Questions Many Personal Injury Victims Don't Ask BEFORE Choosing an Attorney. But YOU Should.
Choosing a personal injury attorney is an important decision. Many injured people make that decision after one phone call, one television commercial, or one recommendation from someone they trust.
That does not mean the decision is wrong. But it often means the decision is made without having answers to questions that should have been answered before making such an important and consequential choice.
Look ... each year well over 100,000 personal injury claims are resolved in the United States for more than $100,000.
Read that again. Fees paid to personal injury attorneys are serious chunks of change -typically ranging from $25,000 to $40,000 after a $100,000 recovery.
What does it mean? It means that when YOU hire a personal injury attorney you are determining which attorney has the opportunity to earn that very substantial fee.
You control the decision of which personal injury attorney you hire. There is no shortage of personal injury attorneys. Importantly ... there is also no shortage of extraordinarily talented personal injury attorneys. If an attorney balks during an initial client consultation at fully and patiently answering all of your questions ... you will have little difficulty in finding a different, highly qualified attorney to ask your questions.
Who Will Actually Handle My Claim?
Ask who will be responsible for your claim from day to day. Will it be the attorney sitting across from you at the initial client consultation? Another lawyer? A paralegal? A claims assistant?
There is nothing unusual about lawyers working with support staff. Good paralegals are extremely valuable. The important thing is that you understand whose services you are getting in exchange for the very large percentage of your recovery that you will pay as a fee.
How Much of Your Practice Is Personal Injury Work?
An attorney may handle personal injury claims while also practicing in several other areas of law.
That is not necessarily a problem or a bad thing. But you are entitled to know how much of the attorney’s work is devoted to personal injury claims and whether the attorney regularly handles claims like yours.
You might ask:
What percentage of your practice involves personal injury work?
How often do you handle this type of claim?
Have you handled claims involving similar injuries or insurance issues?
The goal is not to make the attorney prove that your claim is identical to one handled before. It is to understand the attorney’s level of familiarity with the problems that may arise.
Are You Prepared to File a Lawsuit and Go to Trial?
Most personal injury claims resolve without a trial. Some resolve without a lawsuit ever being filed.
Even so, the insurance company’s evaluation of a claim will likely be affected by whether it believes the attorney is prepared to take the matter to trial when necessary.
Ask when the attorney last tried a personal injury claim before a jury. Trial frequency is not the only measure of an attorney’s ability, but the answer may help you understand the firm’s approach.
Ask about the firm's resources so that you know whether it can advance the funds necessary to properly prepare your claim.
Ask whether the attorney handles lawsuits personally, works with trial counsel, or refers claims elsewhere if litigation becomes necessary.
Other than the percentage of a recovery claimed as your fee, what may impact how much of the recovery I will keep?
Most personal injury attorneys agree to represent claimants in exchange for a percentage of the funds they recovery on behalf of their client. This arrangement is instead of paying the attorney's by the hour or in some other fashion.
Do not stop asking questions after merely confirming the initial percentage of YOUR recovery that you are being asked to surrender as the attorney's fee.
Ask whether the percentage changes at any time during the representation for any reason. As an example - some personal injury attorneys will demand a greater percentage of the funds recovered once a lawsuit is filed, formal discovery such as depositions is initiated or the trial starts.
You should asks questions until you are certain you understand the applicable structure before signing the fee agreement. It can be helpful to ask the attorney for a written explanation or simple chart to show how changes in percentages may impact the funds you receive after paying his or her fee.
How Will Expenses Be Handled?
Attorney fees and the expenses associated with preparing the claim are not the same thing.
Expenses may include filing fees, medical-record charges, expert fees, deposition costs, investigation expenses, and other costs involved in presenting the claim.
Ask:
Will the firm advance these expenses?
Will I owe expenses if there is no recovery?
Does the firm charge interest on funds advanced?
Are expenses deducted from my recovery before or after the attorney’s percentage is calculated?
Will you ask for my approval before incurring a major expense?
When the expenses are reimbursed before the attorneys fee is calculated, then the injured party receives a greater percentage of the total recovery to meet his or her needs.
It is more than an accounting detail. It has a real dollars impact.
Will You Help Resolve Medical Liens and Reimbursement Claims?
A settlement may not end with the insurance company issuing a check.
Health insurers, government benefit programs, medical providers, or other organizations may claim a right to repayment from the recovery. These are often described as liens, reimbursement claims, or subrogation claims.
Ask whether the attorney’s services include identifying and resolving those claims.
You should also ask whether the attorney will attempt to negotiate reductions and whether any additional fee will be charged for that work.
This can be an important part of determining what the you actually receives after the claim is resolved. As an example ... if there is a $25,000 medical lien resulting from your injuries and your personal injury attorney negotiates that down to $5,000 that $20,000 dollar difference goes directly to you to help with your recovery and post-injury needs. Conversely ... if these services are not included and there is a need, you may have difficulty paying an attorney's hourly rate to have her or him negotiate this particular issue on your behalf.
How Will You Keep Me Informed?
One of the most common sources of frustration in any attorney-client relationship is poor communication.
Ask how the firm provides updates. Will someone contact you regularly, or only when something significant happens? Can you communicate by telephone, email, text message, or through a client portal?
You should also ask how quickly the firm normally responds to client questions.
You don't need 24/7 access to your attorney. No attorney can, or should, promise to be available every minute. But the firm should be able to explain its communications practices so that your expectations are appropriate.
What Do You Expect From Me?
A good attorney-client relationship requires effort and cooperation in both directions.
Ask what the attorney will expect and need you to do. That may include identifying witnesses, reviewing transcripts, going over exhibits, providing documents, keeping the firm informed about changes, preserving evidence, responding to requests, and avoiding public statements that could damage the claim.
This question helps you understand how the attorney works and whether the expectations are realistic.
Are There Any Limits on the Representation?
Ask whether the firm will handle every part of the claim or whether there are services that are excluded.
For example, the agreement may not include an appeal, a dispute with a health insurer, an estate matter, a workers’ compensation claim, or another related legal issue.
You should not assume that every problem connected to the accident is automatically covered by the agreement.
Ask the attorney to identify any important limits or bits that are not included before you sign.
Why Should I Choose You?
This is a fair question. More than that ... it is a GREAT question.
You are giving an attorney the opportunity to earn a significant fee. The attorney should be able to explain what the firm offers without resorting to slogans, promises, or advertising.
"Top Dog" is a slogan. Not a promise."
Listen for a specific answer.
Does the attorney emphasize communication, preparation, trial experience, personal attention, efficiency, subject-matter knowledge, or some other meaningful difference?
You are not required to accept a vague answer simply because the person giving it is a lawyer.
You Are Allowed to Ask
Some injured people worry that asking detailed questions will make them appear difficult or distrustful.
It should not.
The personal injury attorney you select WILL earn a substantial fee for successfully handling your claim. It is reasonable to ask what the attorney will do, who will assist in doing it and how, how the fee will be calculated, and what responsibilities you will have.
You should also consider comparing attorneys and fee agreements before making your decision.
The attorney is not doing you a favor by allowing you to ask questions. Answering reasonable questions is part of competing for the opportunity to represent you.
You are choosing the attorney. The attorney is not choosing you. Ask as many questions as you think you need to ask in order to make an informed decision about who are going to trust to get the work you need to have done ... DONE!
General information—not legal advice. Paul’s Guide is not a law firm. This article provides general educational information and may not address every fact, exception, jurisdiction, or change in the law. Legal rights and deadlines vary based on the circumstances and applicable law. Reading this article, by itself, does not create an attorney-client relationship with Paul’s Guide or Paul Zimmerman. For advice about a specific claim, promptly consult a lawyer licensed in the appropriate jurisdiction.