Herb: If you are injured, don’t delay in getting medical treatment. And be careful what and who you talk to about the accident. Beware of facebook and any postings. The insurance company and their lawyers can get them, if they want to. They could misconstrue a post or photo and blow it out of proportion.
If you can, keep a journal. There are plusses and minuses to that, but if you keep a journal, that can help. Especially in a larger case when you’re trying to show the daily activities that your client could not do or the problems they’re having.
Example, if you were in a lot of pain at 2am and had to get up to take a pain pill or ice your injury, write that down. Document it. So when you’re at trial and you’re going through the doctor’s notes and it says client came in today complaining of back pain and you can also see the notation in the journal that you woke up at 2 am the night before with sever back pain…. It supports that claim, it shows that it was not just something you were telling the doctor! It helps out. So sometimes keeping a journal, depending on the case and the type of injury, may help.
What steps are recommended to help your client win their claim?
Herb: The first thing is, you don’t want to give your client unreasonable expectations in the beginning as to what their case is worth and may be worth. The client needs to get treatment, they need to see their doctors, and they need to be consistent. If they’re hurt, I tell my clients to get treatment. If you’re not hurt, don’t. Don’t waste our time or the doctor’s time. If you’re hurt, make sure you see a medical provider. If you have health insurance, get in to see your family doctor right away!
