Personal Injury Lawyer in East Moline, IL

Burger Law defends the rights of people who are injured because of negligent and
reckless actions. When you or someone you love are seriously injured all because someone else behaved recklessly or
irresponsibly, Burger Law’s personal injury
lawyers in East Moline, IL demand the recovery you are owed and fight for you every step of the way. Reach out
to Burger Law now at (779) 800-HURT or contact us online.

To find out how much compensation you may be owed in East Moline, or anywhere in Illinois, complete our free personal injury calculator.

Those who injured 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 back for our clients against whoever is standing in the way of justice. We handle a variety of cases,
including suing large trucking companies, holding negligent doctors, product manufacturers, dog owners responsible,
suing City Hall, to securing justice and financial security for a family after a a family member passed too soon. If you
want to understand if you have a claim, the damages you may be able to recover or other questions regarding personal
injury claims, call our personal injury lawyers in East Moline, IL immediately at (779)
800-HURT.

Why Choose Burger Law’s East Moline, IL Personal Injury Lawyers For Your Claim

It can be hard to know how to choose the best personal injury lawyer for you. 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 gauge the abilities of an injury law firm, you
need to take into account the cases they have won, and what their clients and other lawyers say about them:

Award-Winning East Moline, IL Personal Injury Lawyers

The numerous awards and recognition Burger Law has received
from other lawyers 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 honor that is comprised of the most qualified lawyers 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. Less than 4 percent of all practicing
  attorneys are certified by an American Bar Association accredited certification board.

Personal Injury Lawyer East Moline, IL – Recent Victories

Our East Moline, IL personal injury lawyers fight for the full rights and recoveries of our clients. We take on all who
have hurt our clients, and we insist on nothing but full compensation. Our firm is committed to providing our clients
amazing legal representation, and we take great pride in our hard-fought successes. Check out some of our recent
successes in personal injury claims 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 pointing out that every injury comes with its own set of circumstances, and what you may be eligible to
recover is going to depend on the your specific accident. We fight for you so that there is no money left on the table.

Burger Law Reviews

In addition to the videos below, you can see our full list of client testimonials here.

Definition of a Personal Injury Claim in East Moline, IL

Under Illinois and U.S. law, you have a right to file a personal injury claim to get financial compensation for the
damage someone else caused, and to hold the rule breakers accountable. The recovery you receive is meant to make one whole. The idea 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 we can get
compensation for the financial losses you sustained, other damages are harder to quantify. If a family member died, you
lost a limb, are disfigured or will have to live the rest of your life in chronic pain, no amount of money can make that
go away. What empathetic and talented personal injury lawyers like those at Burger Law are able to do is ensure your
injuries are recognized, and to provide you with relief from the financial losses resulting from your accident.

Do I Need a Personal Injury Lawyer in East Moline, IL?

That depends on the specifics of your case, but most of the time, yes, you will need a personal injury lawyer to ensure
no money is left on the table in East Moline, IL. The important question is, will I get more money with them? If
your medical expenses are low, you have minimal lost wages and the other party’s fault is clearly established, you may
not need an attorney. But, you will need an attorney in East Moline, IL under the following circumstances:

• There is a dispute about liability, or the insurance company says the injuries are your fault
• The insurance company or liable party’s offer is well below what you are owed
• Your injuries are serious and require ongoing care
• There more than one party at fault
• Your damages are more than an insurance company’s policy limits

We offer consultations for free, and we are always direct about how much we can help your claim. Our personal injury
lawyers work on a contingency-fee basis, meaning you do
not pay until we win your case, and there is no reason for us to accept you as a client if we do not think we can
significantly increase your final payout.

Do I Have a Personal Injury Case in East Moline, IL?

While civil law can be confusing, whether or not you have a claim 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
   demonstrate that the person you are making a claim against owed it to you to value your safety. Sometimes, a
   duty of care is assumed, as motorists all owe everyone on the East Moline, 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 particular
   relationship must have been agreed to, for instance the relationship between a doctor and patient or between a
   vendor and a buyer.
2. Breach of duty — Did someone neglect that
   duty? Did a driver hit you because they were drunk? Did a doctor not order the appropriate tests? Did a product
   manufacturer not properly test their products?
3. Causation — You must demonstrate how the
   incident led to your injuries. For example, you received road rash after being thrown off your bicycle, or had
   bad side effects from a prescription drug.
4. Proximate cause — This determines who needs to be held accountable. If you were hit by a vehicle, it is
   usually because another driver was negligent. But if the tires were defective, someone in the product’s chain of
   distribution may be ultimately liable.
5. Damages — Finally, 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 bills and lost wages. With access to your medical records, this
   last part will be fairly easy to prove with the help of an attorney. After proving economic damages, we can seek
   a financial recovery for the other ways your injuries have affected you.

The only way to know for certain if you have an injury claim is to consult with an attorney who has handled your type of
claim in East Moline, IL before. Call a personal injury lawyer today at (779)
800-HURT.

