What Does A Free Consultation Entail?
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[Below is a transcription of the podcast]
This is Ann Margaret Perkins with Perkins Law Firm and today’s podcast is going to give you a peek into what happens at a free consultation with me.
You may see on our website that we offer free consultations. All you have to do is fill out a contact form, give us a phone call, tell us you want a free consultation, and you can come into our office and meet with me for no charge. What you can expect at that appointment is to meet with me, not with not with someone else in my office. I want to sit down with you and spend some time with you in order to find out as much as I can about your case and answer any questions that you have. So typically I ask people if it’s a road wreck case, to bring or send the police report to us before that consultation so that I can look through it and see if there’s anything more I need before we meet. I’ll probably ask you to bring car insurance information that may apply and any other evidence you have, such as photographs, or any other information you have about the wreck. If it’s any other kind of case, I’m going to ask you to bring any reports that were made, like incident reports, and any other evidence you have. So hopefully I’m going to get the police report in if it’s a wreck or an incident report if it’s something else and be able to look through that before our meeting so I have a little bit of background about your case. Then I’m probably going to have some additional questions for you about the event because no report captures all of that in detail.
We’ll talk about the event and then I will ask you to tell me about the problems that you relate to that event. We’ll go through what medical treatment you’ve had; what medical treatment you anticipate you will have; what medical expenses you have; and what lost wages you have. We’ll talk about all the ways that your injury affects you. And then I’m going to talk to you about the potential sources of recovery that might be available to you. That would include insurance and may include payment by the individual or company. If you’re in a road wreck and your car was damaged and hasn’t been paid for, we’ll talk about the damages that were done to your car. If you still have that claim pending, we’ll discuss what you might be able to do to settle that part of the claim or whether you might need some help with that.
Once we’ve discussed all that, I’ll explain to you how I’m paid. I’m paid a percentage of the recovery that I’m able to get for you. So if there is no recovery, then regardless of the amount of time and effort put into a case, I will not be paid a fee. And if we do make a recovery the most I will ever get is the percentage that we agreed to in the contract.
What if we talk about your case and I determine that I am not going to be able to help you with it? At that point, I’ll tell you just that and I’ll tell you the reasons why I don’t feel like I can help you. Frequently the reason is that the damages a person has sustained, are not significant enough, and the recovery is going to be limited. If the recovery is going to be limited to the point I know that I’m not going to be able to be compensated for the time and effort I’m going to put into the case, then, I will tell you that at that initial consultation. If that is my decision, I typically encourage you to get another opinion. And if you don’t end up hiring an attorney, I’ll tell you basically what you need to do to try and resolve that claim yourself. So even if I don’t get involved I’m going to try to give you information that you’re going to be able to use to help yourself move forward because I don’t want to see anybody not recover what they’re entitled to.
I don’t want you to think that a free consultation is a one-way street and I’m just going to hammer you with questions so I can make a decision about whether I want to get involved in the case. Throughout that consultation, you have an opportunity to ask me questions, and I’m always happy to answer those. The questions most people have at that consultation are how our fee works and the expenses that our firm may incur working on your case. I can’t give you specifics on what your case expenses will be because those are things that would happen in the future, but I’ll try to give you the very best idea that I can.
What you won’t get from me at a free consultation is the value of your case. At that point, I simply can’t give you an idea of what your case is worth. It’s not possible at that point in time, and I would be concerned about an attorney who told you that he could tell you what your case was worth then.
I hope this information is helpful to you. I’m happy to answer any questions you have about contingency fees or any other aspect of personal injury wrongful death cases. You’re welcome to give us a call and set up a free consultation. Our number 770-834-2083. Or you can go to our website, injuryispersonal.com and fill out a request there.
