Personal Injury Lawyer in Granite City, IL

Burger Law defends the rights of those who are injured due to the negligence of another. If you are seriously injured because of someone else’s negligent behavior, Burger Law’s personal injury lawyers in Granite City, IL demand the recovery you are owed and fight for you every step of the way. Call Burger Law today at (618) 500-HURT or fill out our online form.

To find out the value of your personal injury claim in Granite City, or anywhere in Illinois, check out our free personal injury calculator.

The negligent parties that hurt you are financially and legally responsible for taking care of your injuries and paying you all of what you are owed, but that does not mean they will do it willingly. Burger Law’s personal injury lawyer team fights hard for our clients against anyone who is trying to keep them from the recovery they deserve. We handle a variety of cases, including making claims against drunk drivers, holding negligent doctors, product manufacturers, store owners responsible, suing City Hall, to securing justice and financial security for a family after the wrongful death of a loved one. If you have questions about your case, what compensation you are owed or anything else about the personal injury claims process, call our personal injury lawyers in Granite City, IL today at (618) 500-HURT.

Why Burger Law Is The Granite City, IL Personal Injury Law Firm For You

Choosing the right personal injury lawyer for your case is crucial. You want someone who has won your type of case before and who you know will not back down from a fight. In order to have a good understanding of the abilities of a law firm, you need to take into account their previous victories, and their reputation among their clients and other attorneys:

Acclaimed Granite City, IL Personal Injury Lawyers

The numerous awards and recognition Burger Law has received from other law firms include:

• Martindale-Hubbell Award — AV Preeminent® Rated by Martindale-Hubbell® from NexisLexis® – a remarkable achievement awarded to less than 5 percent of all lawyers nationwide
• Million and Multi-Million Dollar Advocate Honor — Members of the Million and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, an honor only given to 1 percent of attorneys in the United States.
• Top 100 Trial Lawyers Honor — Selected to the Top 100 Trial Lawyers by The National Trial Lawyers, an invitation-only award that is made up of the most qualified attorneys in each state.
• Board Certified By the National Board of Trial Advocacy — Board certified in Civil Trial Advocacy and Civil Pretrial Practice Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Fewer than 4 percent of all practicing lawyers are certified by an American Bar Association accredited certification board.

Personal Injury Cases We Have Won

Our Granite City, IL personal injury lawyers fight for the full rights and recoveries of our clients. We fight all who harm our clients, and we fight for a full recovery every time. Our firm is dedicated to offering our clients the highest standard of legal representation, and we have tremendous pride in our well-deserved successes. Read about our case results for our personal injury clients below:

• $5 Million Settlement – Father Killed By Reckless Truck Driver
• $3 Million Judgment – Son Murdered by Pam Hupp
• $2.5 Million Settlement for Father’s Fatal Car Accident
• From $0 to $2 Million Car Accident Settlement
• $2 Million Settlement – Injured Woman Settles Highway Crash Lawsuit
• $1.435 Million Settlement For Deck Collapse That Injured Couple
• $1 Million Settlement to Family of Man with Sepsis Infection
• Medical Malpractice Case Settles for Over $1 Million
• $900,000 Medical Malpractice Settlement
• $765,000 Settlement After Fatal Collision
• $600,000 Tractor-Trailer Crash
• $600,000 Settlement – Widow in ATV Accident Settles with Property Owner
• Class Action $600,000 Settlement Against the State of Illinois
• $495,000 Uninsured Motorcycle Verdict
• $400,000 Settlement in Employment Discrimination Case
• $350,000 Settlement in Ladder Case

It is worth mentioning that no two cases are the same, and what you may be eligible to recover is going to depend on the circumstances of your claim. We fight for you so that we get the maximum amount of compensation possible in your Illinois personal injury case.

Burger Law Client Testimonials

In addition to the videos below, you can check out more client testimonials here.

Definition of a Personal Injury Claim in Granite City, IL

A personal injury claim is your right under Illinois law to get financial compensation for the harm another person caused, and to achieve justice. The recovery you receive is meant to make one whole. The goal is convert all the ways an injury affected you into a dollar amount.

Sometimes, no outcome in your claim can truly “put back” all the things you lost in an injury. While you can be reimbursed for medical bills, lost wages and other financial losses, other damages cannot truly be expressed through dollar signs. If you lost a loved one, you are permanently disabled, are disfigured or will have to live the rest of your life in chronic pain, no legal process can make that go away. What compassionate and skilled personal injury lawyers like those at Burger Law are able to do is secure you fair compensation in order to provide a sense of justice and recognition, and to give you financial security as it relates to your accident.

Is it Worth Hiring Personal Injury Lawyer in Granite City, IL?

