Evidence is the foundation of any successful legal case. In personal injury cases, the plaintiff must meet the burden of proof by “preponderance of the evidence.”
Tangible physical evidence is best, such as damage to your car or visible injuries on your body, including scarring. Pictures and videos are also important, as they show the results of an accident both when it happened and over time.
Medical Records
Medical records are some of the strongest pieces of evidence in a personal injury case. They provide a detailed picture of the injuries you suffered in an accident and how they have impacted your life. They include treatment plans, diagnostic test results, cost of medications, doctor follow-up recommendations and more.
These records also help demonstrate the extent of your injuries, which is vital in pursuing maximum compensation. In addition to demonstrating how much your injuries have cost in terms of medical bills and lost income, they can show that you are suffering ongoing pain and suffering as a result of your injuries.
Physical evidence is also helpful, such as photographs of the accident scene or damaged property, skid marks and other visual evidence. It is important to preserve this type of evidence as soon as possible, as it may be used in court to prove a defendant’s negligence. Physical evidence is most useful when combined with witness testimony and police reports.
Police Reports
Police reports are valuable evidence that help support your case. They offer a detailed timeline of the incident, supplying your injury attorney in Carrolton GA with important details that help prove that your injuries and damages occurred as a result of the accident.
While you cannot typically use police reports in court, your lawyer can use them during the insurance settlement negotiation process. These reports contain the opinion of a police officer about the accident based on what they personally observed.
The report may include information such as the time of the collision, which can help corroborate your account of events and align them with other evidence, like witness testimonials or traffic camera footage. Having as much evidence as possible helps your attorney build the strongest possible personal injury case and recover maximum compensation for your injuries. Other types of damage-related documentation that your lawyer can use as evidence include medical bills, receipts, diagnostic tests results, and estimates.
Witness Testimony
Witness testimony is a powerful form of evidence in a personal injury case. However, witnesses make natural mistakes during their testimony due to their cognition and subject interpretations of information they perceive through their senses. A well-rehearsed witness statement can help limit these mistakes. Additionally, informal testing of the witness to determine if their cognitive perceptions and subjective interpretations are significantly skewed can help the court feel comfortable in their credibility.
X-rays, MRIs and other medical documentation of injuries can help establish the extent of an injury, its impact on your life and the need for ongoing medical care. This is critical to proving the negligence of another party that caused your injury. Without sufficient proof of the other party’s negligence, you cannot receive financial compensation for your damages. This includes lost income, medical expenses and other physical and psychological damage. For these reasons, it is important to have all available pieces of evidence and to act immediately after an accident.
Photographs and Videos
Many physical injuries require photographic and video evidence to prove their severity and the effects of an accident. A good personal injury lawyer will know how to obtain these types of visual records that will have a strong impact on judges and jury members.
These pieces of evidence can include skid marks on a road, damage to your vehicle and defective equipment or weather conditions that increase the dangers of an accident such as fog or rain. Visual records are important because they help recreate the accident in court and show how it happened.
Eyewitness testimony is also an important piece of proof. It is crucial to collect this type of evidence as soon as possible after the incident and before witnesses’ recollections fade. These witness statements can prove fault, establish causation and corroborate other forms of evidence such as police reports or medical records. They can also provide valuable information about the circumstances of the accident and the actions of the parties involved.
