There are six million motor vehicle accidents reported in the Unites States every year.  Twenty nine percent of those accidents result in injuries. Those are just numbers– until it happens to you.  No one wants to be a statistic; we all want to be treated – and respected – as the individuals that we are. 

Rob Kline understands that every injured person is a unique human being that has suffered distinct harms and losses.  Unfortunately, insurance companies take the opposite view, treating every injured person like a claim number and doing everything possible to avoid paying full and fair compensation.

Rob uses his first-hand experience with insurance company tactics to effectively guide his clients through the difficult, time-consuming process of prosecuting a personal injury claim.

If you were in any kind of vehicle accident, be it a car, automobile, truck, motorcycle, bike, bicycle, scooter, moped, mini van, SUV, logging truck, off road vehicle, ATV, hit by a drunk driver, parked car, limousine, tractor-trailer, moving truck or rental truck, motor home, taxicab, tow truck, recreational vehicle (RV), school bus, Tri-met or Trimet bus, Maxtrain or Max train, you need the advice of an experienced personal injury lawyer.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in a car accident, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Bicycles are required to follow the same rules of the road as cars.  The vast majority of cyclists follow the rules.  And for good reason: cyclists are much more vulnerable to injury than the 4,000 pound automobiles with whom they share the road.  Nevertheless, as any cyclist will tell you, many car and truck drivers do not respect the right of cyclists to be on the road.

No matter how careful or defensive you are, accidents can happen.  And when they do, the driver of the car that hit you—and their insurance company—frequently will blame you.  That’s why it is important to act quickly after an accident to locate and preserve all available evidence establishing who was at fault.  Depending on the circumstances, you may need an accident reconstruction expert to help prove your case against the driver that is legally responsible for your injuries.

PIP Covers Medical Bills

If you have an automobile policy, but got hurt riding your bike, you are eligible for Personal Injury Protection (“PIP”) coverage under your policy.  PIP provides coverage for certain medical bills and lost wages, regardless of who was at fault.  There are time limits and caps on PIP benefits.  In Oregon, PIP coverage is limited to $15,000 in necessary medical treatment for up to one year, unless you elect, and pay for, higher limits.  PIP coverage generally can be “stacked,” which means that when more than one policy is available the benefits are cumulative.  Therefore, if the driver of the car that hit you is insured (PIP coverage is mandatory in Oregon), then you can receive benefits from the driver’s insurance company if you exhaust all the benefits available under your own automobile policy.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

When a bicyclist is injured in a collision with an uninsured or underinsured motorist, the injured person can make a claim against their own automobile insurance policy.  Coverage extends to bicyclists so long as the uninsured or underinsured motorist was at fault for the accident.  Learn more about uninsured and underinsured motorists.

If you have been injured in a bike accident, it is important to have a skilled personal injury lawyer evaluate your claims.  Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in a car accident, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Liability is less clear when the pedestrian is jaywalking, crossing outside the crosswalk, or wearing dark clothing at night.  A driver is not absolved from responsibility for hitting or running over a pedestrian in these circumstances.  Drivers still must exercise reasonable care to avoid car accidents.  This includes keeping a lookout for pedestrians who might be crossing the street inside or outside of a crosswalk.

Joggers also are required to follow all traffic laws.  When a jogger is injured by a car, truck or some other type of motor vehicle, the driver might claim that the jogger could have avoided the accident by running against the flow of traffic to make it easier to see oncoming vehicles.  The driver also might assert that the jogger should have run on grass or a sidewalk to avoid the road.

Oregon is a comparative fault state, which means that a pedestrian can recover compensation for injuries so long as the pedestrian is not more than 50 percent at fault for the accident.

PIP Covers Medical Bills

If you have an automobile policy, but got hurt as a pedestrian, you are eligible for Personal Injury Protection (“PIP”) coverage under your policy.  PIP provides coverage for certain medical bills and lost wages, regardless of who was at fault.  There are time limits and caps on PIP benefits.  In Oregon, PIP coverage is limited to $15,000 in necessary medical treatment for up to one year, unless you elect, and pay for, higher limits.    PIP coverage generally can be “stacked,” which means that when more than one policy is available the benefits are cumulative.  Therefore, if the driver of the car that hit you is insured (PIP coverage is mandatory in Oregon), then you can receive benefits from the driver’s insurance company if you exhaust all the benefits available under your own automobile policy.

Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage

When a pedestrian is injured in a collision with an uninsured or underinsured motorist, the injured person can make a claim against their own automobile insurance policy.  Coverage extends to pedestrains so long as the uninsured or underinsured motorist was at fault for the accident.  To learn more, click on the uninsured and underinsured motorists link.

If you have been injured, it is important to have a skilled personal injury lawyer evaluate your claims.  Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in a car accident, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Oregon law permits you to recover both “economic” and “noneconomic” damages arising from a personal injury.  Economic damages include past, present and future medical bills, wage loss, loss of earning potential and other out-of-pocket expenses.  Noneconomic damages include pain, mental suffering, emotional distress, humiliation, “any inconvenience and interference with your normal and usual activities,” injury to reputation, and “any other subjective, nonmonetary losses.”

Victims of drunk driving have additional rights.  Driving while intoxicated goes beyond mere negligence and generally is considered reckless.  Therefore, in addition to the compensation that you normally are entitled to receive, the drunk driver also may be required to pay punitive damages.  This is an award of money that is intended to punish the driver that caused the accident.  In awarding punitive damages, the jury is permitted to consider what amount of money is necessary to punish the defendant in light of the defendant’s financial condition.

If you have been injured by a drunk driver, you also may have a claim against the bar, restaurant or other person that served alcohol to the driver, if the driver was a minor or “visibly intoxicated” at the time they were served.  The deadline for asserting a so-called “Dram shop” claim against the server may be as short as 180 days.  Such claims can be difficult to prove, so it is important to conduct a thorough investigation as soon as possible to preserve evidence for later use in court.

Hit and Run Drivers: Act Quickly

Oregon law requires the driver of any vehicle involved in an accident to stop, remain at the scene, exchange information with the other driver, and lend assistance if the other driver is injured.  If the other driver is seriously injured, the failure to perform these duties is a felony.

If you are injured by a hit-and-run driver, you should report the accident to police immediately.  As with any car  or truck accident, you should get the names and detailed contact information of any witnesses.  If the hit-and-run driver cannot be found, you can file a claim against your own auto insurance company for benefits related to uninsured and underinsured motorists.  To ensure coverage, you must report the accident to police within 72 hours, and file a required statement with your insurer within 30 days.

A hit-and-run vehicle that causes an accident and does not contact your vehicle is known as a “phantom vehicle.”  If you are hit by a phantom vehicle, you will need an independent witness or other evidence other than your own testimony to substantiate the accident.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in a car accident, consult an attorney today as there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Tractor trailers, 18 wheelers, semi trucks and other large commercial vehicles require a much greater stopping distance than cars. The heavier the truck, the greater the distance needed to stop. A passenger vehicle traveling at 55 mph can stop in about 130 to 140 feet.  A large truck traveling at the same speed can take up to 400 feet to stop.  Trucks also can be susceptible to rollover or jackknife incidents.

Truck accidents can be caused by a number of factors including:

• driver fatigue or inattention;
• drunk driving/DUII, speeding or aggressive driving;
• excessive, unsecured or unbalanced cargo loads;
• improper truck or trailer maintenance;
• equipment failure, such as tire-tread separation, tire blowout or brake failure

Fault can also extend to other parties, such as the trucking company owner, the owner of the cargo, and the truck manufacturer.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and state agencies have extensive regulations for trucks, truck drivers and truck companies.  It is important to understand these regulations when seeking compensation for injuries caused by a truck accident.  An experienced truck accident lawyer will investigate the causes of the accident, determine if any regulations were violated, and help you obtain compensation for your injuries.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in an accident with a truck, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Rob Kline is a local Portland accident lawyer available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential free case evaluation.