While some cases can be successfully navigated without a lawyer, most of the time you will need one to get the full compensation you deserve in Granite City, IL. The important question is, can they increase my compensation? If your injuries were not significant, you did not miss much time off work and the insurance adjuster is being reasonable, a lawyer might not be necessary. But, you will need legal representation in Granite City, IL under the following circumstances:

• There is a dispute about liability, or you are being blamed for your injuries
• The initial settlement offer is well below what you are owed
• Your injuries are serious and require extensive care
• There are multiple parties at fault
• Your damages are more than an insurance company’s policy limits

We offer consultations for free, and we are always honest about how much value we can add your claim. Our personal injury lawyers take on cases based on a contingency-fee, meaning you only pay after you have received the full compensation you are owed, and there is no reason for us to take on your claim if we do not think we can get you substantially more money.

What Do You Need to Prove to Win a Personal Injury Claim in Granite City, IL?

While civil law can be complex, whether or not you can seek compensation depends on the answer to one specific question: were you injured because someone else was negligent? From a legal standpoint, you have to prove the five elements of negligence:

1. Duty of care — You first need to show that the person you are making a claim against had an obligation to keep you safe. In some cases this is automatic, as motorists all owe everyone on the Granite City, IL roads a duty of care, or store owners need their properties to be reasonable safe for anyone who legally enters. In other cases, a unique relationship must have been agreed to, for example a doctor-patient relationship or a vendor-patron relationship.
2. Breach of duty — Did someone fail in that obligation? Did a driver crash into you you while they were not following the rules of the road? Did a physician misdiagnose a condition? Did a store owner fail to fix an obviously dangerous condition?
3. Causation — You must show how the breach of duty led to your injuries. For instance, you broke your arm when your car was t-boned, or had bad side effects from a prescription drug.
4. Proximate cause — This determines liability. If you were hit by a vehicle, the liable party is usually the driver that hit you. But if the tires were not safe, a manufacturer or mechanic may be the one who is ultimately liable.
5. Damages — Lastly, you have to show that you sustained some form of financial loss as a direct result of your injuries. In most cases damages are medical expenses and wages you could not earn while you were not able to work. If you keep solid records of your medical expenses, an attorney will be able to establish your financial losses with an insurance company. Once we establish financial losses, we can also seek compensation for pain and suffering damages.

The only way to know for certain if you have an injury claim is to speak to an attorney who has handled your type of claim in Granite City, IL before. You can speak to a personal injury lawyer today at (618) 500-HURT.

Types of Claims Our Granite City, IL Personal Injury Lawyers Handle

Being a personal injury lawyer in Granite City, IL requires that your lawyers and firm have a vast knowledge of the different types of cases that people deal with. Knowing the difference between how the law applies to auto accidents, medical malpractice and slip and falls is essential. A lawyer that only specializes in a certain type of injury claim may not have the experience to take on other cases. At Burger Law, we know how to hold the liable party accountable no matter the circumstances. Cases we specialize in in Granite City and throughout Illinois include:

Auto Accidents

The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that there are about 400,000 personal injury claims every year. About 52 percent of those are auto accident claims, including:

• Car Accidents
• Truck Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents

Truck accidents can be especially catastrophic because of the amount of force they carry in an accident, and motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians are all at heightened risk of being severely injured due to their relatively limited protection. Under 625 ILCS 5/11-1003.1, all motorist must “exercise due care” to avoid colliding with anybody or anything else on the Illinois roads. If someone breaks the rules of the road and you end up hurt, you have an auto accident claim against them.

In some cases, a vehicle manufacturer, construction company or governmental entity may have at least contributed to your injuries. Your Burger Law personal injury lawyer will carry out a complete investigation into your claim to find out who and what exactly caused your injuries.

Premises Liability

Property owners and managers have an obligation to take reasonable measures to make sure their premises does not carry any risks for people who are not trespassing. If you are injured in a slip and fall because a property was unsafe, you deserve compensation. 740 ILCS 130/, also known as the Illinois Premises Liability Act, stipulates that proprietors owe a duty of care to people who lawfully enter their property that is “of reasonable care under the circumstances regarding the state of the premises or acts done or omitted on them.” Basically, if there is a dangerous condition that is not obvious, the owner needs to either fix the condition or warn against it. Some hazardous conditions include:

• Spills
• A recently mopped floor
• Broken concrete on a walkway
• Broken stairs
• Broken decks and balconies
• Potholes
• Sudden changes in surface level
• Ledges
• Poor lighting
• Black ice
• Wet concrete
• Debris such as litter, fallen leaves and branches, rocks, etc
• Uneven rugs
• Electrical cords
• In-ground sprinklers or hardscape features hidden in the grass
• Broken safety rails

