What Are Your Legal Rights After Suffering an Injury in Missouri?

If you’ve had an injury here in Missouri, and that injury is the result of another person’s negligent behavior, you have some important legal rights, starting with the freedom to contact an injury attorney in Independence to bring a claim or even a lawsuit to recover damages and compensate you for what you have lost.

What Are Your Legal Rights After Suffering an Injury in Missouri?

The Right to an Injury Attorney in Independence

You absolutely have the right to talk to a personal injury lawyer and pursue a claim if appropriate, and this is the first right you should exercise. All your other rights may depend upon it! If either the responsible individual or their insurance company want to try to talk you out of taking this step, don’t listen. Your lawyer will keep you aware of all of your rights, help you uncover any avenues for further compensation that you might’ve missed, and will cut through the red tape so that you can get the compensation you need.

Even more importantly, your lawyer will negotiate for you with the other side and their insurance company and will, of course, represent you in court if it comes to that. Your lawyer does all this so that you don’t have to: so you can concentrate on recovery.

The Right to See a Doctor

If you’ve been injured, you have the right to get the medical care you need to recover. While other parties involved may attempt to convince you not to seek medical care or try to tell you that you have to get permission of some sort first, if you’ve been injured, the most sensible thing to do is to go quickly to see a doctor.

For one thing, you will need your medical records for your claim and any lawsuit you may bring. But more importantly, you need to see a doctor to make sure you understand the full extent of your injuries, get started immediately on treating them, and have the best shot of a full recovery.

The Right to Collect Evidence

After an accident, it’s not unheard of for the responsible party to attempt to clean up as quickly as possible in order to make it harder to bring a claim against them and hide some of the details of what happened. You have the right to get photos and videos of the accident scene and your injuries, and you have the right to talk to witnesses who might have seen what happened. Be aware that video evidence often gets innocently overwritten fairly quickly, just to save space, so it’s important to ask for these sorts of records immediately. It’s always a good idea to get your lawyer involved so that they can ask the other party for whatever evidence they might have, in an official capacity.

The Right to Make a Report

If you’ve been in a car accident, for example, don’t let the other driver convince you not to call the police. Having a police report will be very helpful, as the police will give their assessment as to who was at fault based on what they see at the scene and their experience in these matters. Their assessment is not final, but it will go a long way with the court and with the insurance companies.

If you are injured on private property or at a place of business, you may call the police, or you may make an internal report with the company, for example. If you were injured at work, you will need to report through the proper channels at your workplace. Be sure to get a copy of whatever report you make.

The Right to Stay Silent

You might think of the “right to stay silent” as something that only applies if you’re being charged with a crime. In reality, the less you say after an accident, the better in most cases. You have the right not to discuss what has happened except with your attorney, though if the police are called, or you’re making a report, you need to factually describe the events without casting blame or guessing about what might’ve happened. Just stick to the facts and talk to your lawyer as soon as possible. And be aware that anything that you say, even just out of politeness, could be used against you in someway. Saying that you are sorry could be used as proof that you are accepting fault, for example.

The Right to File a Claim or Bring Lawsuit

If you’ve been injured in an accident caused by someone else, you are entitled to seek compensation from them. You can do this by filing a claim with their insurance company, or, if they are not insured or if their insurance company refuses to pay, you may need to bring a lawsuit. This is all highly dependent on the specific circumstances of your situation, so you will definitely want to ask an attorney to know the best steps for you.

Statute of Limitations

As you decide whether to bring a claim or a lawsuit, don’t forget there is a statute of limitations that puts a time limit on this whole situation. In Missouri, you generally have five years to bring a lawsuit. If it’s a case of medical malpractice, however, then you only have two years from the date of the malpractice, though sometimes the clock starts running not from the time of the malpractice but the time when you discovered it. If you are bringing a lawsuit for intentional injury, such as if you suffered an injury during an assault, you have two years from the date that it took place.

There are a few exceptions to the rules, such as if the defendant is out of the state or the victim is under 18 at the time they are injured, but in general, you should never assume that you will have any extra time. Always talk to a lawyer as soon as possible.

If you’ve been injured in an accident, don’t wait to get started on protecting your rights. The sooner you talk with a lawyer, the better. Remember that evidence can be lost or degrade, people’s memories fade, and the statute of limitations will run out eventually.  At the Wendt Law Firm, PC, Samuel Wendt has been a Missouri and Kansas super lawyer every year for the past ten years. If you need help in Independence or anywhere in the greater Kansas City area, contact the Wendt Law Firm, PC today for a free case evaluation.