What To Do After a Motorcycle Accident

If you have been in a motorcycle accident, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

State law requires all drivers to have liability insurance coverage on their car, truck or motor vehicle.  Many people cannot afford, or chose not, to buy insurance.  They may buy insurance when it’s time to renew their vehicle registration, but the policy lapses when the buyer stops making monthly premium payments.

Uninsured motorists are those that have no insurance coverage.  If you are injured by an uninsured motorist, you can file a claim against your own insurance company.  Uninsured motorist coverage is mandatory in Oregon.

When you make a claim for uninsured motorist benefits, your insurance company “steps into the shoes” of the at-fault driver.  That means that your insurance company will assert every possible defense available to the at-fault driver.  For example, your insurance company may contend that you were partially at fault for the accident or that your injuries are not as serious as you or your doctor claim.

Uninsured motorist claims set up an adversarial relationship with your insurance company.  You may find that your insurer is much more eager to accept the premiums you have been paying faithfully year after year than it is to fairly compensate you for your injuries.

Hit and Run Drivers are a type of uninsured motorist and present special considerations.

Underinsured Motorists: Accidents with Insufficient Coverage

The at-fault driver is considered underinsured if the driver has purchased an insurance policy that does not provide enough coverage to fully compensate you for your injuries.  Underinsured motorist benefits are intended to cover the gap.  If you have coverage, you may be able to collect from your own insurance company the amount of your losses that exceed the at-fault driver’s insurance coverage.

In some states and under some insurance policies, an injured person may “stack” various policies to increase total available coverage.  Where permitted, stacking may apply when there is more than one auto insurance policy or coverage for more than one car on a single policy.

In Oregon, you MUST get permission from your own insurance company BEFORE settling your accident claim with the underinsured motorist’s insurance company.  If you do not get permission first from your insurance company, you waive your right to pursue an underinsured motorist claim.  Underinsured and uninsured motorist claims present complex insurance and legal issues.  Consult an experienced personal injury lawyer before settling your claims with the at-fault driver’s insurance company or your insurance company.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your injuries and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

What To Do After An Accident

If you have been in a car accident, there are a number of critical steps you should take to protect yourself and your legal rights.  Learn More.

Traumatic brain injury is a complex injury encompassing a broad spectrum of symptoms and disabilities.  The effects of a brain injury may be severe and apparent immediately.  Examples include slurred speech, difficulty walking and seizures.  In many cases, however, the effects of a brain injury are subtle at first.  But, over time, symptoms such as short-term memory loss, vision impairment or behavioral changes become apparent.  Often the family of the brain injury patient is the first to notice symptoms.  Brain injuries are one of the most common causes of disability and death in adults.

Types of Brain Injuries

Brain injuries include the following:

Concussion—an injury that is caused by a sudden blow to the head or to the body. The blow shakes the brain inside the skull, which temporarily prevents the brain from functioning normally.  Most people fully recover from concussions within a few hours to a few weeks.  However, concussions can cause more serious problems.  Repeated concussions, or a severe concussion, can cause long-term problems including:  physical, such as headaches; cognitive, such as difficulty concentrating or remembering; and emotional or behavioral problems, such as irritability.

Post-concussion syndrome, also known as post-concussive syndrome or PCS, is a set of symptoms that may persist for weeks, months or occasionally up to a year or more after a concussion.  Historically called shell shock, post-concussion syndrome is a complex disorder accompanied by a variety of symptoms that can include: headaches; dizziness; fatigue; irritability; anxiety; insomnia; loss of concentration and memory; and sensitivity to noise and light.  The nature of PCS and the diagnosis itself have been the subject of considerable debate among health professionals.

Skull fracture—a break in the skull bone.  There are four major types.

