Norman Personal Injury Lawyer
Have you suffered a serious injury in an accident in Norman, OK? If you were hurt in a car accident, slip and fall, or even an assault, you may be entitled to compensation. An experienced Norman personal injury lawyer can help you fight for the compensation you need.
McGuire Law Firm has represented injury victims and families in Cleveland County for over 30 years. Contact our law office at (405) 513-5658 for a free consultation to discuss your case. We work on a contingency fee basis: you pay no attorney’s fees unless we recover money for you.
How McGuire Law Firm Can Help You After an Accident in Norman, Oklahoma?
Accident injuries can affect you for the rest of your life. You already have enough on your plate with mounting bills, financial uncertainty, and an inability to work. A Norman personal injury lawyer can help you hold the responsible party accountable.
McGuire Law Firm is a small, family-run law firm serving Norman, Oklahoma. Founding attorney Kent R. McGuire has over 30 years of experience practicing law, including 13 years representing insurance companies. We use this insight to build the strongest case possible and fight back against unfair insurance company tactics.
Our Norman personal injury lawyers will put our sterling reputation to work for you, and we will:
- Handle all paperwork and communications
- Offer the compassionate support, guidance, and legal advice you need
- Investigate your accident to identify all avenues of compensation and gather evidence to strengthen your case
- Work with specialists like medical and financial experts and accident reconstruction experts to prove negligence and your damages
- Anticipate the tactics the insurance company will use and defend you from blame-shifting
- Negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf to seek a settlement that fully compensates you
- Take your case to a courtroom for maximum damages if you are not treated fairly
Do not let an insurance company undervalue your claim. Contact the Norman personal injury attorneys at McGuire Law Firm today for the help you deserve.
How Common are Accidents in Norman, Oklahoma?
A personal injury claim can result from any type of accident or intentional wrongdoing that causes injury.
Traffic accidents are the most common cause of personal injury cases in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety reported over 73,000 traffic accidents in 2019, which caused 33,000 injuries and 640 fatalities. Almost 90 of these fatalities were pedestrians. Sixty-six were motorcyclists, and 13 were bicyclists.
In Cleveland County, there were 4,600 accidents, with 18 fatal crashes and almost 1,500 injury crashes. Over 2,100 people were injured in these accidents.
Workplace accidents are also very common in Oklahoma. These accidents occur at oil fields, construction sites, factories, warehouses, office buildings, and retail stores. Oklahoma was recently ranked the 11th most dangerous state for workers.
In 2019, there were 73 workplace fatalities in Oklahoma, most of them in farming and forestry, transportation and production, natural resources and mining, and trade and utilities.
Falls, including slip and fall accidents, are also a leading cause of personal injury in Norman, Oklahoma. In fact, falls are the number one cause of preventable injury in the United States. In 2018, 8.1 million people needed medical attention after a fall. Falls are responsible for 37,000 deaths per year, and they are a common cause of workplace injuries and deaths.
Types of Personal Injury Cases We Handle in Norman
At McGuire Law Firm, we proudly represent injury victims and their families throughout Cleveland County. If you or someone you love has been injured in the following types of accidents, contact our law office for the help you need.
We represent Norman residents who suffered injuries in:
- Car accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Truck accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Premises liability cases
- Product liability cases
- Slip and fall accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Nursing home abuse and neglect
- Workplace accidents
- Assault
- Wrongful death
If you were hurt and believe someone else was to blame, you may have a personal injury case. Contact our law office to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss how we can help you.
What Is My Personal Injury Case Worth?
The value of your injury case depends on many unique factors. Some damages are easy to calculate, while others require help from financial and medical experts. The main value of your case may even involve non-economic losses, which are non-monetary in nature.
To value these damages and seek compensation, we must prepare a persuasive argument to demonstrate how much you should be compensated.
Factors that may affect the value of your case include:
- Whether liability is clear
- The type and severity of your injuries
- Whether you contributed to your accident or failed to mitigate damages
- The amount of insurance coverage available
- Whether you were disfigured and how your injuries will affect your quality of life and abilities
- Whether you will face long-term disability and medical needs
The best way to determine the value of your personal injury case is through a consultation with experienced Norman personal injury lawyers. Contact McGuire Law Firm today for a free consultation to discuss your case.
