Personal Injury Lawyer in Streator, IL

Burger Law fights on behalf of people who get hurt because someone else did no respect their safety. If you are seriously injured because of someone else’s negligent behavior, Burger Law’s personal injury lawyers in Streator, IL demand the recovery you are owed and fight for you every step of the way. Call Burger Law today at (779) 800-HURT or fill out our online form.

To calculate how much your personal injury claim may be worth in Streator, or anywhere in Illinois, complete our complimentary personal injury calculator.

The negligent people that hurt you are financially and legally responsible for taking care of your injuries and paying you 100 percent of what you are owed, but they will not do it willingly. Burger Law’s personal injury lawyer team fights hard for our clients against whoever is standing in the way of justice. We handle a variety of cases, including making claims against drunk drivers, holding negligent physicians, product manufacturers, animal owners accountable, taking the fight to the government, to getting justice and financial security for a family after the wrongful death of a loved one. If you have questions about your case, the damages you may be able to recover or other questions regarding personal injury claims, speak to one of our personal injury lawyers in Streator, IL now at (779) 800-HURT.

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

Choosing the right personal injury lawyer for your claim is crucial. You want someone with a history of winning similar cases 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 their previous successes, and what their clients and other lawyers say about them:

Premier Streator, IL Personal Injury Lawyers

The many awards and recognition Burger Law has received from other lawyers include:

• Martindale-Hubbell Award — AV Preeminent® Rated by Martindale-Hubbell® from NexisLexis® – a noteworthy achievement awarded to less than 5 percent of all lawyers in the U.S.
• 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 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 ABA accredited certification board.

Personal Injury Lawyer Streator, IL – Cases We Have Won

Our Streator, IL personal injury lawyers have a demonstrated history of getting great results. We take on all who have hurt our clients, and we fight for a full recovery every time. Our lawyers are devoted to providing our clients the highest standard of legal representation, and we have tremendous pride in our well-deserved victories. Check out some of our recent successes 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 pointing out that every injury comes with its own set of circumstances, and the compensation you receive is going to depend on the your specific accident. We calculate the full extent of your damages so that there is no money left on the table.

Burger Law Client Success Stories

Beyond the videos below, you can see our full list of client testimonials here.

What Is a Personal Injury Claim in Streator, IL?

Under Illinois and U.S. law, you have a right to file a personal injury claim to get a financial recovery for the injuries someone else is responsible for, and to achieve justice. The objective of insurance settlements and civil litigation is 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 return you to how things were before the injury. While you can be reimbursed for the financial losses you sustained, other damages cannot truly be expressed through dollar signs. 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 change that. What compassionate and skilled personal injury lawyers like those at Burger Law can do is secure you fair compensation in order to provide a sense of justice and recognition, and to provide you with financial security as it relates to your injuries.

Do I Need a Personal Injury Lawyer in Streator, IL?

While some cases can be successfully navigated without a lawyer, most of the time you will need one to ensure no money is left on the table in Streator, IL. The thing to ask yourself is, can they add value to my claim? If your injuries were not significant, you have minimal lost wages and the insurance company is being mostly fair, a lawyer might not be necessary. But, you will need an attorney in Streator, 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 the cost of your damages
• Your injuries are significant and require ongoing care
• There more than one party at fault
• Your damages are more than an insurance company’s policy limits

Our initial conversations and investigations are free, and we will always be honest with you about whether or not it is worth it for you to hire our services. Our personal injury lawyers work on a contingency-fee basis, 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 Streator, IL?

