Office Location: 400 Poydras Tower, #1975, New Orleans, 70130
Located in the heart of Cajun country in Southern Louisiana, Lafayette is a culturally diverse city that’s home to more than 120,000 residents. With seemingly unlimited opportunities to enjoy world-class music, dining, and art, as well as numerous outdoor activities, like camping, hiking, and fishing, the city also draws thousands of visitors each year.
Dubbed the “Happiest City in America,” Lafayette is a great place to live or visit, but it’s not without its risks. Like any other big city, the potential exists for you to become involved in an accident that can severely injure you or someone you love.
If you suffered serious injury or lost a loved one because of someone else’s negligence or carelessness, you could obtain compensation from those responsible, but you will need an attorney for help.
The Lafayette injury attorneys and legal professionals at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers are available to speak with you and discuss your personal injury case. DO NOT delay. We will explain the process so that you have a clear picture of how our team and how the legal process works. You can feel confident knowing that you have experienced advocates on your side, fighting to receive maximum compensation for your damages. Our intake department is ready to hear from you—for free—24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 800-898-4877, or you may contact us now by CLICKING HERE.
Why Choose Us as Your Lafayette Personal Injury Lawyer
For more than 20 years now, the attorneys at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers have helped thousands of injured victims with their personal injury claims. Our top-ranked lawyers have decades of combined legal experience, and we can advise you of your legal options and deliver the aggressive legal representation you need to recover the maximum compensation possible.
Our attorneys have in-depth knowledge of Louisiana law, and we have achieved remarkable success in helping our clients recover compensation following a preventable tragedy. To date, we have recovered millions of dollars in total compensation for our clients, and you can rely on us to work hard to help you get financial compensation to cover your injury-related expenses, lost wages, emotional distress, and the other adverse effects your injury has had on your life.
You can trust we will always place your needs first and deliver the personalized attention your case deserves, and we can handle all aspects of your legal claim or personal injury lawsuit so you won’t have to worry about it.
Our lawyers have received national recognition as being among the top personal injury attorneys in Louisiana as well as the entire country, and we have received perfect 10.0 client ratings on Avvo along with numerous client testimonials and referrals.
We are here for you 24/7, 365 days a year to answer your questions and address your concerns regarding pursuing compensation from those responsible for your injuries and losses. You can call our Louisiana law offices to speak with someone regarding your personal injury claim at 800-898-4877. You can also CLICK HERE and complete our online contact form to receive a free case evaluation.
We Handle Many Different Types of Personal Injury Cases
The days after an accident can feel overwhelming. Between dealing with your injuries, speaking to doctors, and managing time off work, you may not know what steps to take to figure out your legal options.
If someone else injured you through their reckless or careless actions, you want help from a legal team who has experience in your specific area of injury. Stewart J. Guss and his team of attorneys and legal professionals have handled a variety of different accident cases, and we can help you prove liability, file your personal injury claim, and make sure the insurance company treats you fairly.
Some of the personal injury areas we handle include:
Car Accidents
The statistics around car accidents are a bit alarming. In 2013, Louisiana State University produced data that showed that a car accident occurs approximately once every three and a half minutes in Louisiana. Whether you’ve been involved in a single or multi-car accident, severe injuries can occur. We’ve worked with MANY different car accident victims who were hit by drunk drivers, distracted drivers, and teenage drivers who were unable to react to a sudden stop or other situation correctly due to their inexperience. Regardless of HOW the accident happened, you deserve to work with a team of lawyers and legal professionals that is familiar with Louisiana law and the legal system when it comes to proving negligence. Don’t delay in contacting our personal injury law office. Call us today!
Motorcycle Accidents
Those who own a motorcycle know that there’s nothing better than riding down the road unencumbered by the steel casing of a car. Many people opt to spend a beautiful day exploring the roads around Lafayette on their motorcycles. While this is an enjoyable pastime that encompasses a certain feeling of freedom for the rider, there are always risks to riding a motorcycle. Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents can happen when another driver isn’t paying attention and causes a collision. Rear-end accidents are common at a stoplight. Other times, a car might not notice a motorcycle when changing lanes on the highway, resulting in a high-speed accident. Regardless of how it happens, the motorcycle rider usually sustains the most serious injuries.
