It might be difficult to imagine, but you will eventually recover from your injuries and gain compensation for that awful accident. Getting paid what you are entitled to is a process, and it can be a frustrating one for those eager to get back to normal again. It might help to understand the road ahead in your personal injury quest so read on to learn more.

Talk to a personal injury lawyer. Doing so will serve a number of purposes, and it will serve as that important starting point in your journey. Your lawyer will evaluate your case and let you know the value of any settlement or court verdict. You will leave that first appointment knowing what to do next, and you will have some your burden lifted away by your new advocate. In most cases, your lawyer won't require any money to be paid until the case is won. This is a common payment arrangement in personal injury cases and is known as a contingency fee arrangement.

See if your case can settle outside of court. It may not be necessary to go to trial; the case might be over and done with if the other side offers you a good settlement. The custom is to send the other side and their insurance carrier a letter that sums up the case and demands payment for money damages. Most personal injury cases actually settle outside of court.

Sue them. At some point, you and your lawyer may decide that it's time to file a lawsuit. This is the beginning of the trial process, and the other side will be responding to the suit by filing an "answer" to the allegations in the suit.

Pretrial preparation and motions. You can expect a flurry of activity during this, the discovery phase. There might be questionnaires for you to answer and you may participate in a deposition as well. There are also common motions to dismiss and others that occur before and at the beginning of the trial.

The trial begins. You will be prepared to give testimony by your legal team, who will practice with you and provide you with guidance on what to expect. While trials can be exciting, they can also be a bit boring from time to time with lots of interruptions and delays to be expected.

The verdict. You may have just a judge, or you may have a jury but the time will come when you find if it's all been worth it. You will be paid fairly quickly for insurance judgments, and you may have the option to appeal any adversary rulings.

For more information, contact your local car accident law office.