St. George Attorney: How do I prepare for my Deposition?

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St. George Attorney: How do I prepare for my Deposition?

Question: How do I prepare for a deposition?

St. George Attorney Answer:

Your attorney will help you to prepare for your deposition. You will usually have lots of notice so you are able to be well-prepared. You can prepare by doing the following:

  • When you attend your deposition, dress professionally.
  • Study your interrogatory responses thoroughly, along with any other information your attorney asks you to look over. Be sure to study all materials carefully so that you are prepared, and have your best chance of a positive outcome to your case.
  • Be honest in all your answers, even in the truthful answer seems like it might hurt your case. If the defense attorney discovers you have been dishonest in any answers, it could destroy your entire case.
  • Never argue with the defense attorney. Be polite. It can only help your case.
  • Listen intently as the defense attorney asks you the questions. Allow him or her to finish each question before you answer, so that you can make the best answer possible.
  • Consider your responses carefully before speaking.
  • Don’t always agree simply when the defense attorney asks you to agree to a question. Sometimes lawyers will use a tactic of stringing several statements together and asking you to agree to all of them. Then the final statement might not be true, but you may agree quickly because you are in the habit of agreeing to the previous statements. Be sure to listen carefully to each statement and question so you don’t admit or agree to anything that could damage your case.
  • Never offer more information that you have to. Answer each question in a straightforward and concise manner, and never elaborate unless you are asked to offer more detail.
  • Make direct eye contact as much as you can with the defense attorney.
  • Speak clearly and confidently. You and your St. George lawyer have prepared for this.

Why are depositions so important to personal injury cases?

  • The defense attorney will be assessing you and your character, or your quality of testimony. If the attorney is impressed with your deposition, your case will more likely move quickly to settlement.
  • The deposition serves to prepare you for the actual trial. In the deposition, you will gain experience testifying and being questioned by an attorney.
  • The deposition is very important for the defendant, because it can be used against you if it is false.

St. George Attorney: What do I do if my Case Proceeds to Trail?

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St. George Attorney: What do I do if my Case Proceeds to Trail?

Question: What do I do if my Case Proceeds to Trial?

St. George Attorney answer:

Once litigation begins, your attorney will inform you about your responsibilities in the process. Most likely, you will need to respond to interrogatories and you may even need to attend a deposition.  Throughout the lawsuit process, be sure to:

  • Keep in close contact with your attorney.
  • Make sure your attorney is always informed of any changes of address, phone number, employment status, or marital status. Also let your lawyer know about any changes in your injury.
  • Respond to any requests from your attorney for information or documents immediately.
  • Keep record of all medical bills and lost wages.
  • Don’t be involved in any criminal activity that could be used against you in court during your trial.
  • Stay employed at and maintain a good relationship with your employer.

How much more work is it for my lawyer if we have to go to trial? Should I pay more for that?

Sometimes your contingency fee agreement will allow for additional fees if your case goes to litigation. Your lawyer will inform you about these costs upfront before your case is accepted. A lawsuit is a drawn-out and tedious process, during which your attorney will need to take many steps, including preparing court documents, participate in depositions, research applicable law, communicated with the defense attorney, and communicate with all other involved parties. As your case documentation and evidence grows, other people at your St. George law firm will help in working on your case. There will be labor from paralegals, associates, and secretaries.

What if I don’t want to comply with the discovery process?

You and your attorney may be asked to respond to a number of interrogatories from the defendant’s attorney. There will most likely be 30 or more, each with various sub-questions. Your lawyer will answer some of the interrogatories, and you will answer some of them yourself.

These interrogatories will generally be in relation to your medical history in detail, your employment history, and of course your injuries and the incident that caused them. You will need to be careful to answer all of the questions truthfully and completely. If anything is missing or inaccurate, the mistake could be used against you in court. You must also be sure to answer all interrogatories on time as specified by your attorney.

The interrogatories are very in-depth, and can be tedious for clients to complete. Many clients put them off, and don’t leave enough time to answer them with the care and detail that is necessary. Be sure to allow time to respond to your interrogatory requests thoughtfully and accurately, so that you can have a favorable outcome to your case at trial.

Are depositions scary?

