Charlottesville Accident Lawyer

If you have been injured or lost a loved one in an accident, you should seek help from a lawyer who has experience with that specific accident type.

With more than 25 years of personal injury experience, attorney David B. Kendall has worked with clients in a wide range of accident cases. A member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum,® he can put his knowledge to work for you.

Kendall Law Firm serves accident victims and their families in Charlottesville, Winchester, Harrisonburg and communities throughout Central Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley.

Our initial consultations are always free. Contact us today.

Our Experiences with Accident Cases

The lawyers of Kendall Law Firm have experience handling a wide range of accident cases in Winchester, Harrisonburg, Charlottesville and surrounding areas in Virginia. Our record of results includes:

• $2,375,000 settlement in a school bus accident case on behalf of a young child who suffered a closed head injury (Harrisonburg)

• $600,000 settlement on behalf of an elderly man who suffered arm, leg, ankle and elbow injuries in a collision with a box truck (Winchester)

• $500,000 settlement for a man who suffered back injuries in a rear-end collision (Harrisonburg).

The amount that an accident victim can recover will depend on the unique facts of the case. Kendall Law Firm can examine the specific circumstances in your case and assess whether you should be entitled to damages and, if so, the amount you can possibly pursue in your claim.

What You Should Know About Charlottesville Accidents 

If you or a loved one recently suffered injuries in an accident in Virginia, here are five important things you should know about your case:

1. If another person’s negligence caused the accident, you have the right to file a claim. In a personal injury claim in Virginia, you must establish:

• Another party owed a duty of care to you.
• The party breached that duty of care.
• The breach caused you to suffer actual harm.

For example, drivers owe a basic duty of care to those they encounter on the road. If the evidence shows that a driver breached that duty by texting while driving, which in turn caused an accident that injured you, then you would have the right to recover damages.

At Kendall Law Firm, we know how to gather and analyze evidence that will establish whether another party’s negligence caused your accident and, if so, the nature and extent of the harm you suffered.

2. You have rights as a passenger. As a passenger, you can file a claim against any person or persons whose negligence caused your crash and injuries, including the driver of another vehicle and/or the driver of the vehicle you were in at the time of the crash. Kendall Law Firm will conduct a thorough investigation of your case and identify all potentially liable parties in your case.

3. Your own fault could keep you from recovering any damages. Virginia is a “pure contributory negligence” state. Under this law, you would be unable to recover any damages even if you were only 1 percent at fault for your accident. Because of this law, insurance companies in Virginia often try to blame personal injury victims for accidents. Your attorney from Kendall Law Firm will aggressively counter any attempts by an insurer to wrongfully assign fault to you.

4. You may be able to seek many different types of damages. If another person’s negligence caused your accident, Kendall Law Firm will seek full and fair compensation for all of your losses, including:

• Past and future medical expenses
• Lost income and diminished future earning capacity
• Pain and suffering
• Punitive damages (if appropriate).

If you lost a loved one in an accident, our firm would seek different types of damages through a wrongful death claim such as funeral and burial expenses and the loss of your loved ones’ services and financial support.

5. The statute of limitations limits the time you have to file a claim. With few exceptions, you must file a personal injury lawsuit in Virginia within two years after an accident occurs. If you file a wrongful death claim, you must bring the lawsuit within two years after your loved one’s death. As you consider taking legal action, you need to pay attention to these time limits and take into account the amount of time Kendall Law Firm will need to investigate and prepare your claim.

What Type of Accident Were You In?

Kendall Law Firm focuses exclusively on representing people who have been harmed in accidents – not corporations and insurance companies. Because of our extensive experience in this area of the law, we can handle a wide range of accident types, including:

Car Accidents

We know how to identify the causes of auto accidents such as speeding, drunk driving, distracted driving and driving while overly fatigued. We also understand how to overcome insurance issues that often arise when crashes involve uninsured or underinsured drivers.

Truck Collision

Our legal team understands the need to launch an immediate investigation when a crash involves a large commercial motor vehicle. We move quickly to preserve and gather evidence after truck accidents, including logbooks, maintenance records, cell phone records, black box data and the tractor-trailer itself. We also have a strong grasp of state and federal trucking regulations.

Pedestrian Accidents

One of the key issues in pedestrian accidents is who had the right of way. These accidents often occur at intersections. Evidence such as red light camera video, traffic light sequences, skid marks and witness statements can play an important role in establishing whether a motorist failed to respect a pedestrian’s right of way, causing the collision.

Workplace Accidents

If you were injured in a vehicle accident while working, your legal options may go beyond filing a claim for Virginia workers’ compensation benefits. If another driver’s negligence caused the crash, we can help you to pursue a personal injury claim against that driver, or a “third-party liability claim.”

Fatal Accidents

If you have lost a loved one in an accident that was caused by another, we can help you to assert your rights under Virginia’s wrongful death law. The damages which you can seek include compensation for the loss of your loved one’s care, comfort, guidance, companionship, society, advice and “kindly offices.”

How Can an Accident Lawyer Help You?

No matter what accident you have been involved in, you can count on Kendall Law Firm to give your case the professional and highly personalized attention that you and your family deserve. We will:

• Provide a free consultation – We can meet with you at our offices in Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Winchester, Woodstock and Staunton. If you are seriously injured, we can meet with you in your home or the hospital. We will review the facts of your case and answer any questions you may have about what goes into filing an accident claim in Virginia. Our consultations come with no strings attached.

• Investigate your accident – We will send investigators to the accident scene and gather all evidence, including taking accident scene photos, interviewing eyewitnesses and inspecting the vehicles. We can also review your medical records to determine the extent of your injuries.

• Consult with experts – As an attorney with more than two decades of experience with handling accident cases in Central Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley, David B. Kendall has established a network of highly knowledge experts in areas such as accident reconstruction and life-care planning.

• Seek a timely, full and fair settlement – Insurance companies know that our firm prepares cases for success at trial. As a result, they take it seriously when we present a demand for a settlement. You can count on us to work efficiently in pursuit of a settlement that fully and fairly compensates you.

• Take your case to trial – In some cases, the insurance company may challenge who is at fault for an accident or disagree on the amount that should be paid in damages. If that occurs in your case, Kendall Law Firm will be ready to seek a financial recovery for you in the courtroom.

• Keep you informed – We take pride in making sure our clients are always kept up to date on the progress of their case and in always responding to their phone calls. We believe that teamwork and communication play important roles when seeking a successful result.

• Resolve your case – After a settlement is reached or a verdict is returned in court, we will take all necessary steps to collect and disburse the compensation that is owed to you in either a lump sum payment or a series of structured payments.

At Kendall Law Firm, we work on a contingency fee basis. This means that we do not get paid unless you do. We charge no fees up front.

Get Help from a Charlottesville Accident Lawyer Today

If you have been involved in an accident in Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Winchester or a nearby area, we suggest that you:

• Get medical attention as soon as possible.
• Request a copy of your accident report.
• Gather all of your medical bills and other accident-related documents.
• While your memory is fresh, write down a summary of what happened.
• Decline to give a recorded statement to the insurance company.
• Refrain from discussing your case on social media.

Because you have only a limited amount of time in which to bring a personal injury or wrongful death claim in Virginia after an accident, you should not wait to get in touch with Kendall Law Firm as well.

We are ready to provide a free consultation and get to work on helping you to get your life back on the right track. Call or reach us online today.

Sources:

• CDC: Accidents or Unintentional Injuries
• Virginia DMV: 2013 Virginia Traffic Crash Facts
• NHTSA: Quick Facts 2013