You’ve been hurt. Medical bills are getting out of control, and you haven’t been able to work in months. The pain and emotional anguish you’re suffering is hard to describe to others who don’t realize how difficult life has become for you.
And to make matters worse, your injuries weren’t the result of a simple accident—they were caused by someone else’s negligence. The fact is, your injuries shouldn’t have happened at all.
We know what you’re going through.
Have you met with an Aurora personal injury lawyer yet? If not, now is the time.
We offer 100% free consultations at our Illinois law office. Come see why the Thomas Law Offices team is one of the most trusted and reputable personal injury advocates in DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and Will Counties.
The legal advice we offer in a free case evaluation does not oblige you to hire an attorney from our firm.
Why Do We Practice Personal Injury Law in Aurora, Illinois?
Aurora, IL is a special place. One county can’t hold all our city has to offer—we have the unique advantage of spanning four Illinois counties and being one of the fastest-growing over-100K-sized cities in the United States.
Maybe you love the City of Lights for its history, architecture, and famous landmarks, like the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Greene House, Sri Venkateswara Swami (Balaji) Temple, Veteran’s Memorial Island Park, the William Tanner House Museum, Fabyan Villa Museum & Japanese Garden, or the Copley Mansion.
Maybe you treasure the Aurora Riverfront area for the live music, sculptures and landscaping, walking and biking opportunities, and an endless array of shopping and dining options.
Maybe you look forward to First Fridays, Downtown Saturdays, Music & Market on Stolp Ave., food truck festivals, Art and Market Aurora, the Aurora Farmer’s Market, Boss Babes events, and the host of other activities that go on regularly in downtown Aurora.
Or maybe, for you, Aurora, Illinois is the place that homes your friends, family, pets, memories, favorite foods, and everything you hold close in your life.
There are endless reasons to love Aurora, IL. At Thomas Law Offices, our Aurora personal injury team considers it a great honor to use our nationwide experience, education, and resources to the benefit of our local community here in Aurora.
No matter what kind of personal injury incident caused harm to you or a loved one, we know we have both the equipment and the dedication to set your injustices right.
Personal Injury Cases Thomas Law Offices Focuses On
A personal injury lawyer is a unique type of attorney. In our role, we get the opportunity to help people when they need it the very most. We are the lawyers who get to fight for the underdogs, who get to restore justice to the lives of families, and who get to make real, impactful change when corporate greed preys on the hardworking individual.
We hold drunk drivers, violent criminals, corrupt business owners, manufacturers of dangerous products, perpetrators of elder abuse, and others who commit harm accountable for their actions.
Here are just a few of the common personal injury cases we can handle in our Aurora law practice:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Nursing home abuse
- Wrongful death
- Motorcycle accidents
- Birth injuries
- Brain injuries
- Sexual assault
- Spinal cord injuries
- Construction accidents
- Premises liability
- Slip and falls
- Product liability
- Social security disability
What Is the Job of a Personal Injury Lawyer in the Claims Process?
The role of a personal injury lawyer is multifold. We are listeners and liaisons, advocates and advisers, counselors and calculators, investigators and interpreters of the law.
What we can do for you depends on what your needs are. Much of the work we do for our personal injury clients involves:
- Examining case details to determine legal options
- Providing an expert opinion on the best way to recover compensation
- Handling communications with insurance companies
- Gathering and studying documents and other evidence
- Identifying all liable parties and securing strong proof of negligence
- Analyzing and applying the federal, state, and municipal laws related to the case
- Calculating the full amount of financial compensation the client deserves
- Filing error-free paperwork within state-mandated time limits
- Negotiating maximum compensation out of court
- Arguing the case before a judge when a pre-trial settlement is not possible
- Offering support, protection, and answers at every step of the way
It’s no exaggeration when we say that our clients are like family to us. By the time we reach an outcome in a personal injury case, we’ve spent so much time and invested so much of ourselves into our clients’ cases that many of our attorney-client relationships last far beyond the settlement or verdict.
How To File an Illinois Personal Injury Claim
In Illinois, the legal way to recover compensation for your losses after a preventable injury is to file a personal injury claim with the at-fault party’s insurance company. This claim is a formal request that the person or entity responsible for your injuries or a loved one’s wrongful death uphold their legal duty to bear financial responsibility for their actions.
If the insurance company refuses fair treatment of your claim, reaching a satisfactory outcome out of court may no longer be an option. In that case, your Aurora personal injury lawyer will help you continue your case by filing a personal injury lawsuit. This last step is only necessary in a small number of cases. It is most likely that we will be able to settle your case before it goes to court.
The general structure of the personal injury claims process (in the simplest terms) looks like this:
- You will meet with an Aurora personal injury lawyer to discuss your legal options.
