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North Carolina Civil case against Isurance Company

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hous

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Florida

My dad resides in N. Carolina and was T-boned at a intersection by a guy who ran a stop sign. The guy is covered and he was found negliegent. My dad has gone through the hospitals trying to help his injuries and will have to undergoe surgery. His hospital bills thus far are around 13k but the issurance company offered his 4k. He refused and is now taking them to court. He couldn't find a lawyer to take the case so unfortunately he is by himself and has no idea how a civil case is handled and I fear he will lose because of this lack of experience. Hes sueing only for his hospital bills he has run up and not even for the surgery he will undergo.

He tells me the people where hes from hate Floridians and the guy who hit him is a native of the county since it was formed. He thinks this will be brought up that he is a Florida citizen, is this permitted in court?

He tried to get a change of venue from his last lawyer before he dropped him but it was not granted.

The insurance company will likely use the defense that his back problems are congenital but there is no proof as he has never been to the hospital for this in the past. He recently did the whole Discovery thing with the dispositions and interogatives but it was after this event that a specialist wrote that his injuries are fully to blame on the accident. Can he still use this crucial evidence in court? Any way around it? Play dumb?

Also I heard its in violation of court to say you are sueing the insurance company and not the citizen. This will hurt his case as people will look at their fellow man in which their hospital is named after (his family not him), and feel sorry for him as he has nothing and not allow a judgement to fulfill our needs. Can he mention hes not sueing the man but the company?

Thanks in advance.
 


ecmst12

Senior Member
1. People are not "citizens" of a state. They are citizens of the US. They are RESIDENTS of whatever state they live in. Any state where your father USED to live is not relevant to the proceedings.

2. You CAN NOT sue the insurance company. You MUST sue the driver - that is the person that injured you. Or your father, in this case. The insurance company represents the driver due to the contract the driver has with them, but they are not the ones who hit your dad.

3. Your dad needs a new lawyer. If he can't find one to take his case, that *might* be because he doesn't have a good case, in which case he'll lose with the lawyer as well as he would without one. But he really should keep looking. He might end up needing a medical expert to testify that his injuries would not have happened if not for the accident, too.
 

hous

Junior Member
1. People are not "citizens" of a state. They are citizens of the US. They are RESIDENTS of whatever state they live in. Any state where your father USED to live is not relevant to the proceedings.

2. You CAN NOT sue the insurance company. You MUST sue the driver - that is the person that injured you. Or your father, in this case. The insurance company represents the driver due to the contract the driver has with them, but they are not the ones who hit your dad.

3. Your dad needs a new lawyer. If he can't find one to take his case, that *might* be because he doesn't have a good case, in which case he'll lose with the lawyer as well as he would without one. But he really should keep looking. He might end up needing a medical expert to testify that his injuries would not have happened if not for the accident, too.
Isnt it a issue when the jury identifies with the defendant because they feel sorry for them? They will think he cant afford to pay for the medical fees even if he is at fault.

He has a specialist that says the injuries were caused by the accident, but discovery had occured prior to this meeting with his previous lawyer. Can this evidence still be presented?

In Law class I learned of requesting a Judge to play part of the jury in some cases, could this happen and would it be benefitial because the jury will identify moreso with the defendant?
 

alnorth

Member
(repost)

How to sue the other driver's insurance company, in 3 easy steps

Step 1: Sue the other driver's insurance company.

Step 2: Watch your case get thrown out of court because you sued the wrong party.

Step 3: Be confused and wonder what went wrong.
 

hous

Junior Member
(repost)

How to sue the other driver's insurance company, in 3 easy steps

Step 1: Sue the other driver's insurance company.

Step 2: Watch your case get thrown out of court because you sued the wrong party.

Step 3: Be confused and wonder what went wrong.
Hes really sueing the guy that hit him, but hes being defended by Alstate attorneys.

Is he allowed to mention the guy who hit him had adequiate insurance to pay his medical bills or is this not allowed?
 

alnorth

Member
Hes really sueing the guy that hit him, but hes being defended by Alstate attorneys.

Is he allowed to mention the guy who hit him had adequiate insurance to pay his medical bills or is this not allowed?
Good, the lawsuit has to be against the other driver, not the insurance company. (Unless an on-duty employee of the insurance company hits you or something similar) The other insurance company will attempt to buy you off with a settlement, then defend their customer if that doesnt work, then pay the judgement up to the policy limit on behalf of their customer, but they are only the company who agreed to defend and indemnify their policyholder, they are NOT the ones who hit your father.

