Personal Injury Representation

Personal Injury Lawyer Pittsburgh

Pennsylvania personal injury claims are governed by modified comparative negligence under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102, which bars recovery entirely if you are 51 percent or more at fault and reduces damages proportionally below that threshold. What a personal injury attorney can prove under Pennsylvania’s rules of evidence determines your percentage of fault and your available recovery before the insurance company’s position hardens.

Stephen H. Lebovitz is a personal injury attorney at Lebovitz & Lebovitz, P.A. in Swissvale, Pennsylvania. He represents injury victims throughout Pittsburgh and Allegheny County in serious vehicle collisions, premises liability, wrongful death, and catastrophic injury matters.

Evidence that establishes liability and causation degrades within days of an accident. Surveillance footage is overwritten. Witnesses lose detail. Medical records that fail to connect injury to incident will not establish causation in court or settlement negotiation. Most personal injury firms handle the insurance claim and stop there. When serious injury involves wrongful death, an estate, a minor or disabled beneficiary, a special needs trust, or property held in a family’s name, the legal picture extends beyond the claim itself. A settlement paid incorrectly to a beneficiary receiving Medicaid or SSI can eliminate that eligibility permanently. Lebovitz & Lebovitz, P.A. handles those intersections across the full scope of what a serious injury actually requires throughout Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania.

When Legal Counsel Is Actually Needed

Many injury matters begin as insurance claims but become legal matters when liability, causation, coverage, or damages are disputed. At that point, legal strategy and procedural handling matter.

This is especially true when fault is contested, when injuries involve long term impairment or future medical needs, when multiple parties or third party liability are involved, when informal settlement efforts fail, or when litigation becomes necessary to protect the claim.

Our role is to determine whether a matter can be resolved efficiently through negotiation and, when necessary, pursue targeted litigation in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas or other appropriate court.

What Actually Works in Pennsylvania Personal Injury Claims

Personal injury claims succeed or fail based on evidence gathered in the first 48 hours, complete identification of all available insurance coverage, and medical documentation that explicitly connects each injury to the incident. The following elements are decisive:

• Immediate evidence preservation — photographs, witness statements, police reports, and medical records created within 24-48 hours carry more weight than reconstruction attempts weeks later
• Early identification of all coverage sources — the at-fault party’s liability policy, your UM/UIM coverage, umbrella policies, and homeowner’s coverage if premises liability applies
• Documentation of comparative fault defenses before they’re raised — Pennsylvania’s 51 percent bar means the insurance company will argue your fault percentage aggressively
• Causation evidence from treating physicians — medical records must explicitly connect each injury to the accident; gaps in treatment or delayed diagnosis weaken causation arguments
• Tort election verification within days — whether you elected full tort or limited tort on your auto policy determines whether you can recover pain and suffering damages in most vehicle accident cases

Personal Injury Matters We Handle

Personal injury claims in Pennsylvania arise primarily from negligence law. To recover damages, an injured person must establish that another party owed a legal duty of care, breached that duty, caused the injury, and produced measurable damages. Lebovitz & Lebovitz, P.A. represents injury victims in vehicle collisions, premises liability, wrongful death, and catastrophic injury matters throughout Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Liability, Compensation, and Coverage

Compensation may include medical expenses, lost income, future care needs, and non-economic damages such as pain and suffering. Permanent scarring, disfigurement, and loss of function are recognized under Pennsylvania law and should be documented from the beginning of the claim. One of the most overlooked sources of recovery in serious injury matters is uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. When the at-fault party carries no insurance or insufficient coverage, UM or UIM benefits may become central to full recovery.

Personal injury matters are handled on a contingent fee basis. Legal fees are paid only if compensation is recovered. Costs and expense structure are discussed at the outset.

Common Mistakes in Pennsylvania Personal Injury Claims

Mistakes made in the first weeks after an injury can reduce or eliminate recovery regardless of how strong the liability case appears:

• Giving recorded statements to the at-fault party’s insurer before consulting counsel — early statements lock in positions on liability and damages before the full extent of injury is known and before coverage issues are identified
• Accepting the first settlement offer without evaluating all available coverage — the at-fault driver’s minimum $15,000 liability policy may be the opening offer, but your own UM/UIM coverage, stacked across multiple vehicles, may provide ten times that amount
• Assuming limited tort bars all recovery — the serious injury exception, out-of-state driver exception, commercial vehicle exception, and DUI exception can restore full tort rights even under a limited tort election
• Delaying medical treatment or missing follow-up appointments — gaps in treatment are used by defense counsel to argue the injury was not caused by the accident or was not serious enough to require ongoing care
• Signing a release before understanding how a settlement affects Medicaid, SSI, or special needs trust eligibility — a lump sum settlement paid directly to a beneficiary receiving public benefits can terminate eligibility permanently unless structured correctly

Pennsylvania Deadlines for Personal Injury Claims

The general statute of limitations for most Pennsylvania personal injury claims is two years from the date of injury. Claims involving government entities may require earlier notice under the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act. Medical negligence, minors, and later discovered injuries may follow different timing rules. Missing the applicable deadline can permanently bar recovery.

Pennsylvania personal injury claims involve premises liability standards and tort rules established under Pennsylvania statutes, including the Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law and comparative negligence provisions applicable in Allegheny County courts.