You do not automatically have a claim just because a property had a dangerous condition. If you were trespassing, ignored warning signs, such as a “wet floor sign,” or were running or not acting in a safe manner, you likely do not have a slip and fall claim. Successful premises liability claims depend on the following:

• The owner or manager created the hazardous conditions; or
• The owner or manager knew about the risk and neglected to repair it; or
• The owner or manager tried to fix the condition and fixed it negligently; or
• The owner or manager should have known about the condition, either because it happens often, had been there for an extended length of time or due to other complaints

A property owner or insurance company in Granite City, IL may tell you they are not liable for your slip and fall injuries because they should not have been reasonable expected to repair or warn against the accident or because you are to blame. That is not true, and always speak with a personal injury lawyer before accepting any settlement.

Medical Malpractice

Based on research from John Hopkins University, medical errors cause over a quarter of a million deaths annually. While not every error constitutes negligence, when it does, you can make a medical malpractice claim.

Your medical malpractice cases will come down to what is called the standard of care. The standard is how a reasonable healthcare professional, in the same area and with the same training as the one you are suing, would treat whatever ailment you saw them for.

Under 735 ILCS 5/2-622, any medical malpractice lawsuit must be accompanied by an affidavit from a health professional who:

• is knowledgeable in the relevant issues of the claim
• practices or teaches the same field as the doctor you are suing, or has practiced or taught in that field within the last six years
• is qualified to review the facts of your case, and determines your claim is “reasonable and meritorious”

It is vital that the physician who writes the affidavit is in the same practice area and geographic region as the health professional you are suing. A neurologist in Chicago is held to a different standard of care than a general practitioner in Rockport, Maine. Burger Law has a network of expert witnesses in Granite City and in other parts of Illinois who can help verify that your medical malpractice suit is valid.

Common examples of medical malpractice in Granite City, IL include:

• Nursing home negligence
• Birth injuries
• Misdiagnosis and failure to diagnosis
• Forgetting to remove objects after surgery
• Hospital system errors
• Lack of consent
• Failing to order tests that a prudent doctor would
• Ignoring a patient’s complaints
• Not seeking a second opinion or recommending a different treatment plan when theirs is not working
• Prescription errors

Dog Bites

Every day, almost 1,000 people require emergency medical treatment for dog bites, and annually dog bites lead to about 12,480 hospitalizations. According to a Chicago Tribune article, Illinois insurance companies pay out the second-most money for dog bites than any state in the country.

510 ILCS 5/, the Illinois Animal Control Act, mandates that a dog owner is strictly liable for your the injuries their dog causes, assuming you did not provoke it and were not trespassing. “Strict liability” means that the owner is automatically liable, whether they were negligent or not. This means that the owner owes you a recovery even if they did not necessarily do anything wrong.

While some dog bites are minor, others result in reconstructive surgeries or permanent scarring. In any case, trust in a Burger Law Granite City, IL personal injury lawyer to secure you the best possible compensation you are owed.

Product Liability

Strict liability also applies to anyone involved in the chain of distribution of a defective product. There are three categories of product liability claims in Granite City, IL:

1. Design defect — This is a defect that was present when the product was initially designed. This could include an SUV that is susceptible to rollover accidents, or an electrical appliance that melts when turned on high.
2. Manufacturing defect — This type of defect affects several individual products instead of every product with the same design. Examples include rat droppings getting caught in packaging, or a seatbelt with a loose screw that comes undone during impact.
3. Failure to warn — This refers to labeling that does not mention certain risks when the product is put to foreseeable use. For example, an electric shaver not mentioning that shock can occur if used in the shower.

In order to recover compensation, you must demonstrate that the product carried inherent risks when used in a foreseeable manner, that it caused your injuries and that the product had not been “substantially” changed from its state at the initial sale.

Burger Law’s personal injury lawyers will take on any case in which someone was injured through no fault of their own. One of the great parts of choosing a Burger Law Granite City, IL personal injury lawyer is that our team takes on all types of personal injury claims, and this actually gives our lawyers exceptional experience that they can use to benefit all their clients. We understand that case types often overlap, and having experience with each type of claim gives our team the perfect understanding of how to fight for our clients’ rights and recoveries.

How Does the Personal Injury Claims Process Work in Granite City, IL?

