Can I just Handle my own Personal Injury Case?

Hiring an attorney to handle your personal injury case is an important financial decision. Settling your case without an attorney experienced enough to assess and litigate your case effectively could cost you a lot!

You can handle your own personal injury case.  You can get your medical records, make a demand, negotiate a settlement, and get paid.

Most people who do this on their own don’t get paid what their case is worth.  Why do people handle their cases without an attorney?  They don’t have any way to assess the value an attorney will bring to their case.

When you hire us, we want you to be confident that you got your money’s worth at the conclusion of the case.

Attorneys Cost Money

There is only one good reason not to retain an attorney for your injury case: cost! In personal injury cases, attorney’s fees are usually 33%-40% of the amount recovered.  There are also costs involved, but those costs are generally the same whether you use an attorney or handle the case on your own.

Some Cases Can be Handled Without an Attorney

For a small percentage of personal injury cases you may be better off handling your case without an attorney. These are cases with undisputed liability.  These cases involve minor injuries.  Also, if you plan to do this, you better have no pre-existing conditions.

It helps if you are organized and able to present your case clearly and articulately to the insurance company adjuster.  Most cases do not meet all these criteria.

We’ll let you know if we believe you should handle your case on your own. We are busy enough that we don’t want to take a case where we cannot provide a clear direct benefit to our client.

Many people think that they don’t need an attorney because they intend to settle “out of court.” You might be able to settle your small case or even take it to court, without an attorney.

In Maryland, the small claims limit in District Court is $5,000. This value includes medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

Even if you think that your case might be a small case we encourage you to schedule a free consultation so we can review the facts and help you make a proper assessment.  It doesn’t cost you anything and you are not obligated to hire us.

To decide if you have a small claim, consider both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include medical bills and lost wages. Noneconomic damages include money for pain and suffering.  Both types of damages may include both past and future damages.

Usually, noneconomic damages are the most significant part of the value of a case.  In many cases, for strategic reasons get tried on non-economic damages only.  Just because you only have a few thousand dollars in medical bills doesn’t mean that your case is a small claim. We recently settled a claim for $32,000 despite less than $900 in medical bills.

Most Cases Should Not Be Handled Without an Attorney

A good attorney will frame his client’s case to maximize its settlement value.  An attorney can help you resolve your PIP claim, obtain your medical records, evaluate the value of your case and negotiate a settlement that reflects the true value of your case.

Your case is worth what a judge or jury will award as a verdict if your case goes to trial. Unless you are familiar with the court system and have significant experience in litigating and negotiating personal injury claims, you likely won’t know the value of your case. The value of each case will vary based on how the case is presented, where it is tried, and the makeup of the jury.

Insurance companies really have one driving question when making an offer to settle your case: What will happen if we don’t settle?

Without an experienced attorney on your side, the insurance company doesn’t worry.  Without an attorney, you might file a small claims action and maybe, on a good day, get a verdict of $5,000. The insurance company is not worried about your $5,000 verdict.

If you try to represent yourself in a case that is not a small claims action, the defense attorney will send you discovery which must be answered properly and timely. If you get past this hurdle, you will have to represent yourself at trial. This means getting what you need into evidence so that the judge can consider it. Hope you are up to date on the rules of evidence and civil procedure! If you don’t handle things correctly you can lose and wind up with nothing. You’ll even be stuck paying court costs.