• A linear skull fracture is the most common.  In a linear skull fracture, there is a break in the bone, but the bone does not move.
• A depressed skull fracture occurs when part of the skull is displaced inward.  This type of fracture usually is caused by blunt force trauma, such as getting hit with a hammer or rock, or getting kicked in the head.  Depressed skull fractures carry a high risk of increased pressure on the brain.
• A diastic skull fracture occurs along the suture lines in the skull.  In this type of fracture, the normal suture lines are widened.  Diastic skull fractures usually are seen in infants and young children because the sutures are not yet fused.
• A basilar skull fracture involves a break in the bone at the base of the skull.  This type of fracture requires more force than the others and is the most serious.  Patients with this type of fracture frequently have blood in the sinuses, a clear fluid called cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) draining from the nose or ears, bruises around the eyes, and a bruise behind the ears.

Intracranial hematoma (ICH)—occurs when a blood vessel ruptures in or around the brain.  A blood clot compresses brain tissue.  The different types are classified by the location in the brain:

• An epidural hematoma is a blood clot that forms underneath the skull, but on top of the dura matter, the tough, outermost membrane that surrounds the brain.  Natasha Richardson, the actress that fell while taking a ski lesson at the Mont Tremblant Resort in Quebec, died from an epidural hematoma caused by a seemingly minor blunt impact to the head.
• A subdural hematoma occurs when a blood clot forms beneath the skull and the dura, but outside of the brain.
• A contusion or intracerebal hematoma is a bruise to the brain itself rather than the outside of it.

Closed head injury—occurs when the brain is damaged due to external mechanical force and the brain is not exposed.  A penetrating, or open head injury, occurs when an object pierces the skull and breaches the dura matter, the outermost membrane that covers the brain.

Coup-Contrecoup Injury—occurs when the head is moving and strikes a fixed object.  A coup injury occurs at the site of impact, and a contrecoup injury occurs at the opposite site.  Due to inertia, the brain is thought to bounce off the inside of the skull and hit the opposite side.  Coup-contrecoup injuries also can be caused by acceleration or deceleration alone with no impact.  These injuries are associated with cerebral contusion.

Diffuse Axonal Injury—is one of the most common and devastating types of traumatic brain injury.  Diffuse axonal injury is the result of shearing forces that occur when the head is rapidly accelerated or decelerated.  Extensive lesions occur over a widespread area.  The lesions disrupt axons, the neural processes that allow one neuron to communicate with another.  Diffuse axonal injury can occur in every degree of severity from mild to moderate to severe.  It is one of the major causes of unconsciousness and persistent vegetative state after head trauma.

Secondary Brain Injury—is brain damage that evolves over time after the trauma, and may include:

• Bleeding inside the skull (intracranial hemorrhage).
• Brain swelling (edema).
• Increased pressure inside the skull (intracranial pressure).
• Brain damage associated with lack of oxygen.
• Infection inside the skull, common with penetrating trauma.
• Chemical changes leading to cell death.
• Increased fluid inside the skull (hydrocephalus).

Classification

Traumatic brain injuries are classified as mild, moderate or severe.  The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is used to objectively evaluate the conscious state of all acute trauma patients.  The GCS assigns a point value on a scale of 3 to 15 based on responses to verbal, motor and eye-opening stimuli.  A head injury with a GCS of 13 or above generally is considered mild, 9 to 12 is considered moderate, and 8 or below is severe.

Most traumatic brain injuries are classified as mild.  A mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI)  is a traumatically induced physiological disruption of brain function as manifested by at least one of the following:

1.  any period of loss of consciousness;

2.  any loss of memory for events immediately before or after the accident;

3.  any alteration in mental state at the time of the accident (e.g., feeling dazed, disoriented, or confused); or

4.  focal neurological deficit(s) that may or may not be transient but where the severity of the injury does not exceed the following:

a.  loss of consciousness of approximately 30 minutes or less;

b.  after 30 minutes, an initial Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of 13-15; and

c.  post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) not greater than 24 hours.

This definition was developed by the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee of the Head Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (1993). Definition of mild traumatic brain injury. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 8(3), 86-87.  Similar definitions of MTBI have been developed by the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center.

A moderate traumatic brain injury generally is defined as:

• Loss of consciousness of 30 minutes to less than 24 hours;
• After 30 minutes, an initial GCS of 9-12; or
• Post-traumatic amnesia of more than one but less than 7 days.

