The Defendant in Your Personal Injury Case

The individual, people, or company that is responsible for your injury is referred to as the tortfeasor, and, if the case proceeds into the litigation phase, the defendant. During the period where the insurance company is working on a settlement, it is likely that you will not have any interaction with the tortfeasor; if the case goes to trial, you will be interacting with the tortfeasor much more. Your New York car accident attorney will keep you updated with information as to what exactly is going on with your case, but from the defendant’s end, the case looks somewhat different.

After the accident that caused your injury, the tortfeasor was contacted by the insurance company. An insurance claims adjuster then took a statement from either the person who caused your injury or a representative of the company responsible for your injury. It is probable that those statements and reports were written down, so there will be a record of them.

Following the initial taking of statements and other investigatory actions, there will be no or little in the way of contact between the insurance company and the tortfeasor. Basically, the tortfeasor is not normally kept up-to-date with the latest news on the case. This means that the person, people, or company responsible for your injury is simply conducting life as usual and is hoping that the insurance company will settle with your New York auto accident lawyer with little to no involvement from them.

If your New York accident lawyer and the insurance company are not able to settle your case, the case will move on to the litigation stage. After your New York car crash attorney files the lawsuit, the insurance company will contact the tortfeasor again, as well as hire a lawyer to represent it in the legal action. At this point, the tortfeasor must participate in the proceedings and cooperate with the lawyer hired by the insurance company. It is important to note that despite the fact that the insurance company will be the one to pay the settlement or verdict, the lawsuit will be filed by your New York auto accident attorney against the tortfeasor and not the insurance carrier.

If you have been injured in an auto accident, contact the qualified New York car crash lawyers at Gersowitz Libo & Korek for help with your case.