What Damages Are Available After an Accident in Norman, OK?
Under Oklahoma law, you have the right to pursue compensation from an at-fault party when their negligence causes you injury. There are two broad forms of compensation you can recover: economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages compensate for your financial losses. Non-economic damages compensate for psychological, physical, and emotional losses.
These two types of damages can allow you to recover compensation for:
- Property damage
- Lost wages for time off work, including paid time off
- Diminished earning capacity or lost future earnings for disability or impairment you suffered
- Current and future medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Disfigurement
- Mental anguish
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
There is no cap on the economic or non-economic losses you can recover in an Oklahoma personal injury lawsuit. Previously, Oklahoma capped non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases at $350,000, but this law was deemed unconstitutional in 2019.
In a wrongful death case, surviving family members can seek different types of damages. This claim allows surviving family members to seek damages for the harm they suffered, such as burial expenses and loss of consortium and companionship.
Punitive damages are a third type of damages that are available in rare personal injury cases. These damages punish the defendant for egregious misconduct or gross negligence. Punitive damages are capped at $500,000 or twice the amount of your economic damages.
What Happens if I’m Blamed for My Accident in Oklahoma?
Oklahoma uses a modified comparative negligence doctrine with a 51% bar. This rule allows you to recover compensation even if you are partially to blame for your accident or injuries. However, if you are 51% or more to blame, you cannot recover any compensation.
If you are found partially at fault but under 51% to blame, your damages will be reduced according to your share of assigned fault. This system allows victims to recover damages when they share some fault, but the other party was mostly to blame. However, insurance companies use it to their advantage.
The insurance company will try to shift blame onto you for your accident. They can escape financial responsibility for all your damages if they can place 51% of the responsibility on you. If you are being blamed for your accident, it’s crucial to consult with an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.
How Long Do I Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Oklahoma?
You have a limited amount of time to file a personal injury lawsuit in Oklahoma. For most personal injury cases, the statute of limitations is two years. This deadline also applies to wrongful death and malpractice claims.
Be aware that some situations can lengthen or shorten the statute of limitations in your case. For instance, if your case involves government tort, you have just one year to file your case.
The statute of limitations is just one of several Oklahoma statutes that can affect your case. Contact an experienced personal injury attorney in Norman as soon as possible to preserve your claim.
What Is Negligence and How Does it Affect My Personal Injury Case?
Most personal injury cases in Oklahoma are based on negligence, although some cases may involve strict liability. Negligence simply means someone did or did not do something that a reasonable person would have done which led to your injuries.
Your case must show that:
- The defendant owed you a duty of care.
- The defendant breached their duty to you.
- This breach directly caused your accident or injuries. Causation is one of the hardest elements of negligence to establish.
- You suffered damages.
To establish negligence and hold the other party accountable, your Norman personal injury will assess your accident to gather evidence. This may include accident reports, citations, witness statements, photos of the scene, property damage, maintenance records, prior complaints, and more. At McGuire Law Firm, we may work with specialists to provide expert testimony that helps establish causation and negligence.
What Does it Cost to Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer in Norman, OK?
At McGuire Law Firm, we believe you deserve experienced legal representation after your accident without worrying about out-of-pocket costs. After an accident, you are facing enough financial strain. We will help you pursue the compensation you need without adding an additional financial burden.
Our Norman personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. This means you pay nothing out of pocket unless we are successful in recovering compensation for you. If we are successful, your attorney’s fees will be paid out of your settlement funds or jury award.
We do not get paid until you do. You have nothing to lose by seeking the legal representation you deserve.
Schedule a Free Consultation with a Norman Personal Injury Lawyer
An accident can cause a serious financial, physical, and emotional toll. The last thing you should be worried about is fighting the insurance company. Let McGuire Law Firm take over the fight for you so you can focus on healing.
Contact our law office for a free consultation with a Norman personal injury lawyer. We will give your case the personal attention it deserves.
