What Should I Expect at My Initial Personal Injury Consultation?
We understand that suffering from a personal injury is a traumatic experience. In addition to experiencing physical and/or emotional shock, you also have to begin thinking about the next steps to take in order to get your life back in order. Meeting with an experienced New York personal injury attorney is the best thing you can do in order to collect all the damages that you are owed—but for some people, meeting with your personal injury lawyer for the first time can be a nerve-wracking ordeal. You may not know what to expect and, therefore, be unsure of how to prepare for your initial consultation. If you find that this rings true for you, the following information may help.
What is the Initial Consultation For?
The initial consultation does not need to be an intimidating ordeal. Keep in mind that the purpose of this meeting is to give you the opportunity to learn about the attorney and see if they are someone you would like representing you. Additionally, the consultation is the attorney’s chance to assess your case and determine your chances of winning. You should not be feeling any unnecessary pressure at this point.
Consultations generally last anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. You should come prepared to answer questions about your accident, injury, medical treatments, and any other relevant events. Because it may be difficult for you to remember all this information off the top of your head, you may want to jot everything down and bring your notes with you. It may also help to discuss your accident and/or injury with a trusted friend or family member in order to clarify your memory.
What Should I Bring With Me?
Documentation is key to building up your case. Make sure you collect as much of the following as possible and bring it with you to your consultation:
Accident reports- Citations or tickets
- Insurance information
- Medical records
- Prescription documents
- Photographs of the accident and your injuries, if any exist
- Receipts for any injury-related expenses
If you have any other legal documents or correspondence from involved parties, including insurance companies, be sure to bring those with you too. In addition to all this, remember to bring your questions! There are no wrong or stupid questions you can ask here, so write down any of your concerns and bring them with you.
What Should I Expect to Pay for My Personal Injury Case?
The lawyer will start discussing attorney fees with you after you two have discussed your case. In most cases (but not all), lawyers will take on personal injury claims on contingency bases. This means that they will not charge you by the hour, but will collect a fixed percentage of your settlement if you win your case. You will not need to pay your lawyer if you lose. However, the specifics of your case will be best discussed between you and your lawyer, as no two cases are the same.
Seeking Legal Assistance
We know that dealing with personal injury is hard. We are here to make it as easy as possible as we can for you. If you or a loved one have recently been suffering personal injury due to any circumstance, you have the right to seek legal help and compensation from a New York personal injury lawyer. Contact the law firm of Gattuso & Ciottoli, PLLC any time day or night at (315) 314-8000 to schedule a free consultation drawing on over 50 years of combined legal experience. We are located in Syracuse but serve the general Central New York area, including Syracuse, Watertown, Binghamton, Camillus, Liverpool, Cortland, Auburn, and North Syracuse.