The path to securing maximum compensation for your injuries can be long and complex. While some cases only take a few months, others can take several years before a jury finally renders a verdict. In total, the personal injury claims process includes:

• Seeking Medical Care — Get medical attention as soon as possible after an injury, and keep attending all treatments that your physician recommends. The insurance company will be harder to deal with if you wait, and not attending all your appointments will reduce how much compensation you receive. Our personal injury lawyers have a network of experienced Granite City, IL health professionals who can ensure you get the full treatment you need.
• Speaking With an Attorney — Even if you are not sure you are going to need to hire a lawyer, it is best to know what your options are as soon as possible. A good lawyer will tell you bluntly what your legal recourses are.
• Investigation and Documentation — Once you have retained a lawyer’s services, your personal injury lawyer will carry out a complete investigation into your claim, determine every liable party and acquire the evidence needed for the best possible financial recovery. You can help by keeping a record of every dollar you have spent because of your injuries, and how keeping a journal detailing how your injuries have affected your life.
• Settlement Demand and Negotiations — Once we have determined the full extent of your damages, we will send a settlement demand package to the liable party’s insurance company. In the package we will include full documentation of all of your damages, and insist that nothing but the full amount is acceptable. Usually, the insurance company will counter our offer with a lower number, and we keep negotiating until they agree to pay for all of your damages.
• Filing a Lawsuit — If the insurance company will not be fair in negotiations, we will proceed to litigating the case and setting up a trial. During this time, both parties continue negotiating.
• Mediation — Mediation is often the last option for a settlement before trial. In mediation, a neutral third party hears arguments from both sides and tries to get everyone to reach an agreement.
• Pre-Trial — If mediation fails, we will go into the pre-trial “discovery” phase. In this phase, we take depositions of eyewitnesses and expert witnesses, acquire more evidence and both parties will share with the other what they plan to use as evidence in trial.
• Trial — It is rare that a personal injury claim makes it all the way to trial. In fact, many times we have gotten the settlement we were seeking on the eve of trial. However, if the insurance company still cannot see reason, we will fight for your compensation in front of a judge and jury. Trial consists of:
  • Voir dire
  • Opening statements
  • Testimony and cross-examination
  • Closing arguments
  • Jury instruction
  • Jury deliberation and verdict

Most people who speak with our Granite City, IL personal injury lawyers have never had to deal with seeking compensation for an injury before, and are unsure of what lies ahead. Burger Law will be by your side from our initial consultation to full compensation, be there to answer all of your questions and manage all the legal aspects of your case so you can spend your energy on healing.

What Types of Compensation Are Available in My Granite City, IL Personal Injury Claim?

In general, your compensation will fall into two categories: economic damages and non-economic damages:

• Economic damages compensate you for the economic harm related to your injuries, for instance:
  • Lost wages
  • Lost earning potential if your injuries do not allow you to earn a living as you used to
  • Medical costs, past and future
  • Out-of-pocket expenses
• Non-economic damages compensate you for losses that are harder to put a dollar figure on, such as:
  • Pain and suffering
  • Stress and anxiety
  • Loss of ability to enjoy life
  • Scarring and disfigurement
  • Inconvenience
  • Physical impairment
  • Loss of consortium

Though rare, you may also be eligible for punitive damages if the negligent party’s conduct was purposefully harmful or incredibly reckless. Examples can include a drunk driver, or a doctor who performs surgery after drinking. While punitive damages are rarely awarded, your Burger Law personal injury lawyer will pursue every legal avenue possible to maximize your compensation.

What Is the Time Limit for Personal Injury Claims in Granite City, IL?

In Illinois, the statute of limitations is shorter than most states at just two years, under 735 ILCS 5/. That means you must file a claim within two years of when the injury occurred. However, there are three notable exceptions:

1. If you were under 18 at the time of injury, you have until your 20th birthday.
2. If you were under a “legal disability” when the injury occurred, you have two years from the date the disability was “removed.”
3. In medical malpractice cases, you have two years from the date you discovered the injury or could reasonably have been expected to discover the injury. No medical malpractice claim can be made more than four years after the injury occurred, unless you were a minor at the time. Then you would have until four years after your 18th birthday.

While two years may not cause immediate concern, your attorney will want as much time as possible to build your case. Do not delay in speaking to an attorney. Call a personal injury lawyer today at (618) 500-HURT.

Other cases we take on in Granite City, IL include:

• Personal injury
• Car accident
• Truck accident
• Motorcycle accident
• Wrongful death

Speak to Personal Injury Lawyer in Granite City, IL Now

Burger Law’s Granite City, IL personal injury lawyers hold ourselves to the standard of zealous representation. That means we get started on your case the moment you hire us, investigate your case thoroughly, fight back against insurance companies on your behalf and do not let down until you get the maximum recovery you deserve. We offer the highest standard of legal advocacy; all of our advice will be based on the facts of the case and our experience, but we always leave the ultimate decisions on your claim to you and your Granite City, IL family. You do not have to pay for someone else’s careless actions. To start on your road to true recovery, call a Burger Law Granite City, IL personal injury lawyer now at (618) 500-HURT or contact us online for a free consultation.