Why You Should Hire a Doctor-Lawyer for Your Injury Case
When you’ve suffered a serious injury because of negligence, it can be incredibly overwhelming. You may know that you need a seasoned personal injury attorney on your side to fight for compensation, but with countless options, you may have a hard time narrowing it down. However, there is one key distinction that provides a major advantage in your injury case: Having a team of attorneys who are also medical doctors.
What exactly are the benefits of hiring a doctor-lawyer? In this post, we’ll discuss some of the advantages and why should you consider hiring a doctor-lawyer for your injury case.
How Can Medical Training Assist in Personal Injury Cases?
In personal injury cases, regardless of the injury being claimed, the burden of proof is on you as the claimant – and you must clearly demonstrate evidence that the injury happened as you said it did. For example, if you were injured in a car accident and sustained a traumatic brain injury as a result, you must prove your head wound was directly caused by the accident, in order to receive appropriate compensation.
Additionally, you must show the defendant owed you a “duty of care,” that they violated through negligence or intentional harm. In the car accident example, you would need to show that the other driver failed to observe their duty. If they were driving under the influence or texting while driving, both of those actions could make them liable for your injuries. The extent of their liability depends on your state and the type of accident: In Missouri, the legal doctrine of “pure comparative negligence” allows you to collect a percentage of the requested compensation, even if you were partially at fault.
Because of these two principles, it’s easy to see how a doctor-lawyer can provide uniquely helpful representation in your injury case. When proving an injury resulted from an accident, a medical doctor has a clear advantage in describing human anatomy accurately. The average lawyer might need to call an expert medical witness to the stand to help explain the details of your injury, how it was sustained, and what it cost you. A doctor-lawyer, however, can offer accurate details and medical insights on their own, and draw connections other firms might miss. Doctor-lawyers can also strengthen your case against the defendant, by reviewing medical data that proves negligence on their part.
Cullan & Cullan: A Family of Lawyers and Doctors
At our Kansas City personal injury firm, we have a unique tradition. Our family-centered law firm was founded by one of the first doctor-lawyers in America, and since then our firm has assigned a doctor-lawyer to every case we take on. Focusing exclusively on personal injury cases ranging from serious car and truck accidents, birth injury to medical malpractice, we’ve made it our top priority to help the injured, and to use our knowledge of both the medical office and the courtroom to help our clients.
If you need representation in your injury case, contact us today for a free consultation. Our doctor-lawyers are passionate about protecting the injured.