A severe traumatic brain injury generally is defined as:

• Loss of consciousness of more than 24 hours;
• After 30 minutes, an initial GCS of 3-8; or
• Post-traumatic amnesia of more than 7 days.

Different organizations use different classification systems.  For example, under the Mayo Head Injury Classification System (2007), a traumatic brain injury is classified as Moderate-Severe (Definite) TBI if one or more of the following criteria apply:

1. Death due to this TBI.

2. Loss of consciousness of 30 minutes or more.

3. Post-traumatic anterograde amnesia of 24 hours or more.

4. Worst Glasgow Coma Scale full score in first 24 hours (unless invalidated upon review, e.g., attributable to intoxication, sedation, systemic shock).

5. One or more of the following present:

a.  Intracerebral hematoma,

b.  Subdural hematoma,

c.  Epidural hematoma,

d.  Cerebral contusion,

e.  Hemorrhagic contusion,

f.  Penetrating TBI (dura penetrated),

g.  Subarachnoid hemorrhage, or

h.  Brain stem injury.

Causes of Traumatic Brain Injury

Common causes of traumatic brain injury include:

• Car Accidents
• Motor vehicle accidents
• Truck Accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Falls
• Assaults, gunshot wounds, and other violence
• Sports accidents
• Playground injuries
• Construction and other work place injuries
• Child abuse, including shaken baby syndrome

Symptoms

Traumatic brain injury symptoms can be divided into several broad categories: physical, cognitive, behavioral, and emotional.

Physical symptoms of traumatic brain injury include:

• Loss of conciousness
• Vomiting
• Severe headache
• Changes in sleep patterns
• Sensitivity to light
• Blurred vision
• Dizziness
• Difficulty walking
• Loss of coordination
• Weakness in one side or area of the body
• Slurred speech

Cognitive symptoms of traumatic brain injury include:

• Memory loss
• Confusion
• Trouble with concentration, attention or thinking
• Reduction in rate of information processing (processing speed)
• Deficits in ability to organize, prioritize and execute plans (executive functioning)

Behavioral and emotional symptoms of traumatic brain injury include:

• Irritability or “short fuse”
• Depression
• Social withdrawal
• Decreased attention to hygiene
• Changes in appropriate social behavior
• Deficits in social judgment
• Deficiency in identifying, understanding, processing and describing emotions
• Personality changes

Diagnosis and Treatment of Traumatic Brain Injury

The diagnosis of a traumatic brain injury is made following a physical examination and diagnostic testing.  During the examination, the physician obtains a detailed medical history of the patient and information about how the injury occurred.  Diagnostic tests may include:

• Blood tests
• X-rays
• Computed tomography (CT or CAT scan)
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
• Electroencephalogram (EEG)
• Positron emission tomography (PET scan)
• Transcranial doppler

A neuropsychological assessment may be performed to evaluate cognitive function and impairment.  The assessment may be used to aid in planning physical and occupational rehabilitation.

Treatment of a traumatic brain injury is individualized, depending on the nature and extent of the injury.  The outlook for a patient depends in part on acting fast to obtain immediate emergency treatment.  In the acute stage, the primary goal is to stabilize the patient and prevent further injury since little can be done the reverse the damage caused by the initial trauma.  Rehabilitation is the main treatment for the chronic stage of recovery.

The goal of rehabilitation is to improve independent function at home and in the community, and to help the patient adapt to disabilities.  Most rehabilitation centers utilize a multi-disciplinary approach with a team of health professionals that specialize in traumatic brain injury.  Physiatrists, who specialize in physical and rehabilitation medicine, typically are the primary treating physicians.  The multi-disciplinary team may include specialists from neurology, psychiatry, neuropsychology, psychology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech and language therapy, and cognitive therapy.

Brain Injury Claims

Brain injury claims present special considerations.  As an initial matter, the victim may have suffered memory loss and, therefore, cannot remember the trauma-inducing event.  If there is a dispute over who is at fault, the victim can be at a disadvantage.

