Have you or a loved one been injured in an auto accident? We’re the trial law firm for Illinois drivers — and that means we’ve got your back when someone else’s negligence puts you or your loved one in the hospital.
Getting hurt in an accident turns your world upside down. You might need costly medical treatment, you can’t work, and the insurance company is piling on the pressure to get you to settle for less than what your claim is worth.
Our trial attorneys at Driver Defense Team have spent years representing Illinois residents in courtrooms across Chicagoland. We bring that same aggressive advocacy to helping those injured on the road. Whether you were hurt in a car, truck, motorcycle, rideshare, or other auto accident, we’ll get you the compensation you deserve.
Speak to our team for a no-obligation case evaluation and see where you stand. You won’t pay any fees unless we win your case.
Car accidents often cause serious injuries that have a long-term physical, emotional, and financial impact.
Even “minor” crashes can cause serious injuries that don’t show up immediately. You might feel fine at first, only to wake up the next morning in excruciating pain. That’s why it’s important to see a doctor right away — and why you need an experienced attorney to make sure all your injuries are properly documented.
Some of the common injuries we see, and that you can claim compensation for, are:
Car accidents happen every day in Chicago, but not every one results in a personal injury claim.
To recover compensation, you must meet a specific burden of proof.
At a basic level, it comes down to answering this question:
“Did someone else’s careless or reckless behavior injure you?”
However, there’s a bit more to it than that, because you have to prove it.
Specifically, you must show:
Every driver has a legal obligation to operate their vehicle safely and follow traffic laws.
But the person behind the wheel isn’t always at fault. In this case, you might still have a case if another party owed a duty of care. This might be a truck company responsible for making sure their employees are trained and qualified, or a manufacturer with a duty to check their vehicles are safe.
Next, you must show that the person who caused your accident breached that duty. In other words, you must prove they were negligent or reckless. Common examples of breaching a duty of care include:
Next, you need to prove causation — in other words, that a person’s negligence led to your injuries. Without this, there’s little to stop the other driver’s insurance company from arguing that you weren’t injured in the crash. They might claim you already had the injuries, or that you were hurt in a completely separate event days or weeks after the crash.
Proving a direct connection between the other party’s behavior and your injuries strengthens your claim. That’s why it’s so important to seek medical attention and document your injuries after a crash.
When you’re hurt in a car accident, you have several options. You might intend to file a lawsuit and go to trial. Alternatively, you might be happy to negotiate a settlement with the at-fault driver’s insurance company. Whatever the case, when you pursue compensation, you’ll come across a lot of references to “damages”.
Under Illinois law, damages refers to your losses.
So, to prove you suffered actual damages, you must show you suffered measurable losses as a result of the accident and your injuries.
For many, damages include:
You can also recover compensation for your personal suffering and the overall impact of the accident on your life. These damages can include:
Our Chicago auto accident attorneys offer a no-obligation case evaluation so you can understand your options. We’ll ask you a few questions about your accident and injuries and explain whether you’re entitled to compensation.
We’re not your typical personal injury firm, and that difference matters when you’re fighting for fair compensation. We’re the trial law firm for Illinois drivers, which means we approach personal injury cases from an angle you won’t see elsewhere.
You’re far more likely to get the best result in your case when you choose a Chicago attorney who understands the laws affecting your specific case inside-out.
We are the firm for Illinois drivers. If your case is related to the road, we have the knowledge and experience to help you, because it’s all we do.
And what’s just as important: we’re a team of trial lawyers who are in courthouses across Chicagoland everyday. We know the judges, court staff, and attorneys who practice across the state, and that gives you a major advantage over other firms that rarely set foot in the courtroom.
We’re not afraid to file a lawsuit and take your case to court. Many firms will claim the same thing, yet you’ll never see them at the courthouse. Our attorneys have honed their legal chops by advocating for clients in court every day. Settling your case may be the right result for you, and if it is, we’ll fight for maximum compensation.
But sometimes, you might have a strong case and decide you don’t want to accept a low-ball offer from an insurer. When that’s the situation, you can be sure that we have the knowledge, resources, and experience you need to get the best result.
We work on contingency, which means you pay nothing upfront and our fee comes from your settlement or judgment. If we don’t win, you don’t pay attorney fees. We advance all case expenses too, so you’re not paying out of pocket for expert witnesses, accident reconstruction, or getting the medical records you need.
Unlike firms that take on hundreds of cases and treat clients like numbers, we’re selective about how many clients we represent at any given time. This means your attorney actually knows your name, returns your calls promptly, and has time to properly prepare your case.
Our local knowledge matters more than you might think. We appear in courtrooms across Chicago and the suburbs every single day. We know the judges, understand how cases are handled in each jurisdiction, and have relationships with the best professionals in the area. This insider knowledge can make the difference between a good outcome and a great one.
The bottom line is this: when you’re hurt and facing financial pressure from medical bills and lost wages, you need attorneys who will fight as hard for you as they would for their own family members. That’s exactly what you get with Driver Defense Team.
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