Unless North Carolina has some unusual rules, you generally can not tell the jury that the other guy has plenty of insurance, they need to decide the merits of the case and the amount to award only on what happened, without regard to whether someone is broke and uninsured or happens to have a $5 million umbrella policy and a fleet of lawyers paid for by the company.
 

hous

Junior Member
Good, the lawsuit has to be against the other driver, not the insurance company. (Unless an on-duty employee of the insurance company hits you or something similar) The other insurance company will attempt to buy you off with a settlement, then defend their customer if that doesnt work, then pay the judgement up to the policy limit on behalf of their customer, but they are only the company who agreed to defend and indemnify their policyholder, they are NOT the ones who hit your father.

Unless North Carolina has some unusual rules, you generally can not tell the jury that the other guy has plenty of insurance, they need to decide the merits of the case and the amount to award only on what happened, without regard to whether someone is broke and uninsured or happens to have a $5 million umbrella policy and a fleet of lawyers paid for by the company.
And if wors of this insurance "slips" the judge will only tell the jury to disregard the information presented by the plaintiff? Or does this open the door for an appeal?

Biggest question I have is about the use of evidence after discovery, as far as I know as a junior in legal studies all evidence (doctors statements) must be presented to the tortfeasor at discovery.

Also he is documented as saying he feels a little soar but nothing serios and will see a doctor after the insurance company asked him questions following the accident. How is this best countered?
 
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las365

Senior Member
And if wors of this insurance "slips" the judge will only tell the jury to disregard the information presented by the plaintiff? Or does this open the door for an appeal?
Possibilities include contempt, sanctions, mistrial. Judges don't like "slips" that are intentional, as you seem to imply.

No offense, but you do not seem at all equipped to help your father with this. As stated before, he needs a lawyer.

Hi Im studing legal studies at UCF in Orlando and have alot of questions I will probably be asking. Im a curious person so alot of my questions may seem random...
Is this thread part of your "studies"?
 
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hous

Junior Member
Possibilities include contempt, sanctions, mistrial. Judges don't like "slips" that are intentional, as you seem to imply.

No offense, but you do not seem at all equipped to help your father with this. As stated before, he needs a lawyer.

Is this thread part of your "studies"?
Im definately not equipped to help anyone with any legal issues, thats why Im here. I know he needs a lawyer but its abit late for that, he doesnt have the knowledge to defend himself and is too laid back to try to handle something like this by himself. I beleive he is entitled to his medical bills as I know hes not trying to get anything more than medical bills paid for, but I know he wont stand a chance in court by himself. Im trying to just convert knowledge I get here to him because he cant find a lawyer (probably his own fault).

His mindset is that he knows he deserves to have his bills paid for but he doesnt realize its not that easy, he just wants it all easy and over. He just doesnt want to trouble himself with research, thats not the type of guy he is. Hes worked in construction all his life because thats what hes familiar with. He has potential but doesnt dedicate himself to things which is why he probably doesnt have a lawyer right now.

Im just worried he will lose out even more, maybe a little advise I get here can help him a little.

Is this thread part of your "studies"?
Im always open to learning and yes this will probably help me in the future, but Im doing this because I know he wont.
 
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alnorth

Member
This is probably a cynical way of looking at it, but your father's honesty and/or naivety could hurt him. Ideally it would be nice to just present the insurance company with your medical bills, make it clear thats all you want, and they would pay and be done with it. Many insurance companies would do exactly that as well, but sometimes it is more complicated. If you are going to settle for just medical bills and you dont have an obvious 100% winning case, then the insurance company may not have a lot of incentive to settle if they think they have a decent chance of winning or just losing a smaller judgement, so they may very well fight.

On the other hand, if you made it clear to the insurance company in the very beginning when you were talking settlement that you were getting a PI lawyer, and if they didnt pay the medical bills plus a little extra then you would sue for the moon on pain and suffering, throwing in every single possible damage imaginable, then the insurance company has a lot more to lose and could be more likely to settle for medical bills and a token payment for P&S if thats all you ever really wanted. It all goes back to basic negotiations where both sides ask for more than they really want, and settle in the middle. If you have significant damages and go in without a PI lawyer asking them for only medical bills without a 100% dead winner case, it may not end as well as you'd like.
 
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hous

Junior Member
Confused

He went to trial today and was told he couldnt mention anything about his injuries or insurance. The Judge and attorney told him to sign a dissmissal and find a lawyer. They said his SoL is 1 year and it should be easier for him to find a lawyer now, I presume because the lawyer can start from scratch and not have to use his previous lawyers scrapes.

The judge said his previous lawyer was dirty and looking for a quick settlement.
 

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