Types of Cases Our East Moline, IL Personal Injury Lawyers Win

Practicing injury law in East Moline, IL requires that your lawyers and firm know how liability laws apply to a wide
range of cases. Knowing the difference between the laws and defendants applicable to different types of claims is
paramount. A lawyer who only knows how to deal with car insurance companies may not have the experience to take on other
cases. At Burger Law, we know how to hold the liable party accountable whenever negligence results in an injury. Cases
we take on in East Moline and throughout Illinois include:

Auto Accidents

Statistics from the Bureau of Justice Statistics indicate that there are 300,000 to 500,000
personal injury claims in any given year. The majority of those result from auto accidents, including:

• Car Accidents
• Truck Accidents
• Motorcycle Accidents
• Bicycle Accidents
• Pedestrian 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 increased risk of catastrophic injury or death as they do not have
the same protection closed-vehicle occupants have. Under 625 ILCS 5/11-1003.1, all motorist must “exercise due care” to keep everyone
else on the road safe. If a driver is negligent and you end up hurt, you have an auto accident claim against them.

Sometimes, a vehicle manufacturer, construction company or governmental entity may be fully or partially to blame for
your injuries. As part of our services, your Burger Law personal injury lawyer will carry out a comprehensive
investigation into your accident to find every liable party and hold them accountable.

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 legally on it. If you are injured in a slip and fall because a property was unsafe,
you can make a premises liability claim. 740 ILCS 130/, also referred to as the Illinois Premises Liability Act,
mandates that property owners 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
hazardous condition that is not obvious, the owner needs to either fix the hazard, post signage or rope it off. Examples
of a dangerous condition on a property include:

• Spills
• A recently mopped floor
• Broken concrete on a walkway
• Broken stairs
• Broken decks and balconies
• Potholes
• Overly steep inclines
• Ledges
• Poor lighting
• Icy or snow-covered concrete
• Wet concrete
• Debris such as litter, fallen leaves and branches, rocks, etc
• Uneven rugs
• Stray 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 in a part of a
property you were not allowed to be, ignored warning signs, for example a “wet floor sign,” or were running or acting
dangerously, you likely do not have a slip and fall claim. Successful premises liability claims depend on the following:

• The owner or manager created the unsafe conditions; or
• The owner or manager knew about the danger and neglected to repair it; or
• The owner or manager tried to repair the hazard and repaired 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 store or insurance company in East Moline, IL may tell you they do not owe you anything because they should not have
been reasonable expected to repair or warn against the accident or because the accident was your fault. Do not believe
them, and always speak with a personal injury lawyer before accepting any settlement.

Medical Malpractice

Based on data from John Hopkins University, medical errors cause more than 250,000 deaths annually. While
not every error amount to malpractice, when it does, a physician needs to pay for breaking your trust.

Proving a medical malpractice claim is based on
what is referred to as the standard of care. The standard is how a prudent doctor, in the same area and
with the same training as the one you are making a claim against, would treat a specific condition.

Under 735 ILCS 5/2-622, any medical malpractice suit needs to be
filed along with an affidavit from a health professional who:

• is knowledgeable in the relevant issues of the claim
• practices or teaches the same field as the negligent doctor, 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 corroborating your allegations is in the same practice area and geographic region as the
health professional you are making a claim against. A thoracic surgeon in Chicago has a different standard of care than
a family doctor in Rockport, Maine. Burger Law knows numerous expert witnesses in East Moline and throughout Illinois
who can help verify that your medical malpractice suit is valid.

Common instances of medical malpractice in East Moline, IL include:

• Nursing home abuse
• Birth injuries
• Misdiagnosis
  and failure to diagnosis
• Forgetting to remove objects during surgery
• Hospital system errors
• Lack of consent
• Not ordering tests that a prudent doctor would
• Blowing off a patient’s complaints
• Not changing course when their treatment plan is not working
• Prescription errors

Dog Bites

Every day, nearly 1,000 people require emergency medical treatment for dog bites, and annually
about 12,600 people are hospitalized. 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, stipulates that the
owner of a dog is strictly liable for your damages if
it bit you, as long as 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 only lead to minor injuries, others can lead to reconstructive surgeries or lifelong disfigurement.
Regardless of the seriousness of your injuries, you likely need an experienced and skilled East Moline, IL personal
injury lawyer to ensure you get the best possible financial recovery you are owed.

Product Liability

Strict liability also applies to anyone involved in the chain of distribution of a defective product. There are three types of product liability claims in East Moline, IL:

1. Design defect — This is a defect that occurs even if the product is manufactured correctly. This could
   include an SUV that is prone to rollover accidents, or a power tool whose guard rails do not prevent injuries.
2. Manufacturing defect — This type of defect usually occurs to only one or several individual products,
   instead of every product with the same design. Examples include rat droppings getting caught in a soda can, or a
   seatbelt with a loose screw that comes undone during impact.
3. Insufficient instructions — This refers to a product that did not carry sufficient warnings when it was
   put to foreseeable use. For example, an electric shaver not mentioning that shock can occur if used in the
   shower.

