Understanding Litigation In A Car Crash Claim

If you are in court for a car crash claim,it is safe to assume that the parties in the case were unable to reach an out of court settle. The matter is therefore in court so that the legal system will serve justice to any party that feels aggrieved. The question is: What happens in court for a car crash claim? Below are some of the answers,as discussed by car accident legal help .

Establishing Culpability

The main reason for litigation in this case is that the plaintiff feels the defendant is at fault and therefore the guilty party should pay compensation. Now,the court cannot grant the prayer of the plaintiff without looking at both sides of the case. The first step in this process is that the court will establish the innocence or guilt of the defendant. This is done by listening to the testimony of witnesses and looking at the evidence presented by both parties to support their position.

Recommending Compensation

If the court arrives at the verdict that the defendant is guilty,the next step is to recommend the amount of compensation the guilty party should pay. The court does this by considering many factors. Note that this is not a criminal case so jail time is out of the question here. This is a civil case so the court will recommend exemplary or punitive damages,especially if the plaintiff has a convincing injury attorney .

Vitiating Circumstances

If the defendant sees that the case is going against him or her,the initial plea of “not guilty’ might be changed to a plea of “guilty”. In this case,the defendant might plead with the court to temper justice with mercy. The defendant’s attorney may also plead with the court to give a lenient sentence because there are vitiating circumstances.

Judgment and Appeal

At this stage,the court passes judgment but this is not the end of the matter. The defendant may appeal to a higher court if he or she is not happy with the judgment of the court. This is what happens in court for a car crash claim.