Trucking Accidents
We rely on large trucks to deliver a variety of different goods in Louisiana. For this reason, semi trucks are common fixtures on roadways. Truck accidents are among the most dangerous scenarios you can encounter. These vehicles often weigh up to ten times more than a passenger car, and the impact of a collision causes serious damage and catastrophic injuries. Truck drivers often push to drive through the night and spend many hours behind the wheel, making them distracted and drowsy. Although these professional drivers are held to a higher standard of regulations, that doesn’t always mean that they always drive safely. Some of the most dangerous truck accidents include jackknife accidents and rollovers. If you have been in a truck accident, it is important to speak with a skilled team of personal injury attorneys and legal professionals to learn how to protect your rights.
Other Motor Vehicle Accidents
From Uber, Lyft, and other rideshare accidents, to bus and taxi accidents, the personal injury lawyers at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers handle all types of motor vehicle accident injury claims. Contact us to see how we can help you regardless of the type of motor vehicle accident that caused your injuries.
Pedestrian Accidents
Walking can be a great way to relax and avoid the stresses of driving a car. It’s also great for the environment and helps to reduce traffic on the road. Unfortunately, a pedestrian accident can result in serious injuries. When there’s nothing between you and the road, even a slow-moving collision can be incredibly dangerous. With the increase of distracted drivers who attempt to multi-task by utilizing electronics while driving, the potential for an accident is fairly significant. If you were hit by a vehicle when you were walking, contact our Lafayette law firm as soon as possible.
Bicycle Accidents
With pleasant weather for most of the year in Lafayette, many people choose to ride their bikes to work or for exercise. As traffic around town increases, bike accidents are becoming a MAJOR issue on the roads throughout Lafayette. Often, cars or other motor vehicles will fail to offer the right of way to a bicycle or simply won’t notice them on the road. While there are ways to protect yourself, like wearing a helmet and brightly colored clothing, sometimes accidents still happen. If a negligent driver hit you while you were on your bike, it is in your best interest to seek knowledgeable legal consultation before you talk with the insurance company. LEARN MORE about how the team at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers can help!
Construction Accidents
A construction site is one of the most dangerous workplaces. Between working with electricity, driving heavy machinery, and climbing tall ladders, it’s no surprise to state that injuries are relatively common in this working environment. If you have been injured when you were at work on a construction site, it can be difficult to know if you are facing a workers’ compensation claim, or if a specific person should be held liable. We can help you work through this process.
Wrongful Death
If someone caused an accident that claimed the life of your spouse, child, parent, or another immediate family member, you can pursue compensation through a wrongful death claim or a wrongful death lawsuit. You may obtain compensation to cover the financial expenses of your loss, such as funeral costs and medical expenses, but you may also receive compensation for the loss of the deceased’s earnings, loss of consortium, emotional distress, mental anguish, and more.
These are some of the areas we handle at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers, but our lawyers have the knowledge and experience to tackle virtually any injury legal claim. Contact us for a free consultation concerning your injury to see how we can help!
Don’t Wait! A Delay Can Cost You
Every state has statutes of limitations on when injury victims must file a personal injury lawsuit in civil court. Louisiana has one of the SHORTEST statutes of limitations and allows you only one year from the date of your accident or injury to file suit. This means that if you don’t file a claim within one year of the accident date, a judge will dismiss your case, and you won’t be able to pursue any further legal action on the claim. There are rare exceptions to this rule, and your team of personal injury attorneys and legal professionals can advise you of your options.
Don’t risk losing the ability to pursue a personal injury claim simply due to a delayed response time. Some people may think that a year is plenty of time, and there is no urgency, but a delay can hurt your case. Speak with our law firm as soon as possible to review the details of your case and file well within the statute of limitations in Louisiana.
Hire a Skilled Personal Injury Attorney Now
If you suffered serious or catastrophic injuries because of someone else, you may know you should hold the other party accountable, but you may be unsure of how to proceed with obtaining compensation.
An experienced personal injury lawyer from the legal team at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers can explain your rights and options and manage the claims process for you so you can focus on the important task of recovering.
Here are several of the ways we help our clients who have been injured in an accident:
Identify the negligent party
Depending on the circumstances of your accident, you may be able to hold different parties liable. You might be surprised to learn that the actions or inactions of a business owner led to the dangerous situation that caused your accident. Or maybe a car manufacturer released a vehicle that was mechanically unsafe. We will review the details of your accident and can help to identify if an individual or a company was negligent.
