divided, which insurance policies apply, and where compensation may come from.

Can I File a Claim If I Was Visiting Shelby Township When I Was Injured?

Yes. You don’t have to live in Shelby Township to pursue a claim arising from an accident that happened here. Visitors, commuters, business travelers, and people passing through the area may still have the right to seek compensation.

Note: Auto accident claims can raise certain insurance questions when an out-of-state driver is involved. The applicable coverage and filing requirements depend on the policies involved and how the accident occurred.

Will My Personal Injury Case Have to Go to Trial?

Many personal injury claims resolve through settlement, but some cases proceed to litigation when the parties can’t agree on liability or compensation. Filing a lawsuit also doesn’t mean the case will automatically go to trial.

Settlement discussions can continue during litigation, including after depositions or mediation. If the case doesn’t settle, it can proceed to trial, where a judge or jury determines liability and damages.

Can I Bring a Personal Injury Claim If I Was Partially at Fault?

Yes. You may still be able to recover compensation even if you share some responsibility for the accident. Your recovery can be reduced by your percentage of fault, and if your share exceeds 50%, you may lose the right to recover noneconomic damages such as pain and suffering.

For example, if you were 25% at fault, your damages would generally be reduced by 25%. Because insurers may try to assign you a larger share of responsibility, evidence showing how the accident happened can have a direct effect on the amount you recover.