Baton Rouge Car Accident Lawyer

If you suffered injuries in a traffic collision that someone else’s carelessness caused, Louisiana law will allow you to hold that driver accountable through an insurance claim or personal injury civil suit. You can seek maximum compensation for your losses with a Baton Rouge car accident lawyer.

A Baton Rouge personal injury lawyer from our team at Laborde Earles can help you collect money not just to pay past medical expenses and lost wages, but also for future medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other losses.

Calculating the value of a claim and negotiating with insurance adjusters can be challenging and complex. We can fight to help you get the financial recovery you deserve based on the facts of your case. We have over 350 years of combined experience and won’t charge a fee until your case is won, so reach out now for help.

Our Case Results Show How Serious We Are About Our Clients’ Recoveries

Our team of Louisiana-based attorneys cares about the people we serve. We work to hold negligent drivers accountable and advocate for our clients’ full recovery from their injuries. We use our combined experience to go after the compensation they need to rebuild their lives after a devastating accident.

Many auto accident victims suffer life-changing injuries, including traumatic brain injuries, back and spinal cord injuries, and many more that could put them out of work for months or permanently. We look at all damages involved and help our clients pursue the best outcome for their situation.

Consider these case results we have achieved for our clients:

• $5,250,000 – Auto accident that caused a brain injury
• $2,000,000 – Auto accident that caused spinal cord injuries
• $1,000,000 – Settlement award for an auto accident victim
• $900,000 – Auto accident resulting in an injury
• $375,000 – Auto accident at an intersection that caused a back injury
• $265,000 – Auto accident that caused a back injury
• $190,000 – Auto accident that caused hip and back injuries

If you have been in an auto accident, we want to hear from you and see how we can help you go after the compensation you deserve. We are ready to talk with you about how to win your car accident case today.

Types of Car Accident Claims We Handle

Our legal team can assist you after many types of motor vehicle accidents. You can reach out to us when you need professional help from a:

• Baton Rouge Fatal Car Accident Lawyer: Your family can turn to our legal team for compassionate support after the loss of a loved one in a deadly crash. We can provide the legal guidance you need in this challenging time.
• Baton Rouge DUI Car Accident Lawyer: Our team can provide the help you need after an accident caused by drunk driving. We can help you seek fair financial compensation for all the losses you sustain due to a drunk driver.
• Baton Rouge Distracted Driving Accident Lawyer: You can count on us to help if a distracted driver hits your vehicle. We know how to handle cases involving drivers distracted by their cell phones and other electronic devices.
• Baton Rouge Drowsy Driving Accident Lawyer: Our law firm can assist you after a drowsy driving crash. Fatigued drivers often cause major crashes that can leave you with substantial economic and non-economic losses.
• Baton Rouge Parking Lot Accident Lawyer: You can turn to us for professional help after a motor vehicle accident in a parking lot. We’re fully prepared to hold the responsible parties accountable for paying for your losses.

Pursuing Damages After a Baton Rouge Traffic Accident

There are two ways a victim may be able to recover compensation for the harm they suffered in a Baton Rouge collision:

• Filing a personal injury claim based on the at-fault driver’s liability insurance
• Beginning a personal injury lawsuit against the liable driver and going to trial

The goal of either of these methods is to prove the at-fault party is legally liable for the accident and recover compensation for economic and non-economic damages that could include:

• Medical bills
• Future necessary medical care for accident injuries
• Care and support costs
• Lost income, wages, benefits, and tips
• A diminished ability to work
• Property damage, including car repairs or replacement
• Pain, suffering, and mental anguish
• Emotional distress
• Disability or disfigurement
• Lost enjoyment of life
• Reduced quality of life
• Other intangible losses

Our car accident attorneys in Baton Rouge, LA, help clients identify and calculate their losses and the range of settlement values that will cover their costs. We can explain what damages you can collect for a car accident.

We seek justice for our clients, pursuing a fair settlement that ensures their accident-related expenses get paid. Find out more about how personal injury lawsuits work and how we can assist by contacting us today.

Recovering Wrongful Death Damages in a Car Accident Case

Unfortunately, fatal injuries often result from car accidents in the Baton Rouge area. Families are rarely mentally, emotionally, or financially prepared to deal with the sudden loss of a loved one in this way.

If your relative died in an accident that someone else’s negligence caused, please accept our condolences. We are sorry for your loss and want to help you during this emotionally trying time by helping you seek damages on your loved one’s behalf.

