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When you suffer injuries because of the negligent, reckless, or intentional wrongdoing of another, you have every right to seek full and fair compensation for your losses through a personal injury claim. However, the process of seeking compensation can be confusing and intimidating, especially if you have never gone through it before.

At Ryan Bisher Ryan & Simons, we represent everyday people in Oklahoma City and throughout Oklahoma. We help them to understand their rights and options after they have suffered harm through no fault of their own. We are dedicated to helping them to pursue the compensation they need to move on with their lives. We are ready to help you, too. To discuss your case, contact us today for a free consultation.

What is a Personal Injury? 

Not every accident gives rise to a personal injury lawsuit. When you work with our experienced Oklahoma City personal injury attorneys at Ryan Bisher Ryan & Simons, we will review the basic elements of a personal injury claim with you and help you determine whether you have grounds for a claim based on the specific facts in your case. Those elements include: 

  • Duty — The other party must have owed a duty of care to you. For instance, a motorist owes a basic duty to exercise reasonable care when driving and avoid causing harm to others.
  • Breach — The party must have failed to uphold that duty of care by engaging in some form of wrongful conduct. An example is a driver speeding, texting while driving, or driving while impaired by alcohol.
  • Causation — This element can be met by showing that, but for the other party’s negligent, reckless, or intentional acts, you would not have suffered your injuries. 
  • Damages — Finally, you must show actual harm from the other party’s wrongful conduct such as physical injuries that have required expensive medical treatment (and may require more treatment in the future).

Our lawyers have decades of experience. We have seen personal injury claims arise from a wide range of situations. Some of the most common types of personal injury cases in Oklahoma City involve:

Generally, if a person would have been entitled to seek relief through personal injury lawsuit, but did not survive their injuries, the deceased person’s surviving family members may seek damages through a wrongful death claim.

What Types of Damages Are Available in a Personal Injury Claim?

At Ryan Bisher Ryan & Simons, we understand the physical, emotional, and financial struggles that confront our clients as a result of the needless harm they have suffered. Knowing the important role it can play in their lives, we pursue the maximum amount of compensation for our clients. In a personal injury lawsuit, those damages can include:

  • Past and future medical expenses
  • Lost wages and reduction (or total loss) of future earning capacity
  • Personal property damage
  • All other accident- and injury-related expenses
  • Physical pain
  • Emotional distress
  • Loss of consortium (for a spouse’s disability or death).

Under the principle of comparative negligence, the amount of damages recovered in a personal injury claim can be reduced if you are found to be partly responsible for the accident that caused the injury. If you are more than 50 percent at fault, you could be barred from any recovery.

For this reason, it is important to work with an experienced Oklahoma City personal injury attorney who will explore all sources of compensation available to you and fight for the damages you are due.

How Can I Improve My Chances of a Successful Personal Injury Claim?

If you have been hurt in an accident in Oklahoma City, you can take steps to protect your rights and help your chances of recovering full and fair compensation in a personal injury claim. Those steps include: 

  • Exchange information and collect witness information — You should do your best to exchange contact and insurance information with all other parties involved in the accident as well as witnesses.
  • Document the accident scene — If your condition allows, you should take photos of the accident scene, such as photos of the other vehicles involved in the crash, or a property hazard that caused you to fall.
  • Seek immediate medical treatment — Your health should be your top priority. You should be thoroughly checked for injuries. Timely documentation of those injuries plays an important role in the process.
  • Report the accident — If an officer does not respond to the accident scene, you should file a report with a local law enforcement agency such as the Oklahoma City Police Department.
  • Save all paperwork — Hold on to all medical records, insurance company correspondence, and receipts from all expenses related to your accident and injuries.
  • Be careful with social media — You should never discuss your case or your injuries on social media. Because an insurance company may take a comment or photo out of context to challenge your claim, it is advisable to stay off social media, altogether, until your case is over.

Dealing with Insurance Companies in Oklahoma Personal Injury Cases

After an accident, the other party’s insurance company may contact you and ask you to give a recorded statement. You should politely refuse to do so. Your next step should be to call an attorney.

Insurance companies are for-profit businesses. Their goal is to pay as little as possible, if anything, to dispose of claims. For this reason, they may use anything you say in a recorded statement to try to reduce or deny your claim.

Additionally, you should not accept a settlement until you have consulted first with an experienced Oklahoma City personal injury lawyer. It is crucial to know your rights and options. You do not want to sign any document that hinders your ability to be fully and fairly compensated for the harm you have suffered.

What is the Statute of Limitations for Filing Personal Injury Lawsuits in Oklahoma City?

It is important to know the statute of limitations that applies to personal injury claims in Oklahoma City and throughout the state. The statute of limitations serves as a deadline for filing the claim. If you fail to file a claim before the deadline, you could be barred from recovering any compensation.

Under Oklahoma law, the statute of limitations generally requires a person to file a personal injury lawsuit within two years from the date they suffered their injury (or the date when they reasonably should have discovered the injury). A wrongful death claim must be filed within two years from the date of the victim’s death.

Contact Our OKC Personal Injury Lawyers for a Free Consultation

The personal injury lawyers of Ryan Bisher Ryan & Simons can bring decades of experience to your case and a firm commitment to pursuing just compensation for you and your loved ones. We always put our clients first. To learn more, call or reach us online today. We can discuss your case in a free consultation.

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