Call us!  (912) 461-6798
Call us!  (912) 461-6798

Savannah personal injury lawyer

Were you or a loved one hurt because someone else acted unsafely or dangerously? You may be eligible for compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. A skilled attorney with Rafi Law Firm can recover compensation to help you recover money for pain and suffering, pay your medical bills, make up for lost wages, and more.

Call (912) 461-6798 to schedule your free consultation with our trusted Savannah personal injury attorneys.

personal injury attorney savannah

Case results*

$1.6

Million

Pedestrian Accident

$1

Million

Motorcycle Accident

$3

Million

Tractor Trailer Accident

$637

Thousand

Passenger Car Accident

*Our previous results have no impact on how much you can recover from your injury or that of a loved one. The stated amounts cover the recoveries, verdicts, and awards before deduction of attorney fees and court costs.

Our personal injury practice areas

Our personal injury practice areas include:

Steps to take after being hurt

Following these steps will give you a better chance of recovery and help your attorney build a stronger case on your behalf.

1. Perform a self-evaluation

When you’re suddenly hurt in an accident, your body releases adrenaline, a flight-or-fight hormone that can mask pain even if you have a grievous injury. Visually assess your condition so you can relay important information to the police dispatcher.

Although adrenaline will mask the signs and symptoms of some injuries, look for things like broken bones, cuts, penetrating wounds, or other injuries that require immediate attention.

2. Call 911 and ask for an ambulance and the police

Emergency medical teams are trained to recognize “hidden injuries” that an untrained person might not be able to self-diagnose such as a brain or spinal cord injury.

Officers will also arrive at the scene of the accident. They’ll conduct an investigation of the incident that injured you and will issue a report that outlines the incident and that assigns fault to one or more parties.

This is information your Savannah personal injury lawyer needs to help build you a strong case.

3. Collect evidence

If you are physically able to, take pictures and videos of the scene, including property damage, your injuries, and the surrounding area.

If there were witnesses, you should also jot down their names, phone numbers, and email addresses. You don’t need to get their statement at the scene, but you can tell them that you or your attorney will reach out to them in the future. Another good idea is to turn your phone video on and record, even if you just leave your phone in your pocket.

4. Keep a written or digital record of your experience in the minutes, hours, and days after the accident

If you were hurt, document how you’re feeling, your pain as time passes, and how your injuries impact your daily life. When your case goes to trial, your attorney needs to demonstrate how the injuries impact your quality of life and ability to earn a living.

5. Visit your primary care physician or specialist

Your medical records provide clear evidence that your injuries were a result of the incident. Ongoing treatment will also help identify the future care you’ll need which will be important for calculating the compensation you’re seeking.

6. Speak with an attorney

Your Savannah personal injury attorney is your advocate to make sure you are getting the medical treatment you need and maximizing the amount of your potential legal claim. They will advise you regarding the viability of your claim and a range of how much it could be worth. They will also file the paperwork for you and communicate with the other party, their lawyer, and their insurance company on your behalf.

Ready to speak with Rafi Law Firm?

savannah personal injury attorney

Don’t miss the deadline to file your personal injury claim

In most personal injury claims, the statute of limitations, or deadline to file a claim, is two years from the date the incident occurred. There might be some exceptions that would increase this deadline, but those are very case-specific. If you fail to file before the deadline expires, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to pursue compensation.

Your attorney will need to gather information about the incident and your injuries in order to build a well-supported claim from the outset. Waiting to hire an attorney can end up reducing your case value or eliminate it entirely.

Possible damages you can claim

Georgia law permits plaintiffs to seek compensation through economic and non-economic damages.

Economic damages

Economic damages are those which can be calculated with an objective dollar amount. They include:

Pain and suffering damages

Under Georgia law, pain and suffering includes interference with your normal living or enjoyment of life, loss of earning capacity, physical impairment, fear, shock, past and future actual pain and suffering, the extent to which the person must limit activities, and past and future mental anguish.

There is no magic formula for how much pain and suffering damages should be awarded in a case. These are real losses, but they are more difficult to recover without the help of a skilled Savannah personal injury attorney. The best lawyers are the ones that help their clients recover the most in pain and suffering damages.

How to find the right personal injury lawyer in Savannah

You have many options when searching for an attorney, and searching for one can be overwhelming, but it’s important that you find one that’s a good fit for you.

During your consultation, pay special attention to the attorney’s responsiveness to questions you ask and their communication style. It’s important that you find an attorney who communicates in a way you understand, who is responsive, and who shows that they will treat you with respect should you choose to hire them.

When you work with Rafi Law Firm, you’ll be represented by a highly experienced local attorney who wants to help make things right for you. Our Georgia-based law firm has access to resources that most plaintiffs need, such as an investigative team, detailed and analytical paralegals and legal secretaries, and tenacious litigators.

We focus on personal injury cases and have an in-depth understanding of Georgia liability laws. Our depth of experience sets us apart from other lawyers.

We’ll fight the insurance company to get you maximum compensation

The simple truth is that if insurance companies treated people fairly, personal injury lawyers would not exist–there would be no need for us! But, insurance companies are notorious for undervaluing and denying claims. Insurance companies make billions of dollars a year by not paying claims, so it takes a skilled lawyer to win against them.

We know how devastating the impacts of your injury have been on your life and will advocate to get you the compensation you deserve to cover the expenses you’ve already incurred and those you’re expected to incur in the future. We will use our decades of legal experience and knowledge to get you the most money possible.