While state statutes can be complex, whether or not you can seek compensation depends on the answer to one essential question: were you injured because someone else was negligent? If so, legally speaking you need to prove the five elements of negligence:

1. Duty of care — You first need to show that the liable party had an obligation to keep you safe. Sometimes, a duty of care is assumed, as motorists all owe everyone on the Streator, IL roads a duty of care, or dog owners owe it to others to keep their dog from biting anyone. Other times, a particular relationship must have been agreed to, such as the relationship between a doctor and patient or between a vendor and a buyer.
2. Breach of duty — Did the other party fail in that responsibility? Did a driver hit you while they were texting and driving? Did a doctor prescribe the wrong dosage? Did a product manufacturer not properly test their products?
3. Cause-in-fact — You must demonstrate how the incident resulted in your injuries. For instance, you sustained a whiplash injury after being rear ended, or had bad side effects from a prescription drug.
4. Proximate cause — This determines liability. If you were rear ended, it is usually because another driver broke the rules of the road. But if the tires were not safe, a manufacturer or mechanic may be the one who is 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 personal injury cases, this is usually medical expenses and wages you could not earn while you were not able to work. With access to your medical records, this last part will be fairly easy to prove with the help of an attorney. Once we establish financial losses, we can also seek a financial recovery for the other ways your injuries have affected you.

If you have any doubts about whether or not you have a case, speak to a lawyer in Streator, IL who has won a similar claim before. Get in touch with a personal injury lawyer now at (779) 800-HURT.

Types of Claims Our Streator, IL Personal Injury Lawyers Win

Practicing injury law in Streator, 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 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 secure justice for the injured whenever negligence results in an injury. Cases we take on in Streator and throughout Illinois include:

Auto Accidents

Research from the Bureau of Justice Statistics indicate that there are about 400,000 personal injury claims annually. Just over half of those result from auto accidents, for instance:

• 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 being severely injured 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 avoid colliding with anybody or anything else on the Illinois roads. If a driver is negligent and you end up hurt, you can file a claim.

In some cases, a vehicle manufacturer, construction company or local municipality may be fully or partially to blame for your injuries. 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 a duty to ensure their property does not carry any risks for invitees and licensees. If you sustain damages in a slip and fall because a property was unsafe, you may have a premises liability claim. 740 ILCS 130/, also called the Illinois Premises Liability Act, stipulates 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.” Generally, if there is a hazardous condition that is not obvious, the owner needs to either repair the condition, 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
• Sudden changes in surface level
• Ledges
• Poor lighting
• Black ice
• Wet concrete
• Debris such as litter, fallen leaves and branches, rocks, etc
• Rugs that are not flat
• 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, it might be hard to get compensation. Successful premises liability claims depend on the following:

• The owner or manager created the hazardous conditions; or
• The owner or manager was aware of the danger and neglected to repair it; or
• The owner or manager tried to fix the condition 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 property owner or insurance adjuster in Streator, 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 you are to blame. Do not believe them, and always speak with a personal injury lawyer before accepting any settlement.

Medical Malpractice

According to a 2016 study from John Hopkins University, medical errors are responsible for more than 250,000 deaths each year. While not all of those constitutes negligence, when it does, you can make a medical malpractice claim.

Proving a medical malpractice claim is based on what is called the standard of care. The standard is how a reasonable physician, in the same area and with the same training as the one you are making a claim against, would treat whatever ailment you saw them for.

Under 735 ILCS 5/2-622, any medical malpractice claim 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 essential that the health professional corroborating your allegations has the same training and practices in the same area as the health professional you are suing. A neurologist in Chicago is held to a different standard of care than a pediatrician in Kadoka, South Dakota. Burger Law relies on numerous expert witnesses in Streator and in other parts of Illinois who can help verify that your medical malpractice suit is valid.

Common instances of medical malpractice in Streator, IL include:

• Nursing home negligence
• Birth injuries
• Misdiagnosis and failure to diagnosis
• Leaving objects in during surgery
• Hospital communication errors
• Failure to secure 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
• Prescribing the wrong medication or the wrong dosage

Dog Bites

Each day, almost 1,000 people seek emergency medical treatment for dog bites, and annually dog bites lead to about 12,600 hospitalizations. According to a Chicago Tribune article, Illinois has the second-highest rate of dog bites in the country.

