Witnesses In Personal Injury Cases
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The Importance Of Witnesses In Personal Injury Cases

Legally Reviewed and Edited by: Terry Cochran

When filing a personal injury claim is the best option for your situation, it’s important to consider the witnesses who can contribute to your case. Witness statements and testimony strengthen your claim and are essential to getting the compensation you deserve.

Timely collection of witness statements and information is imperative as soon as possible following your injury. This is because memories fade quickly, and your witnesses may confuse or forget essential details. Finding additional witnesses may become difficult the longer you wait, so try to record names and contact information shortly after the injury-causing incident occurs.

Whoever the witnesses are in your personal injury case, including family, friends, strangers, or experts in a particular area, their importance to your case can not be underestimated. Witnesses can testify at trial or provide statements to help you obtain settlements with insurance companies. Your personal injury attorney will be essential in gathering and preparing these witnesses so that your case ends with a successful outcome.

Two types of witnesses can contribute to your personal injury case, lay witnesses and expert witnesses.

Importance of Lay Witnesses

Lay witnesses can testify what they observed before, during, or after the injury-occurring event. They do not need expertise in anything to be credible and helpful to your case. These may be fellow customers in the store where your slip and fall occurred or a bicyclist in the area when you were hit by a car.

Eyewitnesses to the cause of your injury, whether a car accident, slip and fall, or other cause, provide insight into the actual events, surroundings, and activities. This is particularly important if liability is in question. For example, if the injury results from a car accident, other drivers on the road may be able to provide information on the driving behavior of the one who hit you before the crash occurred.

You may also need to testify on your own behalf as the one injured. You must give a firsthand account of what happened, how you suffered, and the ongoing effects of your injury.

Family members, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances may also serve as witnesses, testifying how the injury has negatively affected your life. Your lawyer can work with them before the trial, helping them practice their testimony and ensuring they understand what to expect.

Lay witnesses are valuable to your personal injury case because they can help a jury better understand the case. They can also provide key information to accident reconstruction specialists to assist in identifying causes.

Personal Injury Case

Importance of Expert Witnesses

Expert witnesses have specialized knowledge, experience, or training in a particular area relevant to your personal injury case. Applying what they know to the circumstances surrounding the injury can help the jury better understand how it could have happened or issues that may have contributed to it.

In addition, expert witnesses may provide hypothetical scenarios to explain events surrounding the injury and prove your case. This witness testimony is important in a trial because it provides the jury with specialized knowledge to better understand the case issues and elements.

A few examples of expert witnesses include:

  • Accident Reconstruction Specialists
  • Engineers
  • Highway Safety Experts
  • Medical Providers
  • Forensic Toxicologists
  • Mental Health Experts
  • Vocational Rehabilitation Experts
  • Economists

Expert witnesses are usually hired by an experienced personal injury lawyer knowledgeable about what testimony they need to strengthen your case. For instance, if your case involves medical malpractice, your attorney can hire an expert medical witness to clarify any facts necessary to the case.

Hire Experienced Personal Injury Attorneys in Michigan

If you need a personal injury attorney, consider Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C. We offer expert legal services to provide the best legal representation in Michigan. Our team of experienced personal injury attorneys will identify witnesses, obtain statements, and locate experts beneficial to your particular case.

We also work with insurance companies and will file a lawsuit on your behalf, always valuing our attorney-client relationship. Call our law firm today at 1-888-MICH-LAW and get started with a free consultation.

Disclaimer : The information provided is general and not for legal advice. The blogs are not intended to provide legal counsel and no attorney-client relationship is created nor intended.

Emily is a writer and legal professional with experience as a law firm paralegal and non-profit legal administrator. Prior to her legal career, Emily earned her Bachelor's Degree in International Affairs and worked with a government consulting group out of Washington, D.C. Today she splits her time between the Florida coast and the North Carolina mountains.

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