After sustaining a severe injury or disease due to long-term work on a railroad, it is extremely important to contact an attorney to discuss your options to find the best path forward for your case. One of the choices you may be faced with is whether to settle your railroad injury case or take it to court. This can be a difficult choice to make on your own because you may not know the full value of your case.
An experienced railroad injury attorney could consult on your case, discuss your injuries, and calculate your damages to help determine if the settlement is a fair offer. If you settle too early in a case, then you could potentially miss out on compensation that you did not realize you needed. Therefore, it is imperative to know the facts of your case before settling.
What You Need To Know About Settling Your Case
When you suffer a serious illness due to hazards on the railway, the railroad company may offer you a lump sum of money early on to cover your losses. It is your choice to accept the settlement, however, it is possible that you may be eligible to recover more money than the initial offer. By contacting a railroad injury attorney early, they could investigate your case and evaluate whether you have the potential to recover more compensation from a jury than the settlement originally offered – or to continue negotiating a higher settlement.
Choosing to settle is a personal choice but the decision could be made easier with the help of a lawyer. While it is possible that a jury might award you more than the offered settlement, there is no guarantee. A jury might award less or even nothing at all. It depends on their understanding and interpretation of the evidence. It is important to consider a few things before doing so.
Has the extent of your injuries and losses been fully evaluated? It is difficult to know the full extent of your losses immediately after an accident. You may not know how long you will be out of work, if you will have to change jobs, or if you cannot work altogether. These are things that take time to figure out and may require higher compensation. If you settle before these losses are fully clear, you may be losing out on money you need to carry on.
Is Bringing a New Claim Possible After a Settlement?
This depends on the facts. Many of our clients have settled a case for asbestos exposure resulting in a disease called asbestosis. They worry that they can’t have a claim if they develop cancer later. However, railroad workers are often able to bring another claim if they develop a different disease, such as cancer, from the same workplace exposures. Sometimes, they are not.
When it comes to a one-time incident or injury, you can usually only bring a new claim if your settlement was reached through coercion or fraudulent tactics on the part of the defendants. This would require a lawyer to help you make such a case and it is unlikely. There are some exceptions, so you should contact a railroad injury attorney to evaluate your particular circumstances.
Contact a Railroad Injury Attorney As Soon As Possible
It is essential to contact an attorney early on in your case to ensure you are receiving fair and just compensation for your injuries and damages. Contact the experienced attorneys at Doran & Murphy if you sustained a devastating injury or disease due to hazards on the railroad.