In order to make a product liability claim, you must demonstrate that the product carried inherent risks when it was
used in a way a manufacturer could reasonably expect, 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 know how to get great results whenever someone was injured due to another’s
negligence. One of the great parts of choosing a Burger Law East Moline, IL personal injury lawyer is that our team
takes on all types of personal injury claims, and have won your type of claim before. 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 East Moline, IL?

The journey to getting a financial settlement or verdict for your injuries begins the day you are injured. While some
cases only take a few months, others can take several years before a jury finally renders a verdict. Generally, the
personal injury claims process consists of:

• Seeking Medical Care — Get medical care immediately after an injury, and follow your doctor’s treatment
  plans to a “T.” If you delay, it could bring complications to your claim, and not attending all your sessions
  will lower how much compensation you receive. Our personal injury lawyers know trustworthy East Moline, IL
  doctors, chiropractors and physical therapists who can ensure you recover physically as best as possible.
• Discussing Your Case With an Attorney — Even if you are not sure you are going to need to hire a lawyer,
  you need to consult with one as soon as possible so they can become familiar with your case. A good lawyer will
  tell you bluntly what your legal options are.
• Investigation and Documentation — Once you have hired an attorney, your personal injury lawyer will
  perform an exhaustive investigation into your claim, determine who we need to hold accountable and acquire the
  evidence they need to get you full compensation. You should also keep detailed records of your expenses related
  to your injuries, and how they affect your day-to-day life.
• Settlement Demand and Negotiations — Once we have determined the full extent of your damages, we will
  send a settlement demand package to those who are liable for compensating
  you. In the package we will include how we calculated your damages, and demand a financial recovery for all the
  ways your injuries have affected you. Usually, the insurance company will counter our offer with a lower number,
  and there will be several back-and-forths until they offer full compensation.
• Filing a Lawsuit — If negotiations do not lead anywhere, we will file a lawsuit in court, which begins
  the formal process of your claim going to trial. While the case is being litigated, we will continue negotiating
  in an effort to avoid a trial.
• Mediation — Mediation is often the last option for a settlement before trial. In mediation, an objective
  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, obtain more evidence and share with and request documentation
  with the other side.
• Trial — Only six percent of personal injury claims go to trial. Indeed, we often finally get a fair
  settlement offer on the eve of trial. However, if the insurance company still cannot see reason, we will defend
  your rights in court. Trial consists of:
  • Jury selection
  • Opening statements
  • Testimony and cross-examination
  • Closing arguments
  • Jury instruction
  • Jury deliberation and verdict

Most people who speak with our East Moline, IL personal injury lawyers have never been through the personal injury
claims process before, and are unsure of what lies ahead. Burger Law will be by your side every step of the way, be
there to answer all of your questions and oversee all the legal aspects of your case so you can spend your energy on
your physical recovery.

What Types of Compensation Are Available in My East Moline, IL Personal Injury Claim?

In general, there are two types of compensation available in a personal injury claim: economic damages and non-economic damages:

• Economic damages compensate you for the economic harm resulting from your injuries, for instance:
  • Lost wages
  • Lost earning potential if your injuries result in permanent disability
  • 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, including:
  • Pain and suffering
  • Stress and anxiety
  • Loss of ability to enjoy life
  • Scarring and disfigurement
  • Inconvenience
  • Physical impairment
  • Loss of consortium

Sometimes, we may also be able to pursue punitive
damages if the at-fault party’s conduct was purposefully harmful or grossly negligent. 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 get you the best possible financial recovery.

What Is the Time Limit for Personal Injury Claims in East Moline, IL?

In Illinois, the statute of limitations is relatively short at two years for
most personal injury claims, under 735 ILCS 5/. That means you must file a claim within two
years of when the injury occurred. However, there are three important exceptions:

1. If you were a minor at the time of injury, you have two years to file a claim after your 18th 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 should have
   discovered 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 seem like a long time, thoroughly investigating an injury and developing a legal strategy takes
time. Do not delay in speaking to an attorney. Call a personal injury lawyer today at (779) 800-HURT.

Other types of claims we win in East Moline, IL include:

• Truck Crash Lawyers in
  Illinois
• Wrongful Death Lawyers in
  Illinois
• Semi-Truck Accident
  Lawyer in Illinois
• Car Accident Attorney in
  Illinois

Speak to Personal Injury Lawyer in East Moline, IL Now

Burger Law’s East Moline, IL personal injury lawyers hold ourselves to the standard of zealous representation. That means we start working for
your recovery immediately, investigate your case thoroughly, stand up to insurance companies on your behalf and do not
let down until you are awarded the maximum recovery you deserve. We offer the highest standard of legal representation;
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 East Moline, 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 East Moline, IL personal injury lawyer now at (779) 800-HURT or contact us online for
a free consultation.