What a Personal Injury Law Firm Will (and Won’t) Do for You
When you are injured in an accident, a personal injury law firm can be a tremendous help in assisting you with receiving the compensation you deserve. When you work with an organization that concentrates in this field of the law, you have a dedicated team that is looking out for your interests and will devote their energies and all available and applicable resources to your case.
A law firm specializing in personal injuries will provide many services. These include:
- Protecting your rights and interests. The law firms hired by insurance companies are interested only in serving the interests of their clients, not yours. As such, they will seek any advantage they can. Your personal injury attorney stands up for you, blocks trickery from the defendant’s team, and makes sure no one is taking advantage of you or your situation.
- Making sure all paperwork and needed information is gathered, filled out, and filed on time. The legal system seems to feed on paperwork and deadlines. Attorneys have a much better grasp than the average layperson on what needs to be done, how to do it, and when to do it.
- Negotiating with bill collectors. If your medical or other bills are mounting while you are waiting for a settlement or decision on your case, your personal injury law firm may be able to negotiate with bill collectors and work out an acceptable payment abeyance until your case is settled.
- Helping you with Social Security or Workers’ Compensation disability claims. If you have filed for Social Security or Workers’ Compensation benefits and been denied, a personal injury lawyer can represent you during the appeals process.
- Representing your interests and negotiating with the insurance company. During the course of your case, the insurance company may want to settle. Your attorney will let you know if the offer is fair and, if necessary, will negotiate on your behalf to make sure you receive the amount to which you are entitled.
- Helping you understand liability laws and their limitations. The laws governing liability issues are complex and difficult to understand, and there are many conditions and caveats in play. Your attorney will explain the laws that affect your case and what they mean to you.
- Freeing you to take care of yourself, your family, and your personal affairs. Legal cases can take considerable amounts of time and effort. An attorney handles the bulk of the work, making sure that everything is done and turned in when it should be while passing along important information to you. This allows you to take care of your day-to-day issues with minimal worries.
However, there are some things an attorney or a law firm will not do:
- Making key decisions for you. There are certain decisions that must be made by you alone. Your attorney can offer advice and make suggestions and recommendations, but ultimately cannot make these decisions for you.
- Taking care of those things that are your responsibility. Although an attorney will handle the vast majority of the work, you may still be required to take care of a few things on your own. These may include filling out necessary forms and returning them on time, gathering names and contact information for certain individuals, and following through on other issues.
- Filing a frivolous lawsuit. Frivolous lawsuits clog the courts and waste everyone’s time. At the end of your initial consultation with an attorney, he or she will let you know whether or not your case should move forward. A reputable personal injury law firm does not want to waste time and money pursuing something that will not bear fruit.