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GENERAL QUESTIONS
Q: What types of cases do you handle?
Q: What are your attorney fees?
Q: What experience does your firm have?
Q: Do I have a case?
Q: How much would my case be worth?
Q: Do injury claims always require a lawsuit?
Q: How long does it take to settle an injury claim?
Q: When should I contact a lawyer?
INSURANCE CONSIDERATIONS
Q: Do insurance companies play fair?
Q: Should I give a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster?
Q: How do I know if the insurance company is offering me a fair settlement?
Q: Can I be compensated if I am completely at fault?
Q: Can I be compensated if I am partially at fault?
Q: What do I do if the other driver doesn't have insurance?
Q: What do I do if the other driver doesn't have enough insurance to cover my losses?
Q: What is Personal Injury Protection (PIP)?
Q: If I am the victim of a crime, is it covered by insurance?
CRIMINAL VICTIM LAW
Q: What is the difference between criminal law and civil law?
Q: What if criminal charges were not filed against the perpetrator?
Q: Is there a time limit to file a civil lawsuit (i.e., what is a statute of limitation)?
Q: When does the statute of limitation period expire?
GENERAL QUESTIONS
Q: What types of cases do you handle?
Our law firm handles a wide range of cases on behalf of individuals who have suffered physical, emotional, or financial damage as a result of others’ negligent or criminal acts. We represent people who have been injured in auto, truck, pedestrian, motorcycle, or boating accidents; persons injured by dog bites; victims of rape, assault or other violent crimes; victims of sexual harassment in the workplace; victims of fraud, theft, embezzlement or other financial crimes; victims of elder abuse; and families of those who have died from a wrongful cause.
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Q: What are your attorney fees?
Most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency basis, commonly known as “no fees unless you win.” With this arrangement, if you do not collect money from your case, you pay nothing for attorney fees; if you do ultimately obtain a recovery, the attorney fees are typically a percentage of the amount recovered. This arrangement gives the attorney a strong incentive to obtain the best possible recovery in your case.
But we go a step further. We strive to charge lower fees than what other comparable attorneys charge. We understand that by pursuing your case, you are seeking a financial recovery for your losses, not an opportunity to ensure an attorney gets paid. We understand it’s your injury, it’s your money, and you deserve to keep more of it. Because each case has unique facts, the precise terms are determined on a case-by-case basis. Please contact us if you would like to discuss what our fees would be for your specific case..
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Q: What experience does your firm have?
Our lead attorney, Victor Sipos, has been practicing for nearly ten years in Utah, California, and Arizona. He has handled a broad range of injury and other complex civil law cases. In the last year, Mr. Sipos has recovered more than a million dollars in settlements for our clients. And perhaps most importantly, our clients deeply appreciate the personal attention and experience we bring to the table.Click here to read just a few of the testimonials that our clients have provided.
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Q: Do I have a case?
If you have suffered physical, emotional, or financial loss because of someone else’s careless or intentional act, you can seek to recover those losses through the civil justice system. In this process, you would be the plaintiff. The person or company who caused you the loss would be the defendant.
To win, the plaintiff typically has the “burden of proof.” This means the plaintiff must prove that he or she is entitled to compensation from the defendant. To do this, the plaintiff must usually prove three things: (1) liability, which means that the defendant did something wrong or negligent; (2) causation, which means that the defendant’s wrongful act is the actual cause of plaintiff’s loss; and (3) damages, which means the loss suffered by the Plaintiff.
If the plaintiff can prove each of the three items above, the likelihood of winning is good. Of course, this is a simplistic statement, and an enormous number of issues might be relevant to evaluating the facts of your case. You should speak with an experienced attorney to determine if you have a case. If you would like a free and confidential evaluation of your situation, please contact us.
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Q: How much would my case be worth?
Determining the value of a case is complicated and depends on numerous variables. There is no “typical” recovery for a case. If a case settles, the value is ultimately determined by the parties reaching mutually acceptable terms. If a case does not settle and proceeds to trial, the value is typically determined by a jury.
In a civil lawsuit, a prevailing plaintiff is often entitled to recover for all losses they have incurred, for pain and suffering, and at times additional amounts to punish the defendant.
Although every case is different, some attorneys have access to specialized databases showing settlements and judgments from numerous earlier cases. Often these earlier cases can be used as a reference to determine the value of another case. An experienced attorney can help you determine how the facts of your case compare to such earlier cases.