- Your attorney will investigate liability, calculate compensation, and file a claim for you.
- The negotiation process with the insurance company will begin.
- Your lawyer will reach a full and fair settlement with the insurer, or
- Will take your case before a judge and jury who will render a verdict (if necessary).
- You will be awarded financial compensation for the economic and noneconomic losses you suffered in your injury incident.
We don’t have to tell you that a simple explanation of the process on paper (or webpage) looks much easier than it does in real life. We have handled enough Aurora personal injury cases to know that the start-to-finish journey is rarely a smooth one.
However, the confidence we have in our legal team gives us the assurance that we can surmount any hurdles that arise.
During your free initial consultation with Thomas Law Offices, we’ll share with you the challenges we anticipate in your case and how we plan to overcome them. Please feel free to bring any questions you have about the expected timeline, value of your case, documents you should provide, projected outcome, and any other concerns you may have.
Negligence and Duty of Care: What These Terms Mean in Your Injury Case
Most personal injury cases rest on the legal concept of negligence. Negligence is a term used in civil law referring to actions that violate a duty of care one person owes to another. The duty of care describes the way a reasonable person should act, given the circumstances, in a way that does not cause harm to or endanger others.
As the party filing the claim (the plaintiff), it is your responsibility to prove that the other party (the defendant) acted with negligence, causing your injuries and resulting losses.
There are four legal elements that must be met before your personal injury claim can proceed:
- Duty: The defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care.
- Breach: The defendant breached or violated the duty of care.
- Causation: The defendant’s breach of duty caused the plaintiff’s injuries.
- Damages: The plaintiff suffered verifiable losses (damages) as a result of the injuries.
Examples of Negligence and Breach of Duty in a Personal Injury Case
Let’s look at an example of how these legal concepts work in one of the most common types of personal injury incidents we see here in Aurora—motor vehicle accidents.
Most motor vehicle accidents are preventable and only result because a motorist breached the duty of care they owed to everyone else sharing the road. Texting while driving, driving drunk, speeding, and other common accident causes are all examples of behaviors that breach the duty of care.
When one of these behaviors injures a pedestrian, bicyclist, motorcyclist, or other vehicle occupant, the at-fault party can be held liable for the injury victim’s resulting damages through a personal injury claim. Damages typically come in the form of medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and more.
A duty of care breached by a doctor to a patient, a business to a customer, a landlord to a tenant, a nursing home staff member to a resident, and many other examples can also give the injured party the right to take legal action to recover damages from the negligent party.
Top 10 Steps To Take After a Personal Injury Accident
If you have already been the victim of a personal injury in DuPage or Kane County, the best thing you can do at this point is focus on your recovery and schedule a case evaluation with an experienced Aurora personal injury attorney as soon as you can.
If it’s still possible to follow any of the steps listed below, we recommend taking them to the best of your physical ability.
It’s also wise to commit these steps to memory so that you can best help yourself or someone else who may suffer an injury event in the future. This guidance can help protect the rights of the injured individual and prevent them from suffering further physical or financial harm.
Our advised top 10 steps to take after a personal injury accident are:
- Get out of harm’s way and to a safe place.
- Go to the emergency room if needed.
- Call the police to the scene and obtain a copy of the police report.
- Take pictures or video of the accident scene and injuries.
- If you did not go to the emergency room, schedule a full physical exam with your doctor.
- Keep all documents related to your medical care.
- Report your incident to your insurance provider if needed.
- Be careful if an insurance company contacts you. Don’t admit fault, and never give a recorded statement.
- Schedule a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer.
- Avoid social media or discussing your case with others while the investigation is ongoing.
Take Control of Your Future Today—The Clock Is Already Ticking
You do not need to sit back and just accept what has happened to you. The law works in your favor. If you were hurt by someone else, your damages are their responsibility.
Depending on the losses you suffered, you may be entitled to financial compensation for:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages and benefits
- Lost future income if you can no longer perform your previous job
- Transportation costs
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional anguish
- Wrongful death damages if a loved one lost their life
- And more
Illinois law sets a time limit on how long you have to seek damages. This time limit is called a statute of limitations. Most personal injury and wrongful death cases in Aurora are subject to a two-year statute of limitations. However, there may be exceptions that grant your case more or less time.
Building a strong personal injury case takes a great deal of time and effort. The sooner you learn your legal rights and options, the sooner you can make the decision that’s right for your future.
Thomas Law Offices is here to support your physical, emotional, and financial wellbeing in every way that we can. When you’re ready to meet, we are here to listen.
Contact our law firm with your availability. We will work with your schedule to set up a free, no-obligation case evaluation with a qualified Aurora personal injury lawyer who has experience in your type of case.
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