Why Won’t a Lawyer Take My Personal Injury Case?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that 2 million people are injured each year from motor vehicle crashes. Many people then choose to undertake steps to pursue a personal injury lawsuit, either against the person who negligently caused the accident or against his or her insurance policy. However, people who are undertaking steps to file a personal injury lawsuit sometimes get a surprise – not being able to find a personal injury lawyer willing to take the case. People in this position are understandably upset and frustrated. After all, the lawyer who declined to take the case may have simply provided a generic rejection instead of an explanation. There are many reasons why a personal injury lawyer would choose not to accept a case. We have tried to clarify some of them below.

The Injury is Not Serious Enough

One of the most important factors in personal injury cases is the severity of your injuries. If your injuries are minor, an attorney may pass on your case because the expected monetary compensation will likewise be minimal. A similar problem arises if you allege your injuries are serious but did not pursue medical help in a timely fashion and your injuries were not documented well.

The Risks Seem to Outweigh the Rewards

Because personal injury attorneys take cases on a contingency fee basis, they have to evaluate each potential case in terms of factors such as the amount of time that the attorney expects to spend on the case, the out of pocket cost for the attorney to develop the case and the other fees. Further, a lawyer may decline a case regardless of how much merit it has when you have been injured by an uninsured individual who otherwise appears to lack assets because there is no viable source to recover from. If the risks outweigh the rewards, an attorney will decline the case altogether.

Potential Red Flags

A personal injury attorney may also decline to take on your case because of something that he or she sees as a potential red flag. For example, because being able to establish liability is imperative in a personal injury claim, an attorney may decline to work with a client who presents as a poor witness or says or does something that makes credibility questionable. In addition, because of the potential difficulty of overcoming preexisting injuries, an attorney may reject someone who has preexisting medical conditions to the same area of the body that was injured in the accident.

Let Us Take a Look at Your Case.

After you’ve been hurt through no fault of your own, it’s our goal to help you get the compensation you deserve for your injuries. The good news is that the fact that one attorney has rejected your lawsuit does not mean that you cannot recover for your unexpected injuries through a personal injury claim. As the Fort Myers personal injury attorneys at The Pendas Law Firm, we can examine the circumstances of your injuries and help you determine whether you have a basis for a legal claim. We have helped victims of everything from car accidents to slip and falls and even dog bites and we can begin the process of fighting for you as soon as you contact us to begin.

The Pendas Law Firm also represents clients in the Jacksonville, Tampa, Ocala, Bradenton, Orlando, West Palm Beach, Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Daytona Beach areas.

Resource:

cdc.gov/vitalsigns/motor-vehicle-safety/index.html

https://www.pendaslaw.com/what-to-expect-at-a-personal-injury-consultation/