When you are injured in an accident that someone else caused, you have the right to file a claim against the responsible party. In personal injury cases, victims are entitled to receive compensation for their medical expenses and bills, their pain and suffering, their loss of income, and more. It’s important if you are injured you understand your rights and options.
Below is a step-by-step explanation of what to expect when you hire Reiner, Slaughter , and Frankel as your personal injury lawyers in Eureka, California.
Your First Contact with Our Law Firm
When you call Reiner, Slaughter , and Frankel’s office, you will speak with us about your accident. We will want to know what happened, and how you were affected. The purpose of this conversation is to get a better understanding of the incident, the extent of your injuries, and how the accident has impacted your life. We will take down your information and provide it to one of our attorneys. .
Our Attorney Contacts You
Once we have all your information, one of our lawyers will contact you. When you speak with us, it is important that you are completely honest about what happened, how you’re feeling, and any other information you may have that might affect your case. We need as much information as is possible to give you the best advice about how to proceed.
You can meet with one of our attorneys either via a phone call, an office visit or a Zoom call.
An Initial Assessment is Made
After meeting with you, our attorney will do a comprehensive assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your case. The more information we have about your accident, injuries, and losses, the better prepared we are to understand your case..
If we decide to take on your case, we will:
- Send retention paperwork for you to sign.
- Send you all needed releases to sign so we can obtain records on your behalf..
- Begin the process of collecting evidence that will assist with evaluating the liability and damages of the case.
- Send letters of representation to the insurance carrier for the the responsible party, if known, advising them that we are your lawyers
- Conduct a full investigation of the accident and your injuries;
Before we can advise you on how best to proceed,, we need to fully understand what happened and understand the full nature of your damages. This process takes time.
We never want to short change our clients. By doing a thorough evaluation of each case, we make sure we aren’t leaving anything out from your legal claim. While we understand every client wants their case to resolve as quickly as possible, it is generally the case that the more significant the injury, the longer this process takes. It is important the we take the time to fully understand the case prior to discussing settlements or pursuing legal action becauseOnce a case has been legally resolved, either through settlement or trial, there is no way to go back and seek additional damages even if those additional damages are legitimate.
We Send a Demand Package to the Parties at Fault
It is always our intention to attempt to resolve our client’s cases as efficiently as possible. When it is appropriate for us to do so, we attempt to resolve a case through pre-filing settlement. Typically, the way this is done is by sending a demand package to the insurance company that is representing the at-fault party.
The demand package is a letter that outlines your injuries, explains why the party is at fault, how the injuries have affected your life, and attempts to resolve the case at a fair value settlement. A demand package will typically contain evidence supporting the demand such as medical records, proof of lost wages, and photographs.
If the settlement is accepted your case will resolve without having to go through a lengthy legal process. If the settlement is not accepted, we will file a lawsuit on your behalf and prepare to go to trial.
