Personal injuries, either accidental or due to negligence, can create a slew of unnecessary stress in the lives of all those involved. Often, people can feel overwhelmed with all the things they now have to take on: documenting the accident, following through on medical referrals, going through the motions with physical therapy, and so on. Personal injury attorneys in Portland can help sort through the legal facets of the experience and are well-versed in all things relative to how a wrongful death or personal injury case will look in court. This can help prepare you for the experience of filing a personal injury case with a Portland Attorney.
Below are five common questions that are asked of a personal injury attorney so you will know a bit more about what to expect with your case.
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How Long Will My Case Take?
There is really no certain way of knowing how long a case will take. There are several factors that contribute to the answer, and for the duration component, a personal injury attorney won’t know until you’re actually on the mend. That is, until you’re at a better place in relation to the injury and the damages have been addressed, there is no concrete answer that would satisfy the question. Once you have been given a clean bill of health from a medical professional, or if filing a lawsuit is required, then an attorney will be able to calculate a better answer, but some cases can be as short as seven or eight months, while some stretch on for years and can be drawn out for two, three, even five years or longer.
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What Sort of Compensation Will I Be Able to Get From My Case?
This is an extremely common question and could be considered the most common question related to personal injury suits. In the initial phases of opening and processing your case, the honest answer is that your personal injury attorney doesn’t know. Each individual case is in its own way unique, although the answer is dependent on a few factors.
The first part of this is the nature of the accident, the extent of the injuries sustained, and then the duration of the injuries and damage. That is, how long until you felt like you could do things again? How much time did you lose at work due to the nature and extent of your injuries? These are some things that will need to be addressed and taken into consideration when putting forth a personal injury case.
Some of these questions are unanswerable until later in the process: a point at which some time has passed and a personal injury attorney is able to take a good look at how things have (or have not) progressed over time. If an attorney begins giving numbers and making promises, you should reconsider working with this individual. It really is not possible to give a definitive answer to this question.
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Why Should I Use My Own Auto or Health Insurance When the Other Driver Is at Fault?
Since you pay for your insurance benefits, you’re the one who will receive the benefits. This means you can receive both the benefits of the insurance you pay for and that which the person at fault for your injuries pays for.
Sometimes the concern is that if you use your own insurance, the premiums for your insurance will increase, but if you aren’t liable for the injury, then this is rarely the case. There are legal statutes in place to prevent insurance companies from taking advantage of a situation such as a personal injury case and raising the rates on an injured individual, particularly if you did not cause the accident. An experienced personal injury attorney in Portland should be able to explain this in greater detail to you.
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Can You Add Your Fees to the Settlement?
In general, the answer is no, but there are a handful of exceptions, such as nursing home abuse cases or police misconduct cases, just to name a couple. As outlined below, the most common way for personal injury attorneys to get paid is via a contingency fee, which usually starts at about one-third of the settlement awarded.
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How Will the Attorney Get Paid?
Depending on where you live, there are particular rules and regulations based on your jurisdiction. This means that in some places, injury victims are allowed to add a claim for legal fees. In other places, it’s prohibited. At the same time, the most common way of paying a personal injury attorney is via a contingency fee. This fee is configured as a percentage of the settlement recovered at the culmination of the case. The fee will differ from law firm to law firm, but it’s important to keep in mind that a discounted fee usually is reflected in a discounted service. This is to say that you often get what you pay for, and if you’re seeking a higher settlement, it is imperative that you have solid legal representation.
Additionally, if the insurance company attempts to undercut the case and undermines your desired settlement, there needs to be an attorney willing to do the legwork to make sure you are appropriately compensated for the duress of your injuries. The best thing you can do to make sure that you get the settlement you deserve is to find the right attorney for you. Again, don’t base your attorney selection on the lowest fees. Find someone willing to work hard and with whom you have a solid understanding and clear communication.
If you have been injured and are looking to secure a personal injury attorney in Portland, look no further. Call Warren Allen LLP and discover how we can help you receive the settlement you deserve.