You have suffered a horrific accident because of somebody else’s carelessness and now you are recording all the details about all the pain and all the difficulties that you undergo each day. You have filed a personal injury lawsuit, and the defense attorney asks you whether you have kept a diary about the events that occurred. How should you respond to such a question.
Advantages of Keeping a Pain Journal
After a terrible accident, you could be at the hospital or at home recuperating. If you want to keep a pain journal and record everything that is going on with you, then it is poignant for two reasons. First, this journal documents the problems exactly that you are having day to day. Secondly, this journal helps you to go back and see how much improvement you have made over a period.
Be Honest about Your Journal
Now, when you decide to file a personal injury lawsuit, the defense attorney will have the opportunity to question you, during pretrial testimony known as a deposition, which is held under oath. One of the questions that the defense lawyer is most likely to ask you is whether you have kept a diary or journal, where you have kept notes about the problems you had and the treatments you received.
The Defense will Question Your Different Entries in Your Journal
If you have kept a pain journal, and you answer yes, what that means then is that the defense will now be entitled to see everything that you have written down in the journal. This is significant and the defense will want to do this for a key reason. The defense will want to fish for information that has nothing to do with your injuries, but can be used against you at trial, or information that shows your injuries are really not that serious.
If you are keeping a pain journal or diary about all the problems, you are experiencing after the accident, just remember, the defense is going to ask you this question, and you have to respond honestly. When you accept keeping a diary, you will have to provide the defense a copy of it. The defense will thoroughly go through your diary and read every single line to find out all sorts of information. Then the defense is going to ask questions about the different entries you have made in your journal.
Hence, keeping a pain journal or diary, documenting your suffering and treatment is magnificent, since it provides you with information about what you went through and the progress of your treatment. However, you will have to reveal the existence of this diary if asked during a deposition, and provide a copy of the same to the defense. The defense attorney will use the information in your diary to disprove your claim or mitigate the seriousness of your injuries.