File a claim within the statute of limitations
As noted above, the statute of limitations in Louisiana is merely ONE year. This time can fly by quickly, and a delay could result in a dismissal before you even have a chance to present your personal injury case. Your personal injury lawyer will help manage the timeline to make sure that you are well within the statute of limitations. The first step depends on you, so call TODAY for your free consultation. Once we have evaluated your case, we can suggest how best to proceed.
Communicate with the insurance companies on your behalf
Insurance companies try to run profitable businesses and will likely push back on your request for compensation. Insurers use many tactics to encourage you to settle quickly and for less money than you deserve. Sometimes, they will attempt to delay the process of your claim or refuse to cover certain injury-related expenses. Other times, they will insist that you are only owed compensation for your immediate medical expenses. Don’t let the insurance company pressure you into accepting less money than you deserve. This can hurt you in the long run, and an experienced personal injury lawyer can help you avoid this situation.
Understanding the Value of your Claim
The aftermath of an accident can be expensive. Beyond the measurable economic damages, such as medical bills and lost wages, non-economic damages can be much more difficult to show. These non-economic damages can be equally if not more devastating and could have a lasting impact on your happiness.
In order to support your financial needs after an accident, our legal team will work to gain a monetary award for:
- Current medical bills
- Anticipated future medical expenses
- Non-economic damages, including pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life
- Physical therapy
- Prescription drugs costs
- Medical equipment, such as a wheelchair or necessary modifications to your house
Insurance companies will typically push back and insist on offering a lowball settlement that will not fully cover your needs. Our team of personal injury attorneys and legal professionals has extensive experience working with insurance companies, and we will negotiate aggressively for you throughout the settlement process to help you get the most monetary compensation.
If needed, we can hire medical experts and accident scene reconstruction experts to validate our request for compensation. In certain circumstances, it can help to have the support of a medical expert who can attest to the severity of your physical injuries. A medical expert can also determine any future medical attention you may need and help cost of your treatment and expenses.
You might also benefit from the services of an accident scene reconstruction expert. These experts can add valuable information to your case. Their input is especially helpful if there was conflicting or minimal evidence documented in the police report, or if there were no witnesses at the scene.
Contact a Lafayette, Louisiana, Personal Injury Law Firm Today
If another party is at fault for your injuries and losses, you need experienced legal representation to increase your chances of getting the financial compensation you deserve. The cost of medical care and ongoing physical therapy can add up quickly, and you shouldn’t have to pay if the accident was not your fault.
Insurance companies and their teams of lawyers will do everything in their power to minimize what they pay you, so you have every legal right to hire a dedicated personal injury attorney as well.
The legal team at Stewart J. Guss Personal Injury Lawyers has worked with many injured victims throughout Louisiana. We have the knowledge necessary to handle your claim efficiently, and we will fight aggressively for you to help you get just compensation. Because we take all of our personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis, you will not owe us a DIME unless we win your case. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so call us at 800-898-4877 or contact us now by CLICKING HERE. Don’t wait. Your rights to fair compensation are too important to delay, so contact our Lafayette personal injury lawyers today.
See what past clients have to say:
Review: 5/5
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“As a relatively new resident of Houston, I did not know of an attorney to contact for a personal injury suit. I randomly went through the yellow pages contacting two attorneys that had rejected my case prior to me contacting Stewart Guss. Stewart took my case on and settled for far more than I had anticipated. The silver lining of this is that I will now have enough money to go back to school for retraining, so I will be able to reenter the workforce in a new capacity. The paralegal, Angela, was kind and supportive throughout the process. If I did not understand the legal jargon, I did not hesitate to ask, and was never once made to feel that I was incompetent. Thank you Stewart and Angela for giving me a new lease on live.”
-Sally T.
See more client testimonials here
Since starting his firm in 1999, Stewart J. Guss has had the honor of representing clients from all over the world, helping them recover from even the most catastrophic injuries.
Today, thanks to a strong belief in those values of compassion, respect, and approachability, the firm has grown to employ over 120 legal professionals in numerous offices across 4 states, with nationwide reach.