You're hurt in an accident and you've been shrewd enough to hire an experienced lawyer to represent you and maximize your economic and physical recovery. That's all you need to do right? Nope your ability to keep track of and obtain information is vital to your attorney maximizing the value of your case.
Why is that? Because your attorney isn't living your life, scheduling your doctor and therapy appointments and communicating with H.R. about missing time from work. Even the most conscientous and experienced lawyer can't be intimately acquainted with the minute details of how a crash or other personal injury effects you.
That is why we have five suggestions for you in order to assist your lawyer and his or her staff in compiling and understanding information about your case.
1). Keep a calendar and share it with your lawyer. Did you work today, if not, jot it down. Did you have a doctor's appointment, if so with whom and what were your physical complaints and what did you understand the doctor to say. Did you miss your daughter's soccer game because of pain or limitations, make a note, you may not remember it in six months but it is a concrete example of how your life was changed due to your personal injury.
2). If you are missing time from work remember you will need a doctor's excuse in order to make a successful claim for the time or money lost. Also, if you cleared the time off with your boss or H.R., make sure you note to whom you spoke, when and what was said. Lost wages are often fought over in personal injury litigation and that more documentation you have the better.
3). If you have pictures from the accident scene or of the vehicles or of you lying in the hospital with a broken leg, make sure your lawyer gets them and understands what you think they depict.
4). See if your healthcare providers have a mechanism for you to obtain full copies of your records and bills. When your lawyer has to hunt them down this produces significant delays and costs you money out of your settlement.
5). When your lawyer offers an opinion concerning the settlement value of your case make sure you understand why they have reached their conclusion. Often lawyers are working with incomplete or inaccurate information. It is important for the client and lawyer to be on the same page to maximize the settlement and your satisfaction.
