Whenever children have been injured in an accident, lawyers take on an important function. A personal injury lawyer in Fredericton can advocate for that injured minor. An attorney can also advocate for a child that has suffered a loss.

A child could claim a loss of companionship.

A child’s ability to make that claim in a personal injury case would arise from the fact that the child’s parent or guardian had suffered a harmful injury.

Steps to be followed if a minor has been injured:

A parent or guardian files a lawsuit. After the lawsuit has been filed, then the court can appoint a litigation guardian. The litigation guardian works closely with a hired attorney. That 2-person team works towards achievement of a settlement.

Who decides whether or not a proposed settlement is in a child’s interests?

Sometimes a public trustee makes that decision. At other times, a court ruling constitutes the decision. For instance, a court might rule against someone that has proposed a settlement arrangement.

Who handles any money that might be awarded to the child?

A public trustee holds the money that has been awarded to a minor by the court. Until the minor becomes an adult, the public trustee arranges for distribution of the held funds.

The court carries out a limited amount of oversight, concerning distribution of the funds awarded to the minor (child or teenager). The court will investigate the nature of that distribution, if someone has filed a charge against the public trustee.

If the court finds that the public trustee has not been acting in the minor’s interests, then the court can call for other arrangements to come into play. In those cases, the ones that concern minors, the size of the settlement is not the only issue of concern. The courts also work hard to guarantee a fair distribution of any money that has been awarded to injured children or teens.

More on the lawyer’s role

As mentioned, a lawyer works with a litigation guardian, in hopes of aid creation of a settlement. The lawyer should have a good understanding for how the court might view any proposed settlement. It makes no sense to devote lots of time to coming up with a settlement plan that will not be accepted by a public trustee or by the court.

If a court must decide whether or not a proposed settlement is in a minor’s interest, then the judge plays the chief role in making that particular decision. For that reason, it helps to hire an experienced attorney, one that has gained some familiarity with different judges. A lawyer has the ability to arrange for a case to be brought forward when a certain judge is on the bench.