A deposition takes place in one of the attorney’s offices that is involved in the case. It is the first occasion during which you will testify about your claim and your injuries.  The defendant’s attorney will interview you about the incident, about your injuries, and general information about you and your history. All questions and answers will be recorded by a court reporter that will be present for the purpose of transcribing your testimony. The transcript will be shared with all involved attorneys and the insurance company. Portions of it may be read at the lawsuit trial.

What if I don’t want to have my deposition taken?

In this situation, you unfortunately don’t have a choice in the matter. Once a lawsuit has begun, you must follow the legal steps to cooperate with the defendant’s side.

What about the guy that hit me? Can we depose him as well?

Your attorney will make the decision about whether it is necessary to depose the defendant. In some cases, it may be more beneficial to not have a deposition with the defendant. Your Southern Utah attorney will use his or her expertise to decide what is best for you case.

St. George Attorney: What do we do if my Case does not Settle?

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St. George Attorney: What do we do if my Case does not Settle?

Question: What do we do if my Case does not Settle?

St. George Attorney answer:

If the insurance carrier cannot agree with your attorney on the value of a settlement for your case, a lawsuit may be necessary. A lawsuit is also called litigation. The suit will be brought against the entity that is responsible for your injuries, not the insurance company.

Your attorney might suggest waiting for a while before beginning the litigation, hopefully to result in the insurance company increasing the valuation of your case. But in cases where there is a large discrepancy between the value demanded by your lawyer, and the one offered by the insurance company, litigation is necessary.

What factors would cause my case to go to litigation?

There are several reasons that a case may go to litigation:

  • The insurance company believes that you and your lawyer have asked for too large of a sum of money, and they do not agree to pay it for your claim.
  • Liability or “fault,” for the claim is being denied by the insurance company, or they believe you or another party than their insured holds some responsibility for your injuries.
  • The insurance company may resist paying your claim because of internal policies that force claimants to go through the lawsuit process.
  • The insurance carrier is dragging their feet, hopeful that you and your attorney will propose a reduced value of the claim for settlement.
  • The insurance carries might not believe you are injured, or might believe your injury is less severe than you claim. In this case, the insurance company will want you and your lawyer to proceed to litigation so that you will need to prove your injuries in court.

 

How does a lawsuit affect me?

If a lawsuit becomes necessary, your St. George attorney will help you by explaining in detail what will need to happen to get the process going. It usually involves the following steps:

  • Your lawyer will file a claim in court by preparing a “Summons and Complaint,” after all final investigations and preparations of the case. Your attorney will take care of this in his or her office without needing to involve you.
  • The Summons and Complaint is served upon the entity or person that caused your injuries. This responsible party will be referred to as the defendant in this document, and you will be called the plaintiff.
  • After the defendant is served with the Summons and Complaint, their insurance company will provide an attorney to defend the lawsuit, and that attorney will file an “Answer to Complaint” with the court. The Answer to Complaint will usually deny fault for the injuries , or deny the severity of your injuries. It may even bring up other parties that may have been involved in the incident that caused your injury.
  • At this point, the discovery process begins. This is the process in which both parties seek for additional information from each other. You will be involved in this process with your attorney’s help. The following might occur:
    • Questions, or “interrogatories,” that need written documentation of answers.
    • Oral testimony from you and other parties involved in the case. These are called “depositions.” These testimonies take place in front of both lawyers, with a court reporter transcribing all the questions and answers.
    • Your attorney and the other attorney may make “requests for production of documents.” These documents include medical reports, statements from witnesses, bills, lost income documentation, and any other information relating to your personal injury claim. Your lawyer will often have to send all of this documentation to the other lawyer even if it has already been provided to the insurance carrier.
    • A possible “Request for admissions.” This process requires each party involved in the litigation to narrow down the issues at hand by admitting any facts that are not in dispute and can therefore be eliminated from the case.
    • Trial preparations such as video depositions of your medical practitioners or witnesses. Your attorney may also need to write briefs or appear before the trial judge in preparation for the trial.
    • Finally, the trial will occur on the trial date that has been set if your case does not settle before then.

Is it possible that my case will settle in the period before the trial date?

Yes, it’s possible. Cases often come to settlement during the process of the lawsuit before the trial date, but a small number of claims do proceed completely through the process to trial. It’s basically impossible for your attorney to guess when your case will settle, or if it will happen before your trial occurs.