Parties who may be liable for your injury

In Georgia, a personal injury lawsuit can arise from a variety of instances. Regardless of the cause, the uniting factor in all personal injury lawsuits is that a victim (the plaintiff) has been injured due to the negligence of another party (the defendant).

Sometimes identifying the liable party is simple, such as if someone was texting while driving and crashed into you. Other times it can be much more difficult because there can be several liable parties.

For example, imagine that a commercial truck crashed into your car because its brakes gave out. After inspecting the truck, it was determined that a piece fell off of the brakes months before the accident based on the wear on the brakes.

The truck driver, their employer, and the manufacturer of the brakes can all be liable. The truck driver might have a responsibility to inspect the truck before driving. The driver’s employer has a duty to ensure all vehicles are properly and regularly serviced and maintained. The manufacturer has a duty to ensure that all products are safe for their intended use.

Identifying each liable party can be a difficult and time-consuming process, but bringing a lawsuit against all liable parties can make a large difference in your ultimate settlement. That is because each potential defendant should have a different insurance policy, and the more insurance available, the more money you may be able to collect.

savannah personal injury lawyer

How our Savannah personal injury attorneys prove liability

We conduct an independent investigation of your case to prove liability. This usually includes interviewing witnesses, auditing the safety records of the place you were injured, reviewing surveillance footage, reviewing driving records, and more. Our goal is to prove that the party was negligent, that their negligence caused your injuries, and that you suffered financially.

Personal injury lawsuit process

Although the details of each case are unique, the lawsuit process generally unfolds in a similar manner.

1. Legal consultation

At your initial free consultation, we ask probing questions to determine if the elements of negligence can be established and proven. We will let you know if we feel you have a viable case, and you can choose to hire us. We are happy to meet with you in person, through Zoom or video chat, or on the phone–it is up to you.

2. Accident investigation

We will conduct our own investigation into the accident, leaving no stone unturned. A police or incident report is often a good starting point for the investigation. We may also depose witnesses and subpoena any records, photos, videos, or personnel files that could prove liability in your case.

3. Make a demand for compensation

Once we value your case, we will send a demand letter to the other party outlining their liability and requesting a fair settlement. We will use the facts we learned during our investigation to make the demand letter tailored to your case and as persuasive as possible. Far too often we see other lawyers send copy-and-pasted demands that they use in every case, and insurance companies do not offer fair settlements when they get those demands.

4. Negotiation

Insurance companies often try to settle the case for less than the demand amount–sometimes that is fair, sometimes it isn’t. If a negotiation is appropriate, as trained negotiators, we use provable strategies to find out if the case can be settled without filing a lawsuit.

5. File a lawsuit

Step one is filing a lawsuit with the appropriate court and serving the defendant with the lawsuit. Serving a lawsuit is when a process server (someone authorized by the court) finds the defendant and hands them the lawsuit to ensure they have notice of it.

6. The discovery process

The most time-consuming and difficult part of a lawsuit is “discovery.” Once a lawsuit is filed and served, the two sides can ask each other for information. A party can ask the other written questions–these are called interrogatories. A party can ask for the other side to give them things, like documents, videos, photos, or really anything–these are called requests for production of documents. A party can ask the other side to admit or deny specific statements–these are called requests for admissions. And, one side can ask the other side or other witnesses, including your doctors, questions in person–these are called depositions.

7. Mediation

Once both sides have gathered all the facts and information they want and the discovery process is complete, the parties will often go to mediation. Mediation is useful when both sides have risk, meaning they could win or lose. Mediation is a way to bridge the gap and find out if there is a middle ground that both parties can accept to resolve the case. Most cases settle at or before mediation.

8. Trial

If you cannot settle your case, then the last step is to have a trial. A trial is when a jury decides whether the defendant is responsible, and if so, how much the plaintiff should receive in compensation for their injuries.

9. Appeal

A party may appeal when they believe the judge did something wrong during the trial. Most people think the losing party can appeal the jury’s verdict because they disagree, but that is not actually how it works. In Georgia, the Court of Appeals decides appeals in personal injury cases. Then, if appealed again, the Supreme Court will review the case and agree or disagree with the Court of Appeals. If an appeal is unsuccessful, the verdict usually stands, but if it is successful, then the verdict is overturned and there may have to be another trial.

Why it’s important to visit the doctor

Delaying medical treatment could be costly to your health and to your case. Some injuries might seem minor to you, but they could have significant and long-term impacts without prompt medical attention to prevent injuries from worsening. The truth is you do not know how injured you are until you go the doctor and get checked out.

Medical records of your accident injuries are the proof needed for your claim. Without a doctor’s diagnosis, especially, soon after the accident, it’s hard to prove your injuries were caused by the accident, not something else. A doctor’s diagnosis also affirms the severity of your injuries, so the insurance company cannot minimize how badly you were hurt.  

Cost of hiring a personal injury lawyer

Our personal injury firm works on a contingency basis. This means that we only get paid if we win your case. Our legal fees are a percentage of your final award, so there’s no upfront cost to you. And, during the lawsuit, we pay all the costs associated with your case.

If we win for you, then we share in the recovery. So, that means the better we do for you, the better we do for ourselves, so our goals are the same. If we do not win, which is very rare, then you do not owe us anything.

Why hire Rafi Law Firm

Our Savannah personal injury lawyers are here to help

Rafi Law Firm, led by personal injury attorney Mike Rafi, has recovered over $100 million for our clients. We focus on securing maximum settlements for our clients, and we’re passionate about standing up to big companies that hurt innocent victims. Contact us today at (912) 461-6798 for a free consultation!