
If you’ve suffered a serious injury or a violation of your civil rights, you may have a lot of questions about what your rights are and what to do next. Here are some of the questions we regularly hear from prospective clients.
At The Ericksen Firm, we don’t charge our clients anything up front to file a lawsuit. We accept cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that we don’t take attorneys’ fees unless and until we recover money for our clients. That’s true whether we settle the case in a month or succeed at trial after fighting with the defendant for three years. When we do take a fee, it is a percentage of the settlement or jury award, not an hourly rate that gobbles up your entire recovery. Additionally, in some cases the opposing side may also be ordered to pay our fees as part of your recovery.
You are probably aware that besides attorneys’ fees, there are many other expenses in a lawsuit, from filing fees, copying, and postage to the cost of hiring accident reconstructionists or expert witnesses. Like attorneys’ fees, those expenses will be paid out of any financial recovery you ultimately receive. We do not want the costs involved in bringing a case to ever be a barrier to achieving justice! Do not let your financial circumstances prevent you from seeking out a great attorney to handle your personal injury or civil rights case.
Yes! Serious personal injury and civil rights cases can be complicated and lengthy, and it’s helpful to have a relationship with an attorney you know and trust. Unlike many personal injury firms, The Ericksen Firm doesn’t draw you in with the promise of working with an experienced lawyer and then hand your case off to an inexperienced associate or a paralegal. Your initial consultation will be with Matthew, and you will continue to work with him throughout your case. Matthew is proud that he is on a “first name basis” with every one of his clients. He will be there every step of the way to explain the litigation process and work closely with you throughout the life of your case.
Every case is different, so it’s impossible to know how long your case will take. Many people who have been injured have lost the ability to work and are facing large medical bills. They hope to settle as quickly as possible so they can pay their bills and move on with their lives.
Unfortunately, a quick settlement often isn’t a sufficient one. Defendants and insurance companies may make a “lowball” offer to get you to settle quickly and make your case go away. Working with an attorney who is experienced in these cases (including having defended them for over a decade) can help you get a better settlement early on in the process—or fight for what you need all the way to trial if necessary.
There are a lot of good reasons to have an attorney if you have been seriously injured. One of the biggest is that the Insurance Research Council (the insurance industry’s own research) has shown that plaintiffs who are represented by a personal injury attorney receive settlements that are 3.5 times greater on average than those received by people who are unrepresented. If you have a civil rights violation, an attorney’s help is essential because these claims are based on complex federal law and governmental agencies hire talented defense attorneys to litigate these claims. Without an attorney 100% committed to your case and experienced in this specific area of the law, your claim is likely to fail.
Beyond improving the chances of getting a financial recovery, or a higher recovery, having an experienced attorney lifts a huge burden off your shoulders. You don’t have to navigate complex legal issues alone, opposed by a team of experienced defense lawyers. You can focus on healing and the road to recovery, knowing that you have a dedicated attorney looking out for your best interests.
If you have questions that were not answered here, please feel free to contact The Ericksen Firm to schedule a no-obligation consultation with Matthew at no cost.
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