510 ILCS 5/, the Illinois Animal Control Act, states that a dog owner is strictly liable for your damages if it bit you, assuming there was no provocation and you were legally allowed to be where you were. “Strict liability” means that the owner is liable as a matter of law and you do not have to prove negligence. This means, the owner cannot get out of paying you by saying they did not know the dog was aggressive, or that it was not their fault the animal got free.

While some dog bites only lead to minor injuries, others can lead to expensive surgeries or permanent scarring. Regardless of the seriousness of your injuries, trust in a Burger Law Streator, 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 types of product liability claims in Streator, 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 affects 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. Failure to warn — 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 have a successful claim, you must show that the product carried inherent risks when it was used in a way a manufacturer could reasonably expect, that it was the proximate cause of 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 due to another’s negligence. One of the benefits of choosing a Burger Law Streator, IL personal injury lawyer is that we are not limited to any one type of claim, 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 Streator, IL?

The journey to securing maximum compensation for your injuries starts the day you are injured. While some accidents and injuries settle fairly early, others go completely through to a jury trial. Generally, the path to getting compensation includes:

• Getting Medical Care — Seek medical attention immediately 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 lower your final payout. Our personal injury lawyers have a network of experienced Streator, IL health professionals who can help you in your recovery.
• Speaking With an Attorney — Even if you are not sure you are going to need legal representation, you need to know what your options are as soon as possible. A good lawyer will be honest with you about whether or not their services are needed.
• Investigation and Documentation — Once you have hired an attorney, your personal injury lawyer will perform a complete investigation into the circumstances surrounding your injuries, ascertain every liable party and obtain the evidence required for maximum compensation. You can help by keeping a record of every dollar you have spent because of your injuries, and how they affect your day-to-day life.
• Settlement Demand and Negotiations — Once we know how much your claim is worth, we will send a settlement demand package to the liable party’s insurance company. In the package we will include how we calculated your damages, and insist that nothing but the full amount is acceptable. Most of the time, they will respond with a lower offer, 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 — If a settlement agreement still has not been reached, your personal injury lawyer and the liable party will likely pursue mediation. In mediation, a neutral third party listens to 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 bring up at trial.
• Trial — Only six percent of personal injury claims go to trial. In fact, we often finally get the settlement we were seeking in the weeks immediately before trial. However, if the insurance company still cannot see reason, the case will go 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 Streator, IL personal injury lawyers have never been through the personal injury claims process before, and do not know what to expect. Burger Law will be your advocate 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 Streator, IL Personal Injury Claim?

Typically, there are two types of damages you can be compensated for in a personal injury claim: economic damages and non-economic damages:

• Economic damages compensate you for the economic harm related to your injuries, including:
  • 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 the less tangible aspects of your injuries, including:
  • Pain and suffering
  • Stress and anxiety
  • Loss of ability to enjoy life
  • Scarring and disfigurement
  • Inconvenience
  • Physical impairment
  • Loss of consortium

Though rare, we may also be able to pursue punitive damages if the at-fault harmed you intentionally or they were 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 available to maximize your compensation.

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

In Illinois, the statute of limitations is shorter than most states at just two years, under 735 ILCS 5/. That means the clock starts ticking when your accident occurs, and expires after two years. However, there are three notable exceptions:

1. If you were under 18 when the injury occurred, 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 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 not cause immediate concern, thoroughly investigating an injury and developing a legal strategy takes time. Do not hesitate to contact an attorney. Call a personal injury lawyer today at (779) 800-HURT.

Other types of claims we handle in Streator, 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 Streator, IL Now

Burger Law’s Streator, IL personal injury lawyers hold ourselves to the standard of zealous representation. That means we get started on your case immediately, pursue every legal option we have, stand up to insurance companies on your behalf and do not give up until you receive the maximum compensation you deserve. We only give our clients 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 Streator, 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 Streator, IL personal injury lawyer now at (779) 800-HURT or contact us online for a free consultation.