We realize that taking legal action while grieving is hard. Still, you may have the right to hold the person who caused the accident accountable. If you decide that pursuing a wrongful death lawsuit is the next move for your family, we would be honored to represent you and your loved one. We can manage your case while you take care of your family and yourself.

Medical Bills Could Be Among the Recoverable Damages

Designated family members may be able to recover funds to pay for their loved one’s:

• Medical expenses for the treatment they received up to their death
• Funeral, burial, or cremation expenses
• Property damage
• Other end-of-life expenses

Wrongful death damages could also include compensation to replace the income the decedent would have contributed to the household had they lived. State law (CC Art. 2315.2) identifies relatives eligible to recover damages under this legal action. They are the decedent’s:

• Surviving spouse and children (or either, depending on the situation)
• Surviving parent or parents
• Siblings, if there is no surviving spouse, child, or parent
• Surviving grandparents, if there is no surviving spouse, child, parent, or sibling
• Estate representative, if no surviving person in any of the above categories exists

Wrongful death cases can be complex, but your Baton Rouge car accident attorney will guide you through this process and explain Louisiana’s wrongful death laws and process to you.

How Your Baton Rouge Car Accident Attorney Can Help You Seek Compensation

The aftermath of a car accident can be confusing, stressful, and challenging for victims and their families. You may be facing high medical and rehabilitation costs, as well as severe injuries. Even relatively minor injuries can keep you out of work while you recover. Your family may be struggling to make ends meet during this difficult time.

Our team can ease the burden on you. We can speak to the insurance adjusters on your behalf, demand a payout for what your claim is worth, and offer advice about when to settle and when to fight.

We represent our clients’ best interests and pursue the compensation they need to pay for their expenses and losses. During this time, they can focus on their healing while we handle their legal needs.

Beware of Accepting a Low Settlement Offer From an Insurance Company

Some people make the mistake of accepting an inadequate offer before they realize the full scope of their damages. Unfortunately, you cannot take legal action to recover additional money once you accept an insurer’s settlement offer. We can offer counsel on any offers you may receive, but we leave it to you to decide.

You should first determine how much compensation you can seek. Having this number in mind as you evaluate potential settlement offers from an insurance company will help you avoid accepting too-low offers that won’t cover your accident costs.

Dealing With Insurance Adjusters After a Baton Rouge Car Accident

If you were in an accident, you can most likely make a claim with an insurance company to seek compensation. You will need evidence to support your claim, including the police accident report and other documents. Still, there are often challenges when trying to work with insurance adjusters.

While you have a right to pursue damages, the insurance company is not on your side. They want to pay you as little as possible, so they may try to reduce the value of your claim through any means possible. You can safeguard your rights by working with an attorney who understands their tactics and can mitigate any damage to your case.

Your Baton Rouge car accident lawyer may:

• Manage all communications about the claim on your behalf
• Gather support for your case
• Ensure you meet all deadlines
• Help you understand what to do and what not to do

You can speak to a member of our team today to learn more about what a car accident lawyer does. Our personal injury law firm can review your case, help you understand the value of your claim, and review the relevant insurance policies.

We Take Your Losses Seriously

You may seek compensation if another person’s negligence or neglect resulted in your accident. The money you receive can cover a range of losses, including medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. When taking steps to hold the liable party accountable, you must have a fair estimate of the value of your case.

Your car accident lawyer serving Baton Rouge will review your expenses and losses and write a demand letter to the insurer and other stakeholders. We can look at all factors involved in your accident and see that all negligent parties are held responsible.

Vicarious Liability and Accidents With Multiple Liable Parties

Our team can even help with complex cases when more than one person is at fault for an accident. For instance, if road construction was going on at the time, the accident may have resulted from poor signage or road damage. 

Or, in another common example, a trucking company or shipping company may be vicariously liable for a crash caused by a commercial truck driver. Our team knows how to identify all potentially liable parties in an accident and build a case against each of them, if possible. 

We can pursue damages for our clients that allow them to recover compensation to pay their bills and cover their losses. We also know how to prove you are not at fault in a car accident.

Proving Negligence and Liability in a Car Accident

Hiring a personal injury attorney in Baton Rouge, LA, to manage your case against the at-fault or liable party in your collision will involve proving their negligence. As we review your accident, we will look for four key elements that can help us establish this negligence:

• Duty of care: The party who hit you was legally liable for acting reasonably to keep you safe from harm. All who get behind the wheel assume this duty when operating a vehicle.
• Breach of duty of care: They failed to keep their duty through their action or inaction.
• Causation: Failure to keep their duty directly caused your accident and injuries.
• Damages: Because of your injuries, you suffered damages that require compensation from the liable party.

