Wisconsin Personal
Injury Lawyer

Accidents happen every day of the week in Wisconsin. People slip and fall, sustain dog bites, or are involved in car accidents.  Accident victims often have no idea how to access medical care and what their options may be to pay for it. If you are hurt in an accident, call Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC. We are a team of Wisconsin personal injury lawyers committed to protecting your legal rights.

Contact us and we can explain the personal injury claims process. We will also outline our “no win no fee” promise, which makes speaking with one of our Wisconsin personal injury lawyers the smart thing to do.

Types of Personal Injury Cases Handled by Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC

Our Wisconsin personal injury lawyers have decades of combined experience helping anyone injured due to:

• Auto accidents. We have developed a deep knowledge of car accidents, caused by negligent motorists. We can also help someone hurt by a drunk driver. other cases we handle include: ATV accidents, rear-end collisions, and fatal car accidents.
• Truck Accidents. Claims involving truck accidents are complex. You don’t have to face insurance companies alone. Our Wisconsin truck accident lawyers are skilled, experienced, and committed to justice. We handle all types of truck accidents, ensuring you get the compensation you deserve.
• Animal bites, injuries & attacks. We can help anyone bitten injured or attacked by a dog or other animal.
• Bicycle & pedestrian accidents. Any cyclist or pedestrian struck by a car could suffer life-threatening injuries.
• Slip and Fall/Premises liability claims. Property owners should keep their premises safe for visitors. Businesses especially need to ensure that their premises are not dangerous if they conduct business with the public.
• Nursing home neglect & abuse. Nursing home residents have been injured due to understaffing, medication errors, or physical abuse. We have helped people bring legal claims for bed sores, neglect, malnutrition, and abuse.
• Wrongful death. Some accident victims, unfortunately, perish from their injuries. A wrongful death claim compensates family members for the loss of a loved one.

If you were hurt in any type of accident, call us. We can review your case during a free consultation.

Personal Injuries

Prospective clients come to our firm to seek compensation for the pain, lost income, and inconvenience they suffered as a result of their injuries. Accidents can cause a variety of injuries to which a claim must be filed for the victim to receive full compensation., injuries may include:

• Fractures
• Head injuries
• Neck injuries, including whiplash
• Concussions and traumatic brain injuries
• Nerve damage
• Back injuries
• Herniated discs
• Strains and sprains
• Chronic pain
• Spinal cord injury
• Chest injuries
• A collapsed lung
• Amputations
• Burns

These injuries vary in severity.  Serious injuries will require intensive medical care and rehabilitation. Many of our clients spend substantial amounts of time going to medical appointments and dealing with debilitating pain and depression from their injuries.  Serious injuries could also leave someone with permanent disabilities that will affect them for the rest of their life.

Many injuries cause serious repercussions, including emotional distress, and financial burdens. Let an experienced Wisconsin personal injury lawyer review the facts of your case to determine how to proceed with your personal injury claim.

Establishing Fault for Your Accident

We must prove who was at fault to bring a personal injury claim. In some accidents, it’s not clear who is to blame.

Our lawyers are experienced at gathering the evidence needed to obtain compensation. For example, we usually rely on:

• Eyewitness testimony. Anyone who saw the accident can explain what happened, which helps us outline the facts accident and who is at fault for the accident.
• Physical evidence. Evidence from a crash scene can establish fault.
• Defense statements. The person who injured you may have made admissions that we can use as part of your case. For example, a driver could admit they were using their phone when they slammed into you.
• Chemical tests. We can use the results of a breathalyzer or urine test if you are struck by an intoxicated or impaired driver.

Wisconsin recognizes comparative fault. Under Section 895.045 of the Wisconsin statutes, you are not barred from compensation simply because you were negligent. You can seek compensation if you were not more at fault than the defendant. However, your compensation is reduced proportionally. (i.e., someone who is 40% at fault will receive 40% less in compensation) However, if you are more than 50% to blame, your compensation will be reduced to zero.

