Preparing to meet with a personal injury lawyer

Introduction

If you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of needing to find and hire a personal injury lawyer, chances are that you are feeling a range of emotions.   You probably have a lot of newly acquired expenses due to the accident that you were involved in.  You may have missed work because of an inability to go about your daily routines.  You may be suffering emotionally from the traumatic experience that you have just been through.  Of course you want to be made whole again, but you may be anxious when it comes to hiring a lawyer to make that happen for you.  Lawyers have a certain stigma associated with them that make a lot of us average folk really nervous.  Years of bad lawyer jokes and negative publicity have done little to make approaching and working with a lawyer sound like something that you want to do.  However bad your pre-conceived notions of attorneys are, the bottom line is that statistically you can get farther in fighting your case with their help than without it.  You have rights and among those rights is the right to choose whatever personal injury lawyer you like.  You are in control because you are doing the hiring.  That said, there are some things that you can do to compliment the efforts of your personal injury attorney and make your case that much stronger and your settlement award that much higher.  Preparation by both the lawyer and the claimant are needed in order to achieve the most favorable results.

Know your rights

Suing someone else is nothing to take lightly.  In today's society many people are extremely quick to sue and do not take the time to consider whether or not they have any ground to do so.  This wastes valuable time and effort on everyone's part.  So start by understanding your rights.  In the case of a car accident if you are the passenger in a car, a pedestrian, a cyclist or the driver of a car that was not at-fault you also have the right to sue. You can also sue for what are called "economic losses."  Economic losses include such things as lost income incurred due to the accident.  If you win your case, you can also recover legal costs incurred in the process bringing the at fault individual to court.  Unfortunately the rights that you have to bring suit against someone do have their limitations.  Among the most important limitations to keep in mind are the restrictions that you have in relation to time.  Such restrictions are explained in the following paragraph.

Know your timeline

Did you know that any law suits must be commenced no later than two years after an automobile collision?  Did you know that certain notices and documents must be prepared and sent to the at-fault driver within 120 days of the collision and that failure to meet these deadlines can affect your ability to recover the costs you were subject to as a result of the accident?   It's true!  Waiting too long to take care of issues that you may not even be aware of can cost you dearly.  For these compelling reasons it is all the more important to not procrastinate in hiring a personal injury lawyer and being prepared to provide them with what they need to get you the money that you deserve.  A lawyer can also be your advocate in knowing of other important deadlines specific to your case that you want to be sure not to miss.  Here are just a few examples of other deadlines that you need to keep in mind as you prepare to meet with your attorney:

• In order to avoid delays in your insurance claim application processing, if you are injured in a vehicle collision you must notify you own insurance company within 30 days of the date of the collision.
• In the case of a car accident, if you think there was a roadway defect, you must give notice to the appropriate party within 7 days. 
• You must send out certain documents to various entities within 120 and 150 days of the collision. Missing these deadlines may hinder the success of your lawsuit.

Preparations for the first meeting

Meeting with a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after your accident can make a big difference in your case.  So whether you are meeting with a lawyer to determine if you want to work with them or if you have already chosen to work with a certain lawyer and are meeting with them to proceed with your case, it stands to reason the being on top of things will only prove to be advantageous.  Do not make the mistake of wasting both your time and the time of your attorney by being unprepared for your meetings together.

The first meeting that you have with a personal injury lawyer is most likely going to be the one that is most involved.  The lawyer will want to know who you are and how you can be contacted.  Personal background information will also be needed.  Some lawyers give you or even send you a questionnaire or other documents to fill out prior to a meeting.  Naturally is it wise to be prepared with these documents completed at the time that has been designated.  The more prepared you are with completed questionnaires, documents, diagrams, your own questions, etc. the easier and smoother the process will be.

During your initial consultation, you'll want to be able to share all relevant information with the lawyer.  Remember that everything that you tell your attorney during any of your meetings is subject to the attorney-client privilege and therefore will be kept private.  There is no need to beat around the bush or sugar coat the facts, honesty is the best policy and being straightforward with all of the facts will help to avoid misunderstandings, corrections and many other avoidable delays.  

It is a good idea to bring a copy of all documents relevant to your situation to your first meeting with the attorney and to make sure that your attorney has copies of all subsequent documents as soon as possible after they are received.  Here are some examples of the types of documents to have ready when you are preparing to meet with a personal injury lawyer: 

• Copies of police reports or accident reports detailing your injury 
• Copies of hospital, doctor and therapy records as well as bills from medical care providers 
• Reports from doctors regarding your diagnosis and prognosis (these will most likely be used to determine an estimate of future medical costs).
• Information regarding work you missed as a result of your injury 
• A calendar, with all the important dates (date of injury, dates of surgery or other treatment and so forth) 
• Copies of any correspondence with insurance companies or any other party as it relates to any aspect of your case.

In meeting with the lawyer you may be given a variety of options regarding how you would like to proceed with your case that you must choose from.  If you are well prepared to answer these questions you can benefit from any advice that the lawyer may have concerning the options that you are considering and may be able to give good advice.  In any case, by the end of your meeting, you should leave with a clear understanding of what you've accomplished and what will happen next. 

If you are simply unsure of what more you can do to be prepared to meet with your lawyer, prepare a list of questions you have that you can take with you to your first meeting.  Do not assume that you will simply remember what you want to ask.  Fumbling for the right words and questions to ask wastes valuable time and could cause confusion down the road.  Some questions you might ask a personal injury lawyer might include: 

• How many personal injury trials has the lawyer handled and of those cases how many were won?
• How long has the lawyer been in practice? 
• What problems does the lawyer foresee with your case and what options can he suggest for the management of those problems? 
• What is the process that you will be a part of?  What happens next?! 
• What is a reasonable estimate for how long it will take to close your case and get your money? 
• How is the lawyer going to charge for his or her services? 

This last question of payment bears at least a little bit more clarification.  Before you even meet with a lawyer you will want to know how the lawyer will charge for his or her services.  Many lawyers offer a no-fee first consultation; others expect to be paid for any time that they spend discussing your case.  You will also want to know how your lawyer will be paid for their services throughout your case.  While many lawyers offer to only be paid a portion of your awarded money (a contingency fee), others will expect payment regardless of the outcome of the suit.   The last thing that you want is to attend a meeting with a lawyer and be surprised by a bill for the consultation.