THE PERSONAL INJURY CASE:  FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

I HAVE BEEN INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT.  DO I NEED TO HIRE A LAWYER TO REPRESENT ME?

If you are having pain or other symptoms that don’t go away fairly quickly following an accident, you may want to consider consulting an attorney.  Sometimes it isn’t clear right away whether you will have continuing physical problems following an accident.  Different people take different amounts of time to heal and sometimes there can even be a delay in the presentation of symptoms.

WHAT WILL AN ATTORNEY WANT TO KNOW WHEN WE MEET?

An attorney will want as much detailed information as possible regarding how the accident happened and what injuries resulted from the accident.  If you have any documents, you should bring copies for the attorney.  Examples of such documents are medical records/bills, police reports, photographs, lists of people with knowledge of the accident, your insurance information, as well as information you may have concerning anyone else involved in the incident (e.g. the other driver).  If you don’t have medical records, you should provide a list of the names, addresses and phone numbers of all your health care providers.

WHEN DO I NEED TO CONSULT AN ATTORNEY?

There are various statutes of limitation (deadlines) in personal injury cases.  To preserve your right to file the appropriate legal claim, the sooner an attorney can review your case, the better.  While the attorney may not actually file a lawsuit right away, the sooner he or she can collect the relevant information concerning your potential claim, the better a position he or she will be in to resolve it for you.

CAN I ALWAYS COLLECT MONEY AFTER BEING INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT?

There are two important components that allow an individual to bring a successful legal claim in a personal injury case: damages and liability.  Damages are the losses you have suffered, either physically, emotionally, or financially.  There is liability when another person or entity can be held legally responsible for your damages.  That is, someone negligently or intentionally, in violation of the law, acted in such a way that caused your injuries.   You need to establish both damages and liability to succeed in a personal injury claim.

WHAT IS MY INVOLVEMENT IN MY LEGAL CLAIM?  DOES MY ATTORNEY DO ALL THE WORK?

Your primary job as a legal plaintiff is to cooperate with the attorney by providing requested information.  It is essential that a plaintiff is honest with his or her attorney from the beginning.  The truth always comes out and can destroy a case if the attorney does not have full disclosure from the outset.

Also, you may need to have your deposition taken, which involves at least a few hours (possibly more) answering questions asked by the defendant’s attorney.  You will be under oath and a court reporter transcribes everything that is said.  What you say in this deposition can be used as evidence in your case.  You may also be asked by the defendant to be examined by a doctor the defendant hires.  If the case goes to trial, you will have to testify at trial as well.

IF AN INSURANCE REPRESENTATIVE OR PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR CALLS ME, SHOULD I TELL HIM ABOUT THE ACCIDENT

If you think you may want to pursue a legal claim arising out of the accident and plan to consult an attorney to assist you with this, you should not speak to anyone about the accident prior to consulting with your attorney.

IF MY CASE IS SETTLED, WHO PAYS ME?

When you bring a legal action against an individual, you are usually seeking to collect against that person’s insurance policy.  Sometimes you will sue a corporation or other business entity or a governmental entity.  Those businesses will likely either have insurance or will be self-insured.

HOW DOES AN ATTORNEY FIGURE OUT HOW MUCH MY CASE IS WORTH?

You can recover for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering and/or emotional distress that were directly caused by the incident.   Economic damages are proven by supporting documentation and other evidence of such losses.  The amount you can recover for pain and suffering and/or emotional distress depends on the individual case.

DO I GET TO KEEP ALL THE MONEY THAT IS OFFERED TO ME IN A LEGAL SETTLEMENT

You may have to reimburse your health care providers and/or insurers for money they advanced to you for your medical expenses.  By law, they have the right to that reimbursement.  You will also have to pay your attorney a percentage of any recovery and reimburse him or her for expenses incurred in pursuing your legal claim (see explanation of contingency fees below).

HOW MUCH DO I PAY MY ATTORNEY IN A PERSONAL INJURY CASE?

Most attorneys who handle personal injury cases work on a contingency fee.  This means that at the end of the case the attorney will collect his/her fee, which is a percentage of the recovery, plus any costs the attorney incurs in preparing the case.  You will sign a fee agreement with the attorney, setting forth the terms of payment.