North Richmond, CA Personal Injury Law Firms & Lawyers

Payment for your attorney's work on your behalf is, generally, a matter of agreement between you and your attorney. Some limitations exist, but not many, and they mostly concern contingency fee arrangements (when attorney gets paid some percentage of the judgment or the settlement in the case). Flat fees are used mostly in the areas of legal practice where the amount of work on the case and the expenses are reasonably predictable; wast majority of such cases concern transactional law - negotiating and drafting contracts, obtaining licenses, immigration applications, uncontested divorces, setting up business entities and trusts, etc. Litigation cases are much harder to predict in terms of the work and expenses that will be required. The attorney you consider retaining might be reluctant to accept a flat fee because the risk is high that, on the one hand, vigorous and creative opposition or some unexpected developments in the case would increase the work and expenses on the case many times over the original estimate, or, on the other hand, the opposition might fold and settle right after the opening salvoes of the battle. In the first scenario, the attorney would end up working for free and paying for the case out of his own pocket. In the second scenario, he or she would get paid too much for little work, which is against the rules of the profession and would give you a good reason to demand a refund. If you insist on a flat fee arrangement, you should be ready to address these two scenarios and to work out solutions that would be fair and acceptable to you and your attorney (remember to put all terms in writing in the retainer agreement).

If the wreck was investigated by the police, you should have gotten a green form called an FR-10 9if the wreck was in South Carolina). It should have the other driver's address and possibly even his/her insurance information. If it does not have the other driver's insurance information, or you do not have the form. Get the other driver's contact information any way you can. Contact the other driver and ask for his/her insurance information. Once you get the insurance information, contact the insurance company and tell them you want to file a claim. They will send you the appropriate paperwork. If you cannot obtain the other driver's insurance information, and your damage is less than $7,500.00, or if the insurer denies liability, you can file suit in Summary (also known as Magistrate's or Small Claims) Court. It is best to have an attorney, but it is not easy to find an attorney to represent you on a property damage claim. If it is more than $7,500.00, you have to file in Circuit Court, and will likely need an attorney.

If your injuries are simply a sprain with no permanent injuries or broken bones, you will likely be hard-pressed to convince an insurance company to pay anything at all for pain and suffering. However, you should confirm this with a personal injury attorney in your area. Most will meet initially with you at no charge.