Practices
Case Process
Price Johnson has spent his entire career helping injured victims as a personal injury lawyer in Texas and across the country. Price Johnson and The Johnson Firm also have over 20 years of experience assisting businesses in business disputes and business/commercial litigation. Price Johnson and the attorneys and staff at The Johnson Firm are committed to guiding you step-by-step through negotiations, settlement, litigation, and trial. While it is often in our clients’ best interest to settle their case before trial, The Johnson Firm will work diligently to posture your case for the best settlement possible. Not all cases settle, however. When they don’t, Price Johnson and the trial team at The Johnson Firm will take your case to a judge and jury so you can get the justice you deserve.
The Review Process in Personal Injury Cases
In order to determine whether you have a case, we must first gather pertinent records including the police accident report, the statements of any witnesses, medical records, and medical bills. Once we obtain this information, we review it to determine if there is a provable case of negligence. In any personal injury or wrongful death case the injured person, or plaintiff, must generally prove that the negligence of another caused injury. It is also important to determine if any negligence on the part of the plaintiff, or any other person, will potentially bar any recovery under various legal doctrines, including proportionate responsibility.
Expert testimony is frequently necessary to prove some parts of your claim. For example, expert testimony is utilized to illustrate the extent of physical injuries and the relationship of any medical bills to the defendant's negligence. Expert testimony may also be necessary to establish other important facts that are beyond the general knowledge of most jurors such as the extent your ability to earn a living is impaired by your physical injury or to prove the defendant in a particular case violated applicable rules or regulations.
The Legal Process in Personal Injury Cases
The day you were injured you entered a war zone. Insurance companies have declared war on injured people and their attorneys. Some write letters to claimants to discourage them from seeking legal representation. They wage war in the media and their misleading propaganda has a tremendous effect on juries and jury verdicts. The success insurance companies have had in tainting the minds of jurors has emboldened them to refuse a fair settlement until you prove that you are ready, willing, and able to go to trial.
In most cases today, attempting to negotiate with the insurance company before filing suit is not a worthwhile endeavor. Insurance companies use pre-suit negotiation to find out as much about you, your lawyer, and your doctor as they can. Too often, Injured victims and even their lawyers waste precious time attempting to negotiate with the insurance company before filing suit. If we accept your case it is because we believe it is meritorious and you deserve a fair trial. After we explain our evaluation of the potential case fully to our clients, and with our client's consent, we will usually attempt to negotiate the case first but will file suit quickly if negotiations don't move swiftly. Negotiations are always pursued further during litigation. Should negotiations break down, however, we will already have a trial date in place to work towards. Frequently, in serious personal injury and wrongful death cases, substantial key facts that will determine the settlement or potential verdict value of a particular case are not "uncovered" until a lawsuit is filed and both sides engage in the legal process called discovery. Waiting too long to file suit means the evidence can get stale or even vanish.
In sum, discovery consists of each party investigating underlying facts including what it is the other side is likely to say at trial. The parties will answer written and oral questions and give sworn testimony concerning the claims and defenses at issue and give depositions under oath. Often, the parties also hire expert witnesses experienced with the applicable standard of care, equipment, or regulations at issue.
Fees and Expenses In Personal Injury Cases
We generally handle personal injury cases on a contingent fee basis. There is no legal fee unless we recover for you. If we do recover for you, the attorneys' fee is a percentage of that recovery.
There are costs incurred in every case. Hospitals and doctors charge for medical records and reports; x-rays must be copied; expert witnesses will be paid; and court fees will be incurred. In our practice we also use computer technology to image documents and trial exhibits for use at trial. All of this costs money. These costs are not anything the lawyer earns in the case and thus are not part of the attorney's contingent fee, but are separate. If, however, no recovery is obtained in a particular matter, the attorneys, and not the client, are responsible for any costs. When we meet we will discuss fees and costs with you in more detail.
Will My Case Settle?
Personal injury cases are vigorously defended by the insurance industry. The resources a defendant has to fight a case are endless. Insurance companies do not settle cases fairly and fully until you demonstrate to them that you have the attorney, expert witnesses, and the resources to beat them in court.
Most personal injury cases do, however, eventually settle prior to trial. Insurance companies know it costs substantial time and money to get your case ready for trial. Because of that, insurance companies typically refuse to make reasonable initial settlement offers.
Because insurance companies generally refuse to negotiate in good faith, every case that we accept is prepared for trial. Unlike some attorneys who take cases just to settle them quick and cheap, we prepare every case as If It will go to trial. In our experience, this puts you in a much better negotiating position with the insurance company. Insurance companies know which attorneys actually try cases and those that will just try to settle everything.
The Role(s) of Insurance
In every car or truck wreck, there are at least three sources of recovery we will investigate. The defendant's insurance company has primary responsibility for your injuries. If a particular defendant is uninsured, or has inadequate insurance, your own insurance policy may provide coverage in some circumstances. Typically, this coverage is in the form of uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.
You may also have health insurance coverage for some or all of your medical bills. Texas law generally permits you to recover your medical bills from your health insurance company and from other applicable insurance coverage. There are exceptions to this rule and each case must be separately examined. In Texas, you may have to repay your health insurance company for all or part of sums it expended for your medical care.
You also may have a type of automobile insurance called medical payments or personal injury protection coverage. This coverage generally provides for payments for your own medical bills and potential lost wages in amounts of $2,500 to $10,000. Again, your attorney will to examine your policy or contact your insurance carrier to determine if medical payments or personal injury protection coverage is available to you under any applicable insurance policy.