Mediation is an essential part of any personal injury case. While the vast majority of personal injury cases are settled outside of court through mediation, the mediation process is something that most people aren’t familiar with. What is mediation, and what should you expect during the mediation process in a personal injury case?
What is Personal Injury Mediation?
Mediation acts as an alternative method of settling a personal injury outside of court. Both sides of the case will agree to a time, place, and neutral 3rd party mediator to help them come to an agreement over who is at fault and how much the settlement should be.
While mediation may be optional in some cases, the vast majority of personal injury cases require mediation before the case is allowed to go to court. If you are seeking damages from a recent personal injury, chances are you’ll have to go through mediation before your case ever makes it to court.
What to Expect at Mediation in a Personal Injury Case: The Mediation Process
Before you go into your personal injury mediation, it’s essential that you at least have a general idea of what the process will look like. Here is everything you need to know about what to expect at mediation in a personal injury case.
Pre-Mediation
Before mediation starts, you'll need to meet with your lawyer to hammer out all the details of your claims to ensure that you are prepared for the process that lies ahead.
In addition, all members of each party will sign a confidentiality agreement to prevent anyone from disclosing any details of the negotiations outside of mediation. This ensures that both parties can speak freely knowing that any information they share will stay between both parties in the case that mediation fails and the case goes to court.
Introduction and Opening Statements
Once mediation begins, the mediator will first introduce each member of both parties present and the roles they will play in the mediation. In some cases, the people attending the mediation may choose to stay anonymous. Regardless of who chooses to identify themselves, the mediation will kick off with opening statements.
First, the plaintiff’s lawyer will offer their opening statements, which allows them to state their case and present evidence to the mediator. Then, the defense will do the same, making an opening statement about how the settlement that they are offering is appropriate and fair.
Discussing Your Personal Injury Case With the Mediator
After the opening statements, the mediator will separate both parties to hear what each party has to say. They'll move back and forth between both parties, allowing you and the defense to present new information so the mediator can decide whether the defense should have to pay more or the plaintiff should take less.
Any information you share here is confidential between you and the mediator, so you can tell them anything that you only want them to know, and they won't disclose any of it to the other party. They'll only use it to further your case or tell you where your case might be weaker than you originally thought.
End of Mediation
Once the mediation process finishes, there are two different outcomes you can expect. Either the mediator will be able to come to a settlement agreement that both parties are able and willing to accept, or the mediation process fails, in which case your lawyer will most likely advise you to take the case to court to be heard in front of a judge and jury who then decide what settlement you receive.
How to Negotiate Your Personal Injury Settlement
Now that you know more about what the personal injury mediation process looks like, it’s crucial that you know what you should be doing to give yourself the best chance of getting the maximum settlement.
You should always seek help from professional personal injury lawyers like those from HoeyLegal. Mediation can be incredibly difficult to take on by yourself, and by ensuring you have the proper legal representation, you give yourself the best chance of getting every penny of the compensation you deserve.
You’ll need to do your best to gather all of the evidence you can to support your case. No matter how good the lawyer you choose is, without the proper evidence, your success in the case is at risk. The more legitimate evidence you can gather, the better off you’ll be.
Even though it may be difficult, always remember to stay calm and professional throughout the entire process. Keep open communication with your lawyer and trust that they know what they’re doing, and they’ll ensure that your mediation goes as smoothly as possible.
How Long Does Personal Injury Mediation Take?
As you can see, a lot goes into the whole personal injury mediation process. When all is said and done, how long can you expect your personal injury mediation to take?
There really is no straightforward answer to this question, as the amount of time mediation takes can depend on a wide variety of different factors. The vast majority of mediations take anywhere from a few hours to a full day to complete.
In some cases, mediation can require multiple sessions to set all the details of the settlement in stone, which has the potential to extend the mediation over multiple days or even weeks.
Contact HoeyLegal Today
Are you the victim of a recent accident? Do you need a personal injury lawyer that you can trust to get you the maximum settlement possible? Give HoeyLegal a call!
Our team is always here to answer our questions and will happily tell you more about how we can help you get the compensation you deserve. We’ll even offer you a free consultation to get things moving. Don’t let yourself suffer through mediation alone. Call HoeyLegal and get the expert legal help you need to win your personal injury case today!