losing a lawsuitYou’ve lost your personal injury lawsuit by a jury verdict, a directed verdict or by a summary judgment and you are not sure what will happen next. There is a slight chance you can change the outcome but it will be an uphill battle.

If I Lose My Personal Injury Lawsuit Do I Have To Pay Anything?

The answer is yes and no. First, most Providence personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, meaning they only get paid when they win the case. In this case, since you’d have lost your case, you won’t have to pay them anything. However, you should check your fee agreement because you still might need to pay your lawyer his costs. The issue about lawyer fees has been covered in this post.

Even if you don’t have to pay your lawyer anything, you are not in the clear yet because the defendant might decide that you should pay the expense they incurred and this includes expert witness and deposition fees. If your trial has been going on for a very long time, the costs might add up to thousands of dollars.

If you are not able to pay them, they might take advantage of the situation and force you to waive any appeal rights you may have. This would obviously be a dilemma for you if you were planning to appeal your case.

Can I Get A New Trial?

Yes, you can ask for a new trial but not because you are unhappy with the jury’s findings. We have seen cases where a jury believes the defendant over the plaintiff even though the plaintiff brought in expert witnesses who supported their case.

If you want a new trial, your Providence personal injury lawyer has to prove that there were severe evidentiary or procedural errors. Your lawyer will have to follow a certain procedure when asking the judge for a new trial but don’t get your hopes up because the judge might not grant the motion.

Can I Appeal?

Just like requesting for a new trial, you can’t just say you want to appeal your case because you are unhappy with the jury’s decision. The grounds for appealing your case are too many to start discussing them here but there has to be substantial evidence that the court committed a reversible error.

A reversible error is anything that affected the outcome of your case including misleading the jury or excluding key evidence in the trial. There is also what’s known as harmless errors which basically are errors that have no impact on your case.

But you should know that anyone seeking an appeal is usually at a disadvantage. The appellate court can uphold the judgment on any grounds. Moreover, you can only raise arguments in the appellate court that were initially raised in the trial court. The appellate court does not assign error to a trial court unless the trial court was given the opportunity to correct or avoid the error.

So even if you have not yet waived your rights to appeal, don’t get your hopes up yet unless your Providence personal injury lawyer strongly feels your chances of successfully appealing are high.

Did My Providence Personal Injury Lawyer Screw Up?

It’s easy to assume that you lost your case because your lawyer didn’t do what he was supposed to do. Sometimes jurors believe what they want and things don’t always go your way so don’t assume that your lawyer didn’t do his job. Remember that he’s also lost time and money while working on your case. He was also looking to get paid but didn’t because he lost the case.

So before you accuse your lawyer of malpractice, take some time to cool off and then meet with him to discuss your options. Remember that if there’s a slight chance that he might reverse your bad luck by seeking a new trial or an appeal, you may still need him.

Only Hire A Credible Lawyer

We understand all too well how devastating it can be to lose a lawsuit especially if you have medical bills piling up and the emotional strain an accident can cause.

We aggressively pursue the best course of action to fight for your rights in order to receive a full settlement in the maximum amount to alleviate your suffering. We specialize in every kind of personal injury.

Here’s what our clients have to say. If you need to hire a Providence personal injury lawyer, you can call us at 401-751-0101 or visit our offices to schedule your free initial consultation.