Ali Mokarram

For individuals who are unfamiliar with personal injury litigation, the simplest explanation is that it is the area of law focused on civil lawsuits that are brought as a result of wrongful conduct. People are often confused by this and sometimes wrongly assume that personal injury litigation involves a “criminal act”. Criminal action is only heard by a criminal court, in which a prosecutor and a defense attorney argue the legal merits of a case before a judge or judge and jury. Civil law does not discuss the criminality of an act, but is based rather on the “doctrine of negligence”.

The “doctrine of negligence” operates under the assumption that each individual in society has a responsibility to avoid putting others at risk due to their choices, actions, and behavior. This does not immediately assume that negligence is the cause in every single injury case, because the doctrine does allow for some injury accidents to be classified as “unavoidable.” In order to prove liability for an accident, the plaintiff (the injured party) will have to show that a reasonable person would have acted differently than the defendant (the person who caused the injury) under the same circumstances.

Naturally, the definition of “reasonable person” and how said person would react often varies, so it is often up to a judge and jury to decide the outcome of a personal injury complaint. For example, a jury might be expected to decide whether a storekeeper was negligent in leaving liquids on the floor for customers to slip on, or a dog owner was negligent in letting an aggressive dog roam off-leash, or a doctor failed to follow his or her prescribed training and caused a serious injury. Such basic examples are only a small portion of the types of cases that personal injury lawyers like Ali Mokaram handle on a regular basis.

For many people who are unfamiliar with the process of a personal injury claim, the average case may go something like this:

1. Initial Meeting: The potential client meets with with Ali Mokaram and will discuss the specifics of his or her case.
2. Case Start-up: Initial motions, complaints, answers and all of the basic beginning paperwork begin at this stage. Ali Mokaram and members of his team begin their work.
3. Discovery Stage: The two sides (plaintiff and defendant) get information about the other to establish the facts of the case.
4. Motions and Resolution Prior to Trial: Motions to dismiss often come at this stage, and some cases end here. Otherwise, they may continue on from this point.
5. Settlement of the Claim: While movies and TV shows would have you believe that all cases go to trial, the reality is that most claims never make it before a jury. Claims are often settled outside of the courtroom, and at this stage, the two sides may agree on a settlement of the claim and head their separate ways.
6. Trial: Should the case go to trial, attorney Ali Mokaram will vigorously fight for your rights against the negligence of the opposing party.
7. Judgment Collection: Following the successful conclusion of a personal injury case, Ali Mokaram and his team will help move forward with the collection of the money following the judgment.
8. Appeals: Unfortunately, not all cases end with the initial judgment. It is important to be prepared for any appeals that might take place, and “game plan” for moving forward to fight the appeal.

Over the course of his 21-year career, Ali Mokaram has tirelessly fought on behalf of his clients, and he is prepared to help any individual who was harmed by the negligence of others. If you or anyone you know has been injured in an accident due to the negligence of others, it is important to turn to a trusted attorney like Ali Mokaram and the attorneys of Mokaram & Associates, P.C.