Protect Your Rights with Experienced Personal Injury Representation

Immediately following a personal injury accident, you need to act calmly and strategically. We understand that it is difficult, but it is important that you take the proper steps to set yourself up for success. Here are some tips from an experienced personal injury attorney: 

• Call the police immediately and file a police report
• Gather all the contact and insurance information from each party involved, especially the person you believe is the wrongdoer
• Take photos of the scene
• Call medical professionals if you or anyone else involved is injured to seek help
• Call your personal injury attorney to explore the next steps

If you are physically able to gather all of this information, it is essential that you do so. Any and all information will be useful when you sit down to work with your personal injury attorney on your insurance claim and your personal injury case.

Yes. Insurance companies are trying to protect their interests, not yours. When you work with a personal injury lawyer, you are working with a professional who not only has experience working with clients on insurance claims but whose only job is to protect your interests. The insurance company often prefers to avoid dealing with an attorney because they want to settle the claim quickly, cheaply, and with few questions. That is not what is best for you. We have seen many cases where an insurance company offers a quick settlement that is far less than the value of the case. Often these early settlement offers won’t cover all of your medical bills. Once you have settled your case, you can’t go back and ask for more. You owe it to yourself to get a free consultation with a personal injury lawyer before you agree to a quick settlement.

Your personal injury lawyer will be able to understand and explain to you the complex language and practices of the insurance company to make sure you are protected. They will help you organize and submit all of the necessary information to ensure your submission of the insurance claim goes as well as possible.

If your insurance claim is denied by the carrier, you still have options. You do not have to accept their denial and we recommend that you don’t. We encourage you to work with one of our experienced car accident lawyers who can help you take the next steps.

In almost all personal injury cases, our clients hire us on a contingency fee basis. That means that if we don’t recover money for you, you don’t owe a fee. If we are able to recover money for you, your fee will be a percentage of your recovery. You do not need to pay money out of pocket to pursue your case with our law firm. We will discuss this with you during your free initial consultation. We will advise you about the likely and realistic outcome range of your personal injury lawsuit. Keep in mind that if you are still receiving medical treatment, it will not be possible for any attorney to precisely value your claim. The value of your case will depend on many factors including the seriousness of your injury, the extent of the insurance coverage for the injury, the party or parties who are at fault, and even the location where a lawsuit would be filed. We will not accept your case unless we believe it is in your best interest to hire us. And, of course, we will answer any questions you have about our firm, your case, and the legal process.

We know that a personal injury case is a difficult time in your life. Our goal is to make the process as smooth as possible while working towards obtaining the best possible result. We understand that this is not an easy process.  We have the experience and skill to manage your claim and handle your personal injury lawsuit. While we will make every effort to settle your case on terms that you approve. But, if your case cannot be settled for a fair and reasonable amount, you can rest assured that we have strong courtroom experience and we have the skill to take your case to trial if that becomes necessary. Rick Morefield, our practice leader, regularly teaches trial tactics and techniques to other lawyers at an annual program held at the National Judicial College.

Every personal injury case is different. You can expect your personal injury case to take anywhere from a few months to a few years to settle. The time to get your case resolved will depend on many factors including how long it takes for your doctors to know the extent of your injuries and whether they are permanent. Other factors include whether the court where your case is filed has serious backlogs. It can also depend on other issues including the time schedules of expert witnesses, court reporters and lawyers.  If your case goes to trial, that usually takes longer than if it settles. When we work with you, we do our best to expedite the process while also ensuring that we maximize your recovery. 

Our focus is on maximizing your recovery. Sometimes that takes longer than getting a quick settlement. Our legal team prioritizes getting you the best results, instead of the quickest results. However, if a quicker result is more important to you than the maximum recovery due to your life circumstances, just let us know. We always base our strategy on what is best for you. We take the time that is necessary to fully understand each case and work on it diligently to bring our clients the results that they deserve. When cases do not settle, we have the experience and skill to take your case to trial or mediation.  

Your personal injury lawyer will be able to work with you to estimate the value of your case. We have the expertise in the industry to understand the severity of the personal injury and the complications involved. We have decades of experience in handling and evaluating a variety of personal injury claims. We stay up to date on jury verdicts in the area. We have handled cases against dozens of insurance companies and understand how they evaluate claims. Keep in mind that our evaluation of your case depends on many factors. Those factors include the type of medical treatment you received, the extent of your medical bills, the nature of your injuries, your future medical needs, the extent to which you will be able to recover from your injuries, wage losses, the extent of your pain and suffering and the nature of the wrongdoer’s conduct. Your potential recovery in your case is even affected by the place where a trial would take place. We have the experience to evaluate these factors and give you sound advice.