Kentucky Auto Accidents & Injury Law FAQs
Below are answers to some of the questions the attorneys at Ewing & Willis encounter most frequently as they advise and represent people throughout Louisville and beyond. The FAQs below cover issues involving uninsured motorists, comparative negligence, wrongful death and legal malpractice. If you have other questions, or if you need advice and representation in a Louisville personal injury case or other civil litigation matter, contact our office to speak with one of our experienced lawyers.
What happens if the driver who hit me is uninsured?
When you purchased your liability insurance, you also purchased Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage, unless you specifically rejected it in writing. If you have UM coverage, you can file a claim with your own insurance company when the driver who hit you does not have insurance. Even though the claim is with “your” insurance company, you should still be represented by your own attorney, since your interest in receiving the maximum amount of compensation is not aligned with the insurer’s interest in paying as little on a claim as they can get away with.
The insurance company says I was to blame in causing the accident, so I’m not entitled to any compensation. What can I do?
Call an attorney. Kentucky recognizes the concept of comparative negligence, where your recovery is reduced in proportion to the amount of fault attributed to you. But even if you are considered mostly to blame in causing the accident, you can still recover some amount of compensation for your injuries from the other negligent party. Don’t let the insurance company decide or convince you that you were to blame. Comparative fault is an issue that must often be litigated, and ultimately it may be up to the jury to decide whether you share in the blame for the accident or not. If you are being told the accident was your fault, but you don’t think it was, call our office for a no-cost, no-obligation evaluation of your case.
What does “wrongful death” mean?
If a person is killed in a car or truck or accident or in some other incident caused by the negligence or wrongful conduct of another, the personal representative of the estate can bring a lawsuit against the responsible party for wrongful death. If successful, the representative can recover funeral and burial expenses along with compensation for the loss of companionship, financial support, household services and guidance that the deceased would have provided for his or her family. Some of this compensation is paid to the estate and distributed according to the will, while other compensation goes directly to the surviving spouse, children or parents of the deceased.
Can I sue my lawyer for legal malpractice if I lost my lawsuit?
Lawsuits are adversarial in nature, and unless the matter can be settled agreeably, the outcome will likely result in one winner and one loser. Just because you lost your lawsuit, it does not mean that your lawyer was incompetent or committed malpractice. However, if you believe that your lawyer negligently missed an important deadline, mishandled a crucial piece of evidence, or otherwise damaged your case, you may be able to sue for damages if you can prove the lawyer performed below the acceptable standard. This often requires proving that you would have won your lawsuit if the lawyer had not been negligent; in other words, proving “the case within the case.” It is therefore important to have experienced trial lawyers handling your legal malpractice case, preferably attorneys who are familiar with the particular type of underlying lawsuit involved in your case.
