One thing I’m frequently asked is how does a person go about selecting an attorney for a brain injury case?
Well, a brain injury case is very different from any other type of personal injury case. Because we’re not talking about a broken leg, or a fractured hip. We’re talking about an injury that affects who you are. It affects what you can do, it affects your emotions, your concentration, memory. It can have physical ramifications, and it can also have emotional ramification such as depression, or anxiety.
So choosing a brain injury attorney is much more involved because of the repercussions that it may have on your life.
What I’d like to do today is discuss some of the questions that need to be asked when interviewing an attorney for your brain injury case.
First you need to know how experienced that lawyer is in handling brain injury cases. Is this their first case involving traumatic brain injury? Or have they handled many cases in this field?
How successful have they been in handling brain injury cases? Have they taken verdicts in cases, or do they end up settling most cases?
It’s important to know because insurance companies look at attorneys and see whether or not they’re willing to go the distance, or whether they’re just going to throw their bag down and run.
It’s important to know if your attorney is a member of a brain injury association to ascertain whether or not they have interacted with people with a traumatic brain injury, and whether they understand how these injuries affect day to day functions.
You need to find out if your attorney will handle the case themselves. It’s not enough to assign the case to an associate or a paralegal. Your attorney must be involved at all times in representing you.
It’s also important to look in your attorneys office to see if they have books and textbooks on traumatic brain injury, to see if they are keeping up with the literature.
See if they have attended any seminars on traumatic brain injury litigation, or even if they have taught these seminars.
These are all important considerations in determining whether or not that attorney sitting in front of you is right for your brain injury case.
Further reading: About De Caro & Kaplen, LLP