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WE ALL WORK HARD TO LIVE A GOOD LIFE, BUT SOMETIMES BAD THINGS HAPPEN. PEOPLE ARE HURT AND KILLED 365 DAYS A YEAR. SOMETIMES INJURIES, EVEN DEATH, CANNOT BE AVOIDED. OFTEN, THOUGH, INJURIES ARE THE RESULT OF CARELESSNESS OR NEGLIGENCE OF OTHERS. PEOPLE ARE KILLED DUE TO THE CONDUCT OF OTHERS. IF YOU HAVE BEEN HURT, OR LOST A LOVED ONE AS THE RESULT OF SOMEONE ELSE'S CONDUCT, WE CAN HELP YOU. WE HANDLE JUST ABOUT EVERY TYPE OF CLAIM AND CASE WHERE PEOPLE ARE HURT OR KILLED - AUTO ACCIDENTS, EXPLOSIONS, FIRES, BURNS, BOATING ACCIDENTS, PLANE CRASHES, DOG ATTACKS, MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE OR MALPRACTICE, PRODUCT LIABILTY OR FAILURE.
CALL US TOLL FREE AT 888-883-2600 FOR A FREE CONSULTATION. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO DISCUSS YOUR CASE WITH AN EXPERIENCED PERSONAL INJURY AND WRONGFUL DEATH LAWYER. WE WILL ALWAYS GIVE YOU OUR HONEST OPINION ABOUT THE MERITