News & opinion What Do I Need to Bring to an Initial Consultation With a Truck Accident Law Firm?

What Do I Need to Bring to an Initial Consultation With a Truck Accident Law Firm?

Legal Advice Trucker Road Sign for Crash / Accident Attorney

T

uck

ccidents

e often

mong the most c

t

st

ophic type of vehicle

ccidents

pe

son c

n expe

ience. If you

e

e inju

ed in

n

ccident

ith

negligent comme

ci

l t

uck d

ive

, you likely need help

ith medic

l expenses

nd

epl

cing you

vehicle. You m

y kno

th

t you’

e in need of

n <

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nd you m

y h

ve contempl

ted scheduling

n initi

l consult

tion

ith one. But

h

t

ill this consult

tion involve,

nd

h

t do you need to b

ing

ith you

hen you meet

ith

n

tto

ney?

e

d on to len

bout ho

to p

ep

e fo

you

initi

l consult

tion.

The Initi

l Consult

tion Expl

ined<

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n initi

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c

se

evie

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se

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tto

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ovide to p

ospective clients. It is

ch

nce fo

you to discuss the det

ils of you

c

se,

sk questions,

nd

eceive guid

nce

bout you

leg

l options. It is

lso

time fo

the

tto

ney to dete

mine if they c

n be of se

vice to you,

nd fo

you to decide if you

ish to

et

in the se

vices of this

tto

ney. M

ny lye

s p

ovide these initi

l consult

tions fo

f

ee—

nd they

o

k on <

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Befo

e You

ttend You

Initi

l Consult

tion<

h2>
Befo

e you

ttend you

initi

l consult

tion, you

ill

nt to be su

e you knoh

t type of

tto

ney you need. People

ho h

ve suffe

ed inju

ies in

t

uck

ccident need the expe

tise of

pe

son

l inju

y

tto

ney

ho speci

lizes in t

uck

ccidents. The

ight

tto

ney

ill

lso:
  • Be licensed to pctice l in you

    st

    te

    nd h

    ve

    n office close enough to you th

    t you c

    n meet

    ith them in pe

    son

    hen necessy du

    ing you

    c

    se.

  • H
    ve negoti

    tion expe

    ience. You

    ill

    nt to kno

    th

    t you

    tto

    ney h

    s been

    esponsible fo

    negoti

    ting settlements in the p

    st

    nd th

    t thei

    clients

    e

    e f

    i

    ly compens

    ted th

    ough these settlements.<

    li>

  • H
    ve t

    i

    l expe

    ience. Yes, it is t

    ue: the v

    st m

    jo

    ity of c

    ses neve

    m

    ke it to t

    i

    l. Ho

    eve

    , youtto

    ney should be comfo

    t

    ble

    ep

    esenting you in cou

    t if it becomes necessy.<

    li>

Once you find

n

tto

ney, be su

e to cl

ify

hethe

o

not the initi

l consult

tion is f

ee

hen you c

ll to schedule you

consult

tion to

void the su

p

ise of being billed fo

the time.

n initi

l consult

tion

ith

n

tto

ney is nothing to be ne

vous

bout, but you should p

ep

e fo

it. You

ill

nt to b

ing

pen

nd notep

d to t

ke notes

bout

h

t the

tto

ney tells you,

nd they

ill

nt to see

ny info

m

tion you h

ve

bout the c

se in o

de

to get

n idebout the

ccident

nd

ny compens

tion fohich you m

y be eligible.

Be su

e to sho

up to you

consult

tion on time. D

ess p

ofession

lly—this doesn’t necessily me

n you need to

e

suit, but you definitely

nt to let the

tto

ney kno

th

t you

e se

ious

bout becoming thei

client

nd you

c

se is se

ious, too. The exception to this

ule is if you

inju

ies

e so seve

e th

t the

tto

ney must conduct the consult

tion in you

hospit

l

oom o

t you

home

nd you

e un

ble to d

ess p

ofession

lly. In such

c

se, the

tto

ney

ill most

ssu

edly unde

st

nd.

B

ing You

Bills

nd Othe

Document

tion of Expenses

The v

lue of you

c

se depends on the medic

l

nd p

ope

ty d

m

ge expenses you h

ve incu

ed

s esult of the

ccident. He

e is

list of items you

ill nt to g

the

to sho

to the

tto

ney:

  • ll medic

    l bills you’ve

    eceived

    nd document

    tion f

    om eve

    y p

    ovide

    you h

    ve seen, including p

    medics, the eme

    gency

    oom, the hospit

    l, su

    gic

    l cente

    s, di

    gnostic cente

    s, p

    im

    y c

    e p

    ovide

    , speci

    lists, physic

    l the

    pists, psychologists,

    nd

    ny othe

    ce p

    ovide

    s

    ho t

    e

    ted you fo

    inju

    ies

    el

    ted to the

    ccident.<

    li>

  • ny document

    tion th

    t discusses you

    p

    ognosis o

    need fo

    futu

    e medic

    l t

    e

    tment.<

    li>

  • eceipts foeh

    bilit

    tion,

    d

    ptive, occessibility items, like heelch

    i

    oheelch

    i

    mps.<

    li>

  • n

    ccounting of time you’ve missed

    t

    o

    k due to you

    inju

    y, including time you’ve spent

    y f

    om

    o

    k fo

    medic

    l

    ppointments.

  • P
    y stubs sho

    ing you

    enings befo

    e the

    ccident

    nd p

    oof of

    ny benefits th

    t you used—such

    s v

    c

    tion o

    sick time—to de

    l

    ith you

    inju

    y.<

    li>

  • jou

    n

    l of the p

    in you’

    e endu

    ing,

    nd ho

    you

    inju

    ies h

    ve imp

    cted you

    qu

    lity of life

B

ing the Police

epo

t<

h2>
If you

nd the

tto

ney

g

ee to

o

k togethe

on you

c

se, the

tto

ney must not only p

ovide document

tion of

ll of the d

m

ges in you

c

se but they

lso need to p

ove th

t the othe

d

ive

s negligent.

ddition

lly, they

ill

ttempt to identify othe

potenti

lly li

ble p

ties in the c

se. The

e

e often multiple li

ble pties in

t

uck

ccident,

hich m

y include the comp

ny the t

uck d

iveo

ks fo

,

s

ell

s the t

uck d

ive

themselves,

nd sometimes othe

s.

hile

police

epo

t isn’t

bsolute p

oof of li

bility, the n

tive th

t the

esponding office

p

ovided c

n be

po

e

ful negoti

ting tool du

ing the settlement p

ocess. If you knohich l enfo

cement

gency investig

ted you

ccident, you c

n simply c

ll th

t

gency

nd

sk ho

to obt

in

copy of the police

epo

t. M

ny l

enfo

cement

gencies p

ovide

y to

equest

nd

eceive

police

epo

t online,

s

ell. Once you h

ve

eceived the

epo

t, you should

e

d the

epo

t fo

ccu

cy. If the

e e m

jo

f

ctu

l eo

s, you c

n cont

ct the investig

ting office

o

gency

nd

sk to co

ect the

epo

t o

if you c

n p

ovide info

m

tion fon

ddendum.

The info

m

tion th

t the

tto

ney needs to see f

om the police

epo

t

hen ev

lu

ting you

c

se includes:
  • The ex

    ct det

    ils of the incident, including the d

    te, the time of d

    y, the loc

    tion,

    nd the

    e

    thet the time of the

    ccident.

  • The n
    me

    nd cont

    ct info

    m

    tion of the

    esponding office

    .<

    li>

  • di

    g

    m

    nd desc

    iption of the

    ccident, b

    sed on the office

    ’s obse

    v

    tions

    nd st

    tements by the d

    ive

    s

    nd

    itnesses.<

    li>

  • The office
    ’s p

    elimin

    y

    ssessment of f

    ult, including

    ny cit

    tions they issued.

  • The n
    mes

    nd cont

    ct info

    m

    tion of

    ny

    itnesses to the

    ccident.

  • The n
    me of the t

    uck d

    ivend the comp

    ny they

    o

    k fo

    .<

    li>

  • Desc
    iptions of the vehicles

    nd insu

    nce info

    m

    tion fo

    ll p

    ties involved in the

    ccident.<

    li>

B

ing You

Photos F

om the

ccident Scene

Photos

e po

e

ful pieces of evidence. If you took photos

t the

ccident scene o

someone took them fo

you, b

ing those to the initi

l consult

tion. Some photos th

t could help the

tto

ney to ev

lu

te you

c

se include:

  • Im
    ges sho

    ing

    h

    t the

    e

    the

    nd the t

    ffic

    e

    e like

    t the time of youccident<

    li>

  • Photos of the d
    m

    ge to you

    c<

    li>

  • Photos of skid m

    ks, b

    oken c pts o

    othe

    items sho

    ing d

    m

    ge

  • Im
    ges of

    ny visible inju

    ies th

    t you h

    ve<

    li>

Othe

Items<

h2>
The

e e sevel othe

items th

t you should b

ing to you

consult

tion, if you h

ve them

v

il

ble. These include:

  • Info
    m

    tion f

    om

    ny insu

    nce comp

    ny th

    t h

    s cont

    cted you, including the n

    me

    nd phone numbe

    of the individu

    l

    ho c

    lled you,

    hen the conve

    s

    tion occued,

    nd

    h

    t you discussed. You should

    lso b

    ing em

    ils o

    lette

    s you’ve

    eceived f

    om

    ny insu

    nce comp

    ny

    bout the

    ccident.<

    li>

  • copy of the note you

    docto

    p

    ovided fo

    you

    employe

    if you

    e

    e told th

    t you shouldn’t do ce

    t

    in t

    sks upon

    etu

    ning to

    o

    k due to you

    inju

    ies.<

    li>

  • You
    o

    n insu

    nce info

    m

    tion

    nd

    copy of you

    policies.<

    li>

B

ing You

Questions

The initi

l consult

tion is not only

time fo

the

tto

ney to le

n

bout the c

se, but

lso fo

you to le

n

bout the

tto

ney

nd dete

mine if they e the leg

l p

ofession

l you

ish to

o

k

ith. Bec

use time is usu

lly limited in

consult

tion, it is

good ide

to

ite do

n

ny questions you h

ve in

dv

nce.

hile othe

questions

ill likely come up du

ing you

conve

s

tion, he

e e some ex

mple questions you should conside

sking:

  • Ho
    long do I h

    ve to file my c

    se (

    h

    t is the <

    h

    ef="https:

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  • ho is

    esponsible fo

    compens

    ting me fo

    my inju

    ies?

  • h

    t d

    m

    ges might I

    ecove

    ?

  • h

    t is the likelihood th

    t my c

    se

    ill settle?<

    li>

  • h

    t is the v

    lue of my c

    se?

  • Ho
    long h

    ve you p

    cticed pe

    son

    l inju

    y l?<

    li>

  • Ho
    much expe

    ience do you h

    ve

    ith t

    uck

    ccident c

    ses? Ho

    m

    ny t

    uck

    ccident c

    ses h

    ve you h

    ndled,

    nd ho

    m

    ny h

    ve you settled?

  • Ho
    much expe

    ience do you h

    ve

    ith h

    ndling c

    ses in

    hich the victim h

    d inju

    ies like mine?<

    li>

  • e you comfo

    t

    ble

    ith the st

    te

    nd fedel

    egul

    tions involved in the t

    ucking indust

    y? e you e of the evidence you need to collect f

    om the t

    ucking comp

    ny, such

    s <

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    lcohol testing<>,

    nd m

    inten

    nce

    eco

    ds,

    nd ho

    to obt

    in th

    t info

    m

    tion?

  • Ho
    comfo

    t

    ble e you

    ith negoti

    ting

    ith co

    pote l fi

    ms th

    t t

    ucking comp

    nies often keep on thei

    p

    y

    olls?

  • e you comfo

    t

    ble

    ith looking foddition

    l potenti

    lly li

    ble p

    ties, such

    s the t

    ucking comp

    ny, the b

    oke

    o

    shippe

    , o m

    nuf

    ctu

    e

    of defective pts?<

    li>

  • Ho
    expe

    ienced is you

    leg

    l te

    m

    t conducting t

    uck

    ccident investig

    tions? Do you h

    ve the

    esou

    ces to p

    ope

    ly investig

    te? Do you h

    ve

    ccess to expe

    ts such

    s medic

    l p

    ofession

    ls

    nd

    ccident

    econst

    uction expe

    ts?<

    li>

  • Do you pl
    n to pu

    sue

    n

    ccident cl

    im

    ith the insu

    nce comp

    nies of

    ll li

    ble pties fi

    st? If those insu

    nce comp

    nies

    efuse to offe

    f

    i

    settlement,

    e you comfo

    t

    ble

    ith

    ep

    esenting me in cou

    t?