An auto accident lawyer can immediately investigate your crash to gather evidence that can help us establish liability for the collision.

What if You Are Partially Responsible for a Car Accident?

If you are partially at fault for your accident, you may still be able to receive compensation, per Louisiana’s pure comparative negligence law (CC Art. 2323). Therefore, you may still be able to hold the other party responsible for their role in the accident, while you have responsibility for yours.

For example, if you are 20% responsible for the accident and your injuries, the other party would be responsible for 80% of your recoverable damages. So, if you are due $150,000, you would receive $120,000.

The other $30,000 would represent your percentage of fault, and the court would deduct it from your award. We will work diligently to prove that the other party’s liability exceeds yours.

Do Not Admit Fault for Your Crash

We advise you not to admit fault for any part of the accident after it occurs. The insurance company or at-fault party could use any statements you make to deny your claims or discredit your account of events.

You can always speak with a personal injury lawyer after your accident. We can protect your rights, help you avoid jeopardizing your claim, and represent you in all communications with the insurance company, legal representatives for the opposite party, and others.

You Only Have One or Two Years to File Your Claim

Louisiana has a statute of limitations that prevents most parties from filing a lawsuit against a negligent driver after the two-year anniversary of their accident, according to CC Art. 3492 for injury lawsuits.

The court could bar you from taking action and proceeding with your case if you do not meet the deadlines. Should this happen, you must assume all financial responsibility for your damages. Therefore, we encourage you to contact us as soon as possible, so we can start working for you.

In addition, some cases have additional deadlines you will need to meet, especially if the liable party is a municipality, parish government, or other government agency.

Time to Resolve Your Car Crash Claim

How long does it take to settle a car accident claim or get compensation through a lawsuit? You can generally expect these cases to take several months at a minimum. Many car accident claims take a year or more to resolve. 

We Can Answer Your Legal Questions

The car accident claims process is one of the more complex personal injury claims. Since you’ll be dealing with the insurance company and potentially bringing your case to court, you may have many unanswered questions about what to expect from your case.

For this reason, we have answered some of the more commonly asked questions surrounding car accident claims in Louisiana below. If you have additional questions we did not cover here, do not hesitate to reach out to us so a Baton Rouge car accident attorney can discuss your concerns in more detail.

Should You Give a Statement to the Insurance Company?

Giving a statement to the insurance company without speaking with your lawyer is never in your best interests. Insurance companies can take advantage of injury victims during their greatest times of need. Do not let this happen to you.

You can avoid the insurance companies’ unscrupulous tactics by having your attorney negotiate with the insurer on your behalf. If the insurance company asks you to give them a statement, it opens up the possibility that they could use it against you.

They may place unwarranted fault on you for causing the accident or attempt to reduce your compensation. You can avoid this by having your attorney provide the insurer with the facts of your case so they can move forward with processing your claim.

What Does It Cost to Hire a Car Accident Lawyer in Louisiana?

Hiring a car accident attorney in Baton Rouge may be more cost-effective than you thought. Many people assume that they must spend considerable money before a lawyer will work with them.

However, this is not the case for car accident victims. Most car accident lawyers will be willing to work with car accident victims on contingency. You may never have to pay any out-of-pocket or upfront expenses. Your lawyer will absorb the risk of your case entirely. If we do not win, you do not owe us anything.

Could You Get Punitive Damages?

It is not uncommon for car accident victims to wonder whether they could be awarded punitive damages in their case. However, punitive damages are not a common occurrence. The court may find it necessary to punish the defendant beyond the compensatory damages they must pay you for your losses.

Although punitive damages go to the injury victim, they serve to punish the defendant, not compensate the injury victim. For this reason, you should never expect to be awarded punitive damages in your case.

Your Baton Rouge car accident lawyer will analyze the circumstances of your case to determine whether the defendant’s conduct may be considered reprehensible or grossly negligent under Louisiana law. If this is the case, your attorney can give you a better idea of whether you might be awarded punitive damages based on the details of your car accident.

Talk to Us After a Car Accident in Baton Rouge

You can talk to our team at Laborde Earles today at no cost to your family. We will review what happened to cause your accident and who is responsible. We can pursue compensation for you based on the facts of your crash.

You can rely on a Baton Rouge car accident lawyer to provide the dedicated support you deserve after a crash. We’re ready to help you secure fair compensation for all the losses you sustained in a collision.