Equally important, diagnostic studies, such as MRI, CT or EEG may not detect traumatic brain injuries, particularly those classified as “mild.”  Diffuse axonal injuries frequently escape detection.  Indeed, a diffuse axonal injury can be severe enough to result in death, yet an MRI may be interpreted as within normal limits.

People suffering from mild TBI tend to look “normal” on the outside to the casual observer.  It can be a challenge to convince a jury that a person is seriously injured when there is no visible injury and no objective test data to support the diagnosis.

Defendants frequently claim that the plaintiff does not have a brain injury at all and, instead, is suffering from a psychological or emotional condition. The plaintiff also may be accused of exaggerating their symptoms or outright lying for financial gain.

Testimony from an experienced neuropsychologist is essential when a traumatic brain injury cannot be detected by diagnostic studies like MRI.  The neuropsychologist can explain the injury based on the results from a battery of tests that assess perceptual, motor, verbal, memory and cognitive functioning.

Defendants usually employ their own neuropsychologist to discredit the one that testifies for the plaintiff.  A typical defense is that there is no pre-injury, baseline testing of the plaintiff.  Therefore, the argument goes, it cannot be said whether any deficit identified by neuropsychological testing was caused by trauma or, instead, relates to a pre-existing condition.  Defendants also may claim that the plaintiff manipulated test results, or that deficits reflect unrelated medical conditions or the effects of medication.

To combat these defenses, it is essential for the plaintiff’s neuropsychologist to be well prepared for a vigorous cross examination by the defendant’s lawyer.  Among other things, the neuropsychologist must be able to confirm plaintiff’s baseline function by reviewing pre-injury medical, psychological, vocational and academic records.  The neuropsychologist also must account for all non-brain injury factors that may negatively affect the plaintiff’s test performance.

Finally, to prevent the trial from becoming a battle solely between medical experts, it is critical for the plaintiff to present testimony from family members, friends, employers and others in the community that can substantiate the effects of the plaintiff’s brain injury.

Brain injury claims are complex from both a legal and medical standpoint.  The challenges associated with successfully pursuing such claims certainly do not preclude recovery.  However, it is essential to retain the services of an experienced personal injury attorney to maximize your chances of success.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your injury and legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

Landlords have special obligations to tenants under the Residential Landlord Tenant Act.  The law requires that rental houses and apartment units be maintained in a “habitable condition.”  Habitability requirements cover a wide variety of conditions and mandate that:

• Electrical wiring is installed to code and maintained in good working order;
  
• Floors, walls and ceilings are structurally sound;
• Stairways and railings are maintained in good repair;
• No fire hazards are present and working smoke alarms are installed; and
• There are working locks for doors and latches for windows.

Other requirements include a waterproof roof and walls, a properly maintained heating system, and functional plumbing.

A tenant that is injured due to a landlord’s failure to comply with these requirements has a number of legal rights.  These include the right to bring a claim without having to prove negligence in many cases.  The tenant also may be entitled to recover attorney fees from the landlord.  Under the law, a non-complying landlord has very limited defenses.  These rights put a lot of pressure on the landlord’s insurance company to pay fair compensation for a tenant’s injuries.

Landlord-tenant injury claims often arise in the following circumstances:

• Fires caused by faulty electrical wiring or other unsafe conditions.
• Serious injury or death caused by failure to provide fire alarms or smoke detectors, or lack of a fire escape.
• Carbon monoxide poisoning caused by faulty furnaces, heaters, stoves or cooking equipment.
• Inadequate security that leads to assaults or other crimes committed against tenants.
• Broken or missing steps, handrails, stairs or railings causing slips, trips or falls.
• Structural failures in floors, walls or roofs.
• Children drowning in pools.

If you have been injured in a rental house or apartment unit, it is important to act quickly.  Critical evidence can be lost if not preserved right away.  Additionally, the law provides strict deadlines for bringing injury and insurance claims.