Damages: What Compensation Can You Receive?

A settlement should cover the cost of your injuries. That means paying for medical care, replacing lost income, and repairing any damaged property. You should also receive fair compensation for pain and other subjective losses. Our Wisconsin personal injury attorneys seek damages for economic and non-economic losses.

Economic damages

Anyone suffering a bodily injury will have certain out-of-pocket expenses. These are economic damages, such as:

• Medical care to treat your injuries.
• Future medical care to treat permanent injuries and disabilities.
• Lost wages or lost self-employment income
• Loss of earning capacity for long-lasting injuries
• Property damage, like damage to your car or bicycle

Non-economic damages

Compensation is not limited to out-of-pocket expenses. We can also seek compensation for certain non-economic losses, usually called “pain and suffering,” which include:

• Physical pain
• Emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Depression

Lawyers prove their value by how aggressively they negotiate for pain and suffering compensation. Unlike economic losses, which we prove with a pay stub or bill, non-economic losses are subjective. Your choice of attorney will make an enormous difference in whether you receive a favorable settlement.

Punitive damages

You might also qualify for punitive damages. Juries award punitive damages to punish a defendant for malicious conduct or for intentionally disregarding your rights. These damages are not available in all cases, especially those where the defendant was merely careless. If the defendant acted with intent or malice, then we can request them.

Wisconsin caps punitive damages to $200,000 or double your compensatory damages, whichever is greater. If you received $40,000 in compensatory damages, the maximum you can receive is $200,000. Our law firm will consider whether to seek punitive damages based on the facts of the case.

Personal Injury Timeline

Many accident victims want to know how long they will need to wait for a settlement. The process is different for each case, but the following general timeline is helpful.

First, you should receive all necessary medical treatment. This allows your doctor to determine and assess whether you will have any permanent disabilities after you reach maximum medical improvement. Some people make a 100% recovery; others do not. Depending on the seriousness of your injuries, you might need 6 months or more of medical care.

Second, we can negotiate with the defendant or their insurer for a fair settlement. If the insurance company’s offer is too low, we will discuss your options moving forward after the offer.   Negotiations between your attorney and the defendants may take several weeks.

Mediation is also possible. Mediation can happen either before or after a lawsuit is filed. Mediation s is a process where both sides meet a neutral attorney, (the mediator), who helps assists the parties in settlement discussions.  The mediator can help each side find areas of common ground and help them reach an agreement. While mediation itself takes place in a day, it can take several months for a mediation to be scheduled.

 If negotiations or mediation is unsuccessful, we will have no choice but to file a lawsuit Once a lawsuit is filed, the process may take a year or longer to go to reach a resolution.

Most of our personal injury cases settle for fair compensation. We can typically secure meaningful compensation in a reasonable amount of time; however, for those cases that do not settle before a jury trial, we are willing to take every case to a jury trial if necessary to achieve a fair result for our client.

You Can Afford Our Services

The lawyers at Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC do not charge upfront legal fees. When you hire us, we agree to represent you on a contingency fee basis. That means we only get paid if we win your case—and we get paid nothing if we lose. It is really that simple.

There is also no risk of contracting us to discuss your case. Many people who think their injuries are “minor” are surprised to learn that they may be eligible for compensation. Let us review the facts to see if making a personal injury claim is the right choice for you.

Contact Our Wisconsin Personal Injury Lawyer for a Free Consultation!

The process of obtaining meaningful compensation is confusing for many people. We can remove the mystery. At Fitzpatrick, Skemp & Butler, LLC our legal team has helped many people bring claims for accident injuries.

Call as soon as possible to preserve your legal rights. Wisconsin law grants accident victims only three years to file a lawsuit based on a personal injury; wrongful death cases have a shorter timeline. Additionally, there are many things that occur in the days and weeks immediately after the accident, which can affect your settlement (even if your settlement will not happen for many months) Contact us before you lose your right to pursue your injury case.