This is the second installment of our 2 part blog on what you should ask your personal injury lawyer if you live in DC or Maryland.
6. What is my role in the claims process?
You have one job and one job only throughout the legal process–focus on your health and heal. We’ll take care of the rest. Besides being of critical importance for your well-being, making sure to attend all of your doctor’s appointments and showing up for all of your physical therapy sessions can only make our job as your attorney easier. Why? Because insurance companies study your medical records and will use missed appointments against you, which can jeopardize the success of your claim. They also look for gaps in treatment and will reduce their settlement offers if the gaps last for weeks during the treatment process.
Typically, we will ask our clients to review documents and check them for factual accuracy before signing. We do ask clients to assist in collecting the documents necessary to present a lost wage claim. When we represent you, our job is to take care of the claim processing details. Why? It is our goal to remove most – if not all of the aggravation that comes with the pursuit of a claim in an adversarial system – from “your plate” so to speak, onto our plate.
7. Can I post on social media?
While we can’t force you to stay off social media while your claim is being resolved, we HIGHLY recommend not posting anything–especially photos & videos –to Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media platform you enjoy using. We know it’s a big ask since social media is such a big part of people’s lives but trust us when we tell you that one seemingly innocent post or photo can harm your claim. How?
The bottom line is insurance companies do not want to offer a fair settlement. They regularly make lowball offers, hoping that people will not know what their case is worth, and settle for whatever paltry sum is offered. Not only that, but insurance companies actually employ teams of people to comb through claimants’ social media to try and find a reason to justify a low payout.
For example, if your arm was injured in a car accident and you’re required to wear a sling and undergo regular physical therapy to get back to work, but you or a friend takes a photo where you might have taken the sling off even for a moment–that’s all it takes for the insurance company to pounce and justify their argument that you weren’t as badly injured as we claim you were. If a video of physical activities appears on a client’s Facebook page, aside from medically approved exercises, the claim could suffer. So, as difficult as it may be to refrain from social media, it can only help your case to do so.
8. Who will be working on my claim?
We can guarantee you’ll get a Lapidus–either Larry or Michael, both excellent, highly-qualified personal injury attorneys. Larry, who has been practicing law for four decades, is a highly decorated attorney who has received numerous awards throughout his career.
Michael has been practicing law for 15 years and has been trained specifically in the details of the laws and procedures for pursuing personal injury claims. But what he & Michael are most proud of is their respective reputation for being friendly, compassionate, and attentive attorneys who are genuinely concerned for the physical/medical recovery and financial well-being of all of their clients.
In addition, Larry & Michael are zealous advocates and will work tenaciously to get their clients fair and reasonable settlements and verdicts.
The firm’s Senior Attorney has also been listed as one of the Top Attorneys in Maryland since 2009 and regularly featured in The Washingtonian as one of the Metro area’s Top Personal Injury lawyers for his work with negligence cases. Baltimore Magazine also recognized him in its selection of Top Attorneys In Maryland. In an article about the best lawyers in the DC metro area titled “The Stars of the Bar,” the Washingtonian magazine listed Mr. Lapidus among those lawyers as “having the best legal minds” in the area.
You should know and feel comfortable asking, if your lawyer feels confident about the chances you both have at achieving a positive outcome. When asking a question like this, however, you want to hear an honest response. False bravado is not going to win your case. You simply want the truth. Your case may actually be a slam dunk, and in that case, the attorney has every right to exude confidence. But most lawyers won’t simply say: “Nothing to worry about. We’re guaranteed a win here.” In fact, that’s a huge red flag.
In reality, a good attorney–even if he or she is noticeably confident in your chances–will NEVER guarantee a victory or a settlement. It’s simply bad ethics because no lawyer can guarantee a specific outcome. Much depends on how fair adjusters, trial judges, and juries might be. Other factors can vary outcomes as well, such as the specifics of the evidence produced in any given case. The Lapidus Law Firm will never promise any client a cash settlement, even if we are confident that our efforts will produce that result. Being honest and ethical is a guarantee we can always make.
9. How long do you think it will take to resolve my claim?
This is a common question and an understandable one. No one wants to be involved in months (or years) of ongoing litigation. Plus, if the personal injury you sustained keeps you out of work or results in costly medical expenses, it’s entirely fair for you to want an idea of when you might expect a resolution. However, the truth is it all depends on your case, if litigation is necessary and how fast the courts can process cases after the unprecedented backlog caused by the Pandemic.
Some claims are very straightforward resolve quickly. Others are complicated and could take longer. Most wind up somewhere in the middle.
Rest assured, our attorneys will keep you in the loop and give you an honest estimate of the time it might take to resolve your claim.
Finding Your Personal Injury Law Firm
If you or a loved one has suffered a personal injury due to someone else’s negligence, call The Lapidus Law Firm at (202) 785-5111 or (301) 852-7500 to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation. We’re ready to answer any and all questions you may have (including the ones on this list if you’d like more detail!), and you can feel confident knowing we’ll give you straight, honest answers.