You’ve seen movies about it and you may have even heard a few stories: The righteous individual who decides to take on the legal system alone, without the help of the attorney. It’s actually more common than you think. The biggest State court, California, reported sixty-seven percent of all cases litigated in this way. Florida reported seventy-three. Though less common at the Federal level, it still occurs almost a quarter of the time. Many personal injury claimants feel that they have been wronged, and justly so. Why should they have to share compensation for loss and suffering with an attorney?
You can’t possibly know as much about personal injury law as your attorney. If you did, you would be a personal injury attorney yourself. Seemingly clear cut cases aren’t always so simple. Let’s take the case of a distracted driving accident: Motorist x hits a pedestrian while talking on their cell phone. Pro se litigant Y would certainly be able to get their medical bills paid by going to court on their own, but they would be unlikely to get punitive damages (special fines assessed as a punishment.) It would take an attorney to prove cognitive as well as visual distraction, and persuade the judge and jury to assess the maximum damages allowed under the law.
You don’t know how to do jury selection. Jury selection is tricky, involving a a mix of proper questions, statistical knowledge, and just gut-feeling. Clearly the manner of choosing the jury directly impacts the outcome of the case. We don’t recommend relying on opinions but statistical facts, which vary case-to-case. An attorney would be far better qualified to make this determination.
You won’t withstand examination or cross-examination. This is the most complex part of a trial, whether a jury is present or not. Odds are the other side will field an attorney, especially in a personal injury case. They are masters of rigging up biased interviews and changing the meaning of your words. Your witnesses will have to be chosen carefully as well, or else their testimonies might be stricken or discounted.
You won’t know how to question the witnesses. You can’t ask a witness whatever you want. You have to be able to first prove the witness is relevant, and then you must “lead the witness” to support your conclusions in the appropriate manner. If you have not spent time practicing this in a live court room, you are very likely to ask improper questions, which can ruin your case and lower the amount of your settlement.
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