Legal Question in Personal Injury in Minnesota

Re: should i retain a lawyer-auto accident

Thank you for your question.

Whether you should retain a lawyer depends upon whether you were injured in the accident, and upon the extent of damage to your car.

I presume both you and/or the other driver were insured. No fault coverage should cover the damage to your vehicle and, in general, costs of treatment for any injuries you sustained. Despite this, you would be well advised to at least discuss the facts with an attorney. Although insurance should cover most of your costs,and should pay to repair your car (assuming the damage does not exceed its value), any insurance company will want to limit their exposure on any claim for personal injury, and if you are injured, you may have a claim that will not be entirely covered by insurance. Further, if the other driver intentionally "rammed" your car, he may be separately liable for damages due to his voluntary action (which is an "intentional tort").

You should be able to learn the identity of the other driver. The incident report from the accident (which will include his name, address, etc.) will be include this information, and is a public record. The police will give you (or anyone) a copy after their investigation is completed and the report is filed. If you have trouble locating that information, give me a call.

Thank you again for your question, and good luck. If you have further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me. My contact information is below.