I always assumed that personal injury cases where pretty straight forward. After being in an accident, any financial losses that you suffered would be reimbursed by the liable party's insurance company. Unfortunately, things only work this way in a perfect world. In the real world, personal injury cases are extremely complex and getting the insurance company to pay a fair settlement requires the expertise of an experienced injury lawyer. Unfortunately, it took me several months to finally seek out the legal assistance I needed. As a result, I waited much longer than necessary to get the compensation I so desperately needed. During this time, I learned more about personal injury law than I ever thought I would. It is my hope that this blog will allow me to share that knowledge with you so that you can avoid making some of the same mistakes that I did.
After a personal injury of any nature, it's important to quickly decide whether you wish to put the situation behind you or present your situation to an attorney and possibly take action in court. If you select the latter option, it's time to seek out some attorneys in your city that specialize in personal injury law and begin the process of talking to a few to decide who to hire. This conversation will have some back-and-forth elements, with you talking about your situation and the attorney talking about why he or she wishes to represent you. It's also an ideal chance to ask some questions, including the following.
Can You Tell Me About Similar Cases You've Had In The Past?
Personal injury law has a broad scope, and while many different personal injury attorneys can represent you, it's often effective to hire someone who has represented clients with similar cases as yours. Asking this question will initiate a discussion about the attorney's experience in handling relevant cases, including the degree of success he or she has had. You'll get a chance to ask the attorney to provide some brief details about similar cases and their results. This discussion can often help to instill confidence in the attorney and help you decide if you wish to move forward with him or her.
How Long Will The Legal Process Take In This Case?
An experienced personal injury attorney should be able to tell you, based on experience, how long it will take until your case is resolved. Hearing this answer should ideally instill confidence in the attorney; someone intimately familiar with not only this branch of the law, but also cases similar to yours, will be able to provide a fairly accurate answer. You'll also get an idea of how long it will take the attorney to prepare your case, which can help you decide who you should hire.
How Involved Will My Role Be?
It's not practical to expect to simply sit at home and wait for the legal proceedings to conclude. Clients typically need to take a fairly active role in their case to ensure it's strong. Your role, in addition to talking to the attorney and his or her team of investigators, might be to attend a series of appointments with doctors and other medical experts. It's important to ask this question to get an understanding of how involved you can expect to be in the coming weeks and months.
Share