What to Expect During Your Initial Consultation With a Personal Injury Attorney

A personal injury consultation is an opportunity to provide an attorney with information about your accident and injuries. The lawyer will use your evidence to determine if your claim has merit and advise you on how to proceed. The attorney will also discuss the legal process and answer your questions. It is a good idea to write down your questions before your appointment.

What to Bring

Having essential documents ready when meeting with an accident attorney at Batrice Law Firm can make for a more efficient, more productive initial consultation. Helpful documents include the police accident report, insurance information, including any communication you have already received from an insurance company, medical records, which should include written documentation of your injuries and treatment, as well as bills and digital images, if available, and a list of all your current expenses related to your injury. Other important documents to bring are pay stubs or other income verification to prove the extent of your financial losses and names and contact information for witnesses. The lawyer will also want to examine your existing insurance policies – health, automobile, personal injury protection (PIP), and medical payments – to determine policy limits that could be relevant for calculating damages. Attorneys typically work on a contingency basis and will discuss their fees at the consultation. However, some attorneys may charge hourly for investigative or other case preparation tasks.

What to Expect

The initial consultation allows you to share your personal injury story with an attorney and ask questions. Your car accident attorney, Austin, TX will want to understand the details of your accident and injuries so they can advise you on how best to proceed in recouping damages. The attorney will likely start by asking basic “who, what, when” questions to gain a better understanding of the accident. Then, they will move on to questions about your medical history and how the accident and injuries have affected you. This includes your pain level, future financial and non-financial losses, and how the accident has impacted your quality of life. The attorney will also ask about your insurance coverage, including health, auto, and homeowner policies. You should bring copies of all insurance documents. You will also be asked whether you have spoken with any insurance company representatives. If you have, the attorney may advise against providing a recorded statement.

Questions to Ask

During your initial consultation, the attorney will ask you various questions. They will want to know how the accident happened, your medical treatments, and how it affected your life. They will also review any information or documentation you have gathered, such as the police report, witness statements, and insurance policy. You must bring any questions to the consultation and write them down beforehand. Your lawyer will likely be able to answer most of your questions, but they may have yet to have the answers to all of them. For example, they may need to estimate how long your case will take at this point in the process. However, they should be able to inform you about what kind of damages you may be entitled to receive. They should also explain how they will bill you for their services.

Conclusions

Toward the end of your meeting, your injury attorney will explain the legal process and advise you how to proceed. They will also tell you if your case has any potential weak points, such as negligence or preexisting injuries, and recommend ways to strengthen it. It’s essential to be open and frank during this conversation. Your attorney can only advise you based on facts you disclose, so withholding information could negatively impact your claim. Your lawyer will also want to hear a detailed account of what happened and how it has impacted your life. This will help them determine if your case has any merit. They will also assess your believability, which can impact how well you do in future scenarios, like giving a deposition. This is another reason why bringing medical reports and bills is so important. They will allow your injury lawyer to calculate your financial burden.