Attorney Rob Kline is experienced in pursuing landlord-tenant injury claims.  Rob has educated younger lawyers about handling such claims.  For additional information including more about the law, see DOING WELL BY DOING RIGHT: GETTING JUSTICE FOR INJURED CLIENTS UNDER THE RESIDENTIAL LANDLORD TENANT ACT AND GETTING PAID FOR YOUR WORK.

Rob Kline is available to discuss your legal rights.  Call today or request a confidential, free case evaluation.

There are three categories to consider:

(1) Is the lawyer qualified to represent you?

(2) Does the lawyer have the experience to get a successful outcome in your case?

(3) Can you get along with them?

Qualified

Find out where the lawyer went to law school.  Did they go to a good school?  How well did they do in school?  Did they receive any academic honors?  Don’t be afraid to ask—you’re the one that has been injured, this is your case.  If your case goes to trial, by the time you’re done working with this lawyer, he or she will know a great deal about you, your background, your medical history, and your daily life.  If the attorney you’re interviewing is offended about providing some basic info about them, look elsewhere.

Next, you want a lawyer that specializes in representing claimants, also known as plaintiffs, in personal injury cases.  The law has become very specialized.  There are business, family, patent, class action, social security, employment and criminal lawyers.  The days of one lawyer hanging a shingle and practicing competently in many different areas are over.  It is too difficult to dabble in multiple areas of law.  You don’t want a dabbler—you want someone that dedicates their entire practice to representing claimants in personal injury cases.

Experienced

The next category you’re looking for in a lawyer is experience.  Does the lawyer have the experience to handle your case to a successful resolution?

Find out how long the lawyer has been practicing.  All lawyers need to start somewhere, but they do not need to start on your case.  If the lawyer has been practicing for only a few years, find someone with more experience.

Bear in mind that the number of years a lawyer has been practicing does not in itself tell the whole story.  In personal injury work, what is more important is the amount of the lawyer’s trial experience.  Most lawyers who handle personal injury cases do not go to court.  Insurance companies make it their business to keep track of which lawyers do and do not try cases.  This is important because insurance companies deal with risk.  A lawyer that goes to court presents a far greater risk than a lawyer that never goes to court.  Lawyers that have a reputation for only settling cases receive below par settlement offers because they do not pose much of a risk to the insurance company.  On the other hand, lawyers that have a reputation for being willing to go to trial and obtaining good results command the highest settlement offers.

Find out if the lawyer has any specialized training in trial work.  A law degree alone does not give someone the expertise to be a good trial lawyer any more than a medical degree, by itself, gives someone the expertise to be a good surgeon.  Advanced training and experience are essential.

Can I get along with them?

The last category to consider is whether you can get along with the lawyer.  The lawyer’s bed side manner is important for a lot of reasons.  First of all, you’re going to be spending a lot of time with your lawyer, especially if your case goes to trial.  If your personalities seem incompatible now, imagine how you might feel a year from now when you are spending large blocks of time with this person preparing for trial.

Ask yourself whether the lawyer communicates well.  Do they listen without interrupting you?  Are they patient?  Do they answer your questions?  Are they easy to talk to?  Do they instill a sense of trust and confidence?  Do they present well?  Good!  Because the lawyer is going to have to do all of that when they represent you and present your case to the insurance company adjuster, the insurance company lawyer, and ultimately, if your case goes to trial, a judge and a jury.  If the lawyer cannot communicate effectively with you in the comfort of the lawyer’s office, it does not bode well for the lawyer’s ability to represent you in a more hostile setting when the pressure is on.

Where should you start?  Spend some time learning about the lawyer’s qualifications and experience.  Then call the lawyer and speak with them on the phone about your case.  If you get a good feeling, make an appointment to meet in person.

When you sit down to meet with the lawyer, do not be afraid to ask the hard questions.  Remember, it is your case, and you are interviewing them for a job.  This is an excellent opportunity to see if the lawyer engenders the kind of trust and confidence you will need to have in your lawyer.  Take the time to ensure you have a level of comfort with the lawyer.

Kline Law Offices P.C. offers a free consultation.  Contact attorney Rob Kline by phone, or request a free case evaluation by email.