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Q: Do injury claims always require a lawsuit?
Fortunately, out-of-court settlements can often be reached before a lawsuit is filed. An experienced attorney can often significantly increase the likelihood of obtaining a favorable settlement. However, if the opposing side is unwilling to settle on reasonable terms, we have the experience to pursue our clients’ rights aggressively through a lawsuit.
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Q: How long does it take to settle an injury claim?
There is no easy answer. Some cases are resolved in weeks, others take years. Many factors influence the time to settlement, including the circumstances of the injury, the progress of medical recovery, the nature of the at fault party, the availability of insurance, and the personalities of the insurance adjusters and the attorneys involved. We should be able to give you a better estimate after an evaluation of your specific circumstances. If you would like a free and confidential evaluation of your situation, please contact us.
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Q: When should I contact a lawyer?
The sooner you contact an attorney, the better. Consider the following. Because most attorneys work on a contingency basis, you would pay the same regardless of when you retain them. As such, you should maximize the benefit to you by retaining an attorney as early in the process as possible.
The process of negotiating with an opposing party or insurance company can be confusing, time-consuming, and dangerous. Insurance companies have an enormous incentive to trap you into saying something that hurts your ability to obtain a full recovery. It is important that you not give any information to an insurance company without first speaking with an attorney. Similarly, the longer you wait, the more likely you are to harm your case. For instance, witnesses may move or forget important information, scenery might changes, and critical evidence can be lost or destroyed. As such, there is little to gain by waiting to speak with an attorney. Click here if you would like to contact us about your case.
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INSURANCE CONSIDERATIONS
Q: Do insurance companies play fair?
You should be careful when dealing with any insurance company, and you should be skeptical of their motives. It is widely recognized that insurance companies often deny claims or offer only pennies-on-the-dollar in an effort to increase their profits. It is highly profitable for an insurance company to hire nice-sounding adjusters in an effort to convince you to accept a settlement lower than you deserve. Many of these companies try to take advantage of peoples’ reluctance to hire an attorney and exercise their legal rights. For a revealing look at an insurance company practice known as “deny, delay, and defend” you can view a CNN report at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSj3FLO3IXA
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Q: Should I give a recorded statement to an insurance adjuster?
No. A primary reason an insurance company wants to take your statement is so that they can find a reason to deny your claim. Many insurance representatives are trained to ask questions that might make it harder for you to recover. Ideally, you should only provide information to an insurance company with an attorney present. You are never obligated to give the insurance company a statement unless they issue a formal subpoena, which they usually cannot obtain until after a lawsuit is filed.
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Q: How do I know if the insurance company is offering me a fair settlement?
Most people simply want fair compensation for their injuries. They are not trying to get rich, nor are they trying to get something for nothing. But what is “fair compensation?” Often what an insurance company considers fair is not what most people would consider fair. A helpful guide in determining the fairness of a settlement is based on the vast history of other people’s cases in similar circumstances.
There is no exact formula to determine the amount of compensation you can recover. Many factors are considered, and the evaluation is always done on a case-by-case basis. Factors to consider include, but are not limited to, severity of the accident, severity of injuries, permanency of injuries, expense of medical treatment, amount of lost wages or earning capacity, type of insurance coverage available, level of physical or emotional pain, and even more abstract factors such as the likeability of the various people involved.
Often, we can spend a few minutes on the phone with you and help you determine how much your case might be worth. Click here to contact us about a free evaluation of your case.
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Q: Can I be compensated if I am completely at fault?
If you are completely at fault for your injuries, you likely do not have the right to pursue recovery for your losses from another person. However, you might be entitled to recover for some of your losses from an insurance company if you have certain protections in your insurance policy, such as “no-fault” coverage.
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Q: Can I be compensated if I am partially at fault?
If you are partially at fault, you may still be entitled to receive a percentage of the compensation you would have normally received. The amount depends on the percentage of fault assigned to you. For instance, if your total losses are valued at $100,000, but you are found to be 20% responsible for the cause of the loss, you would only recover $80,000. The percentage of your fault is typically established by a judge, jury, or settlement.
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Q: What do I do if the other driver doesn't have insurance?
If the liable party does not have insurance, you can often recover from your own insurance company if you have uninsured motorist coverage (UM). Or, you could file a lawsuit against the liable party and hope they have enough assets to pay you.
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Q: What do I do if the other driver doesn't have enough insurance to cover my losses?
If the liable party has some insurance, but not enough to cover your losses, you can often recover from your own insurance company if you have underinsured motorist coverage (UIM). Or, you could file a lawsuit against the liable party and hope they have enough additional assets to pay you.
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Q: What is Personal Injury Protection (PIP)?
Most Utah insurance policies include a form of medical and wage coverage called personal injury protection coverage, or PIP. This coverage is available to the insured driver and any passengers in the insured’s vehicle for injuries sustained, regardless of who is at fault for the accident. PIP coverage pays for medical expenses and lost earnings, up to the amount of the PIP coverage limits.
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Q: If I am the victim of a crime, is it covered by insurance?
It depends on the type of crime. For instance, if a person is injured when somebody else violates a traffic law, insurance will often cover the losses of the injured person. However, if a person is injured by an intentional crime, such as assault or rape, the perpetrator’s insurance company typically refuses to provide coverage in such situations.
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CRIMINAL VICTIM LAW
Q: What is the difference between criminal law and civil law?
We have dedicated an entire webpage to this question. To view it, please click here.
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Q: What if criminal charges were not filed against the perpetrator?
Often victims of crime feel demoralized because the prosecutor decides to not file criminal charges against the perpetrator. Often prosecutors decide to not file charges because they do not believe they have enough evidence to prove the crime “beyond a reasonable doubt,” which is often understood to mean a 99% certainty. For instance, in many rape cases, the only evidence about the crime is the testimony of the victim and perpetrator, one claiming consent was not given, the other claiming it was. Without additional evidence, the prosecutor may determine that no reasonable jury could have a 99% certainty of who was telling the truth, so the prosecutor may decide to not bring criminal charges.
However, the likelihood of winning a civil lawsuit is often substantially higher than obtaining a criminal conviction. This is primarily because in a civil lawsuit, the standard of proof is by “preponderance of the evidence,” which is often understood to mean anything more than a 50% certainty. In other words, in a civil trial the plaintiff may still prevail even if a jury has some doubt.
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Q: Is there a time limit to file a civil lawsuit (i.e., what is a statute of limitation)?
Virtually all claims in civil law have a statute of limitation. Typically, if a claim is not filed with the Court before the statute or limitation for the claim expires, the victim will have forever lost the right to recover for that claim. For instance, if an assault occurred on March 1, 2004, and if there was a 1-year limitation period for an assault claim, the lawsuit must have been filed on or before March 1, 2005 or the right to recover for assault would be forever lost. As such, it is critical that claims be filed before the statute of limitations expires.
When a perpetrator commits a crime, it often gives rise to several distinct claims. Take the typical rape case, for instance; in such cases there are often civil claims for assault, battery, kidnapping, intentional infliction of emotional distress, etc. Separate facts must be proven to establish each of these claims, and each claim has its own limitation period. For instance, in Utah, a civil claim of kidnapping has a one year statute of limitation, whereas a civil claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress has a four year statute of limitation. If a victim waits two years after the rape to file a civil lawsuit against a perpetrator, she may have lost the right to pursue a claim of kidnapping, but may still have the right to pursue a claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress.
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Q: When does the statute of limitation period expire?
The limitation period for most claims is set by each state’s laws. Different claims often have different limitation periods.
Typically, the limitation period begins to run from the date of the wrongful act. However, in other situations, the limitation period might only start to run from the date of the victim’s 18th birthday, or from the date a victim first discovers that a wrongful act occurred during their childhood. For instance, in Utah, the victim of child sexual abuse can bring a civil lawsuit against the perpetrator within 4 years of the victim’s 18th birthday, or within 4 years of discovering that they were abused as a child. Thus, a person abused a child can file a civil lawsuit anytime before their 22nd birthday. Or if they only discover they were abused as a child after their 18th birthday, they can file suit within 4 years of discovery. In other situations, the limitation period only begins to run from the date a person discovers the wrongful act.
Determining the applicable limitation period is often a difficult legal issue. Important factors include identifying exactly what happened, which claims can be brought, which state the acts occurred in, the age of victim, and maybe even who is being sued. The best way to ensure your rights are protected is to consult with an attorney experienced in the field of law you need help with. Click here for a free and confidential evaluation of your case.
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