  • h

    t

    e the st

    engths

    nd

    e

    knesses of my c

    se?<

    li>

  • Ho
    does you

    fi

    m h

    ndle communic

    tion

    ith clients?

    ho is my point of cont

    ct?

  • e you the only

    tto

    ney I

    ill be

    o

    king

    ith?

  • Ho
    m

    ny clients do you

    ep

    esent simult

    neously?<

    li>

  • ill I be info

    med of

    ll ne

    developments in my c

    se? Ho

    often

    ill I be upd

    ted?

  • Ho
    e clients billed fo

    you

    se

    vices

    nd

    h

    t e the p

    yment options th

    t e

    v

    il

    ble to me?

  • C
    n you p

    ovide me

    ith

    efe

    ences f

    om p

    st clients?<

    li>

m I Oblig

ted to Hi

e

n

tto

ney

ften Initi

l Consult

tion? Is the

tto

ney Oblig

ted to

ep

esent Me?

You

e unde

no oblig

tion to hi

e

n

tto

ney

ften initi

l consult

tion,

nd it is not unusu

l fo

people to spe

k

ith t

o o

mo

e

tto

neys befo

e m

king

decision

bout

ho they

ould like to hi

e to

o

k on thei

c

se. Some

e

sons you m

y decide not to

o

k

ith the

tto

ney

ho p

ovided you

ith the consult

tion include:

  • He o
    she doesn’t speci

    lize in the type of

    ccident you’ve h

    d.

  • You

    nt

    n

    tto

    ney

    ith mo

    e expe

    ience

    ith t

    uck

    ccident c

    ses.

  • You

    tto

    ney is only

    illing to

    o

    k on

    settlement, but doesn’t nt to

    ep

    esent you

    c

    se in cou

    t.

  • You feel th
    t you e o

    ed mo

    e in d

    m

    ges th

    n the

    tto

    ney s

    ys you

    c

    se is

    o

    th.<

    li>

  • The
    tto

    ney

    ep

    esents m

    ny clients

    t once

    nd you’

    e

    fid you

    c

    se

    on’t get the pe

    son

    l

    ttention th

    t it needs.

Like

ise, the

tto

ney is not oblig

ted to t

ke you

c

se. Ple

se do not t

ke it pe

son

lly if the

tto

ney tells you th

t they c

n’t p

ovide the se

vices you need. The

e

e m

ny

e

sons fo

this, including:

  • The
    tto

    ney doesn’t h

    ve the p

    ope

    expe

    tise to

    ep

    esent you.

  • They don’t feel th
    t you

    ill be

    ble to p

    ove th

    t the othe

    p

    ty o

    es you d

    m

    ges b

    sed on the evidence you h

    ve.<

    li>

  • Thei
    c

    selo

    d is too full to give you

    c

    se the

    ttention it needs.

If you

nd the

tto

ney do decide to

o

k togethe

, they

ill likely give you documents to sign. Be su

e to

e

d these documents c

efully

nd m

ke su

e you unde

st

nd them fully befo

e you sign. Feel f

ee to

sk the

tto

ney questions

bout the documents—they should be

illing to

ns

e

them,

nd

ny othe

questions you h

ve du

ing you

c

se.

ddition

lly, you should

sk the

tto

ney to give you

n ide

bout the next steps in you

c

se. They m

y need you to p

ovide

ddition

l documents

nd should let you knobout the st

tute of limit

tions fo

filing you

c

se if you do need to go to cou

t,

nd

ll othe

m

nd

to

y de

dlines th

t you

ill be

equi

ed to meet

long the y. If you o loved one could benefit f

om scheduling

consult

tion cont

ct the skilled

nd comp

ssion

te ong>Ste

t J. Guss

tto

ney

t L<

st

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