Finances
In almost all cases, personal injury law firms advance the disbursements necessary to prosecute their cases and are reimbursed for those expenses as well as earn their legal fee only if there is a financial recovery. At times a law firm may be required to expend well over one hundred thousand dollars to prosecute a single case and much more if there is a trial. A law firm that is not sufficiently financed to be able to advance the funds to build the necessary foundation for a strong prosecution is depriving its clients of the best chances to maximizing their recovery. Unless a law firm is in the position to financially support its case fully, it will have to take shortcuts such as reducing the number or the quality of the experts that it retains or otherwise limit its expenditures to the detriment of the client.
If the law firm is “trial shy” because of fear of financial loss, inadequate funds or inexperience those weaknesses become quickly known and the firm’s ability to resolve cases at premier value will be impaired.
Depositions
One of the critical events in the course of litigation is the depositions of the parties. The credibility and overall impression made by the plaintiff at the deposition and his or her ability to persuasively articulate the injuries requires extensive preparation by the lawyer and client. The impression that the plaintiff makes at the deposition will have a strongly effect upon the defendants’ assessment of the case.
Equally important, will be defense counsel’s assessment of the plaintiff’s lawyer. The “performance” of the plaintiff’s attorney at the deposition will demonstrate his/her knowledge, experience and ability to properly and effectively frame questions, familiarity with the details of the records and ability to “take on” the defendant. The examiner’s effectiveness in exposing a weak defense or uncovering a vulnerability can be the turning point as to the direction the case will ultimately take, namely, settlement or trial.
Working Up the Damages
In order to be able to project the full extent of the damages in major cases it is often necessary to retain experts in such specialties as life care planning, economics, scientific and medical disciplines, rehabilitative medicine, neuropsychology, psychiatry, and more. Reports from these experts serve to demonstrate the full elements of the damages and objective quantify the methodology of the damage assessment. The selection of the right experts can make a world of difference as to the ultimate value of the case.
