Do I have to Have A Permanent Injury to Get A Settlement?
I’ve talked in other chapters of these guides about the effect, good or bad- of the testimony of the injured person on the outcome of the trial. Even seasoned Baltimore personal injury and accident lawyers that try their cases have likely had a case come off the wheels at one time or another.
One potential problem area is where the injury victim fails to fully articulate how their injury affects them, currently. A jury is likely to award less to a person they believe has fully recovered.
Of course, a doctor may testify that the injury victim will experience certain problems, but you need live testimony from that victim to really bring it home. If the witness really does not effectively relay how, on a day to day basis, their injury impacts their life, it may be a shortcoming of that witness, or it may be a failure of preparation.
That type of testimony is key in the personal injury case, and it can be difficult for some people to convey just how their physical condition affected and impacted their day to day activities. If the person truly has fully recovered with no lasting effects, and hopefully they have, their testimony should focus on symptoms, pain, and difficulties during the process of recovery. I’ve Attorney Eric T. Kirk developed a system of suggestions, tips, and pointers for my clients who are called upon to give testimony at trial. Sometimes this advice is rendered as trial approached, but I’ve also found that preparation for testimony begins in the first stages of a case, and I educate my clients in that process.
