Personal injury lawyers are legal professionals who focus only on cases involving personal injury. You may live in Woodstock, IL or Miami FL. If you are in a car accident or slip-and-fall on someone else’s property, your best chance at receiving compensation for your damages is a personal injury lawyer and not a generalist. They are specialists in this area of the law.
Personal Injury Lawyers: Initial Role
If you contact a personal injury lawyer in Woodstock, such as Robert T. Eden’s, you are usually seeking information on his or her services. This is the first step of your journey back to becoming whole. Personal injury lawyers use this initial contact to establish the context. Their initial role is to find out as much about the characteristics and circumstances of your situation. Not only will they ask for personal information e.g. name, address, email, phone(s), age, gender, etc., they will want to know the following:
- Type of personal injury: Does it involve a car accident, slip-and-fall or dog bite? Was it the result of medical malpractice or was it a work-related injury? Such information is important in establishing the regulations and rules of defense, types of evidence required, etc.
- The location: At home, on a busy highway, private property, public property, sidewalk, hospital clinic, etc.,
- Circumstances
- Who was involved? Was there more than one party?
- What physical damages resulted from the personal injury incident?
- Were there any property damages?
Once the picture is clear, the questions you will be asked are more specific to the type of personal injury.
Filing a Claim
Once the lawyer decides to accept your case, he or she will arrange for an in depth interview. He, she and a staff or team of personal injury lawyers and staff can then work to prepare the documents required for filing. It is up to the lawyer to ensure they gather and prepare the right documentation. If the incident occurred in Woodstock, they will travel there to assess the situation, location and/or related environment, parties and conditions.
Once the information is gathered, it is compiled into proper legal documents ready for filing. The attorneys will make sure you have signed the right documents in the right spots. They will clarify points for you. They will also make sure to file the required documents within the period allotted for this action known as the Statute of Limitations. Medical records, police reports, witness reports and other related items will comprise material necessary to file and to prepare a case proving negligence.
Personal Injury Lawyers, Communication and You
A personal injury lawyer plays a major role in preparing and filing your case. Yet, while this is a significant component of your case, it is not his or her only role to play. Communication between you and your lawyer is protected under the law. While law and personal injury cases may focus on the ability of your lawyer to play the role of champion in Woodstock court, this is not the only time when your lawyer needs to be clear. If there is a failure to communicate clearly from the very beginning the methods used and why, you may have the wrong lawyer. You need to work with personal injury lawyers that not only hear what you have to say about your situation, but also ones that really listen to what you have to say.
