Can i sue or not?
I was in an accident with a drunk driver about 6 months ago. She ran a red light and totalled my car. I went to the hospital and to the follow up doctor who told me that the accident had aggrivated an old injury in my back and said that eventually i would have to get surgery. He did state however that if the accident hadn't happened there is a good chance that i wouldnt have had any additional back problems. I went to a follow up with my own personal doctor and he referred me to physical therapy. I spoke to one lawyer and he told me that i couldnt sue unless there was serious injury. Can i sue in this case?
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Can i sue or not?
You may have a very good case. Hopefully, the car that hit you has a large insurance policy or you have a large underinsurance policy. Was the other driver arrested for DWI? Depending on the facts, you may have grounds for punitive damages in addition to regular damages. As for the serious injury issue, if you have surgery and your doctor is willing to say that you needed the surgery due to this accident and would not have needed it without it, you should have a case. There are other ways to satisfy the serious injury requirement too such as the inability to work for 90 out of the first 180 days after the accident. I am handling a few accident cases right now that were caused by drunk drivers. Please feel free to contact me.
Re: Can i sue or not?
You can always sue...the issue is recovery of damages based on your injuries...whether or not they are "serious" as a matter of law. Feel free to contact me at 845.878.2163 for a free phone consult.
Good Luck
RRG
Good Luck
RRG
Re: Can i sue or not?
Under NY no fault you must meet the "serious injury" threshold in the statute. A back injury (re-injury) could meet that threshold but would need more info on the type of injury, etc.
If you sue and do not meet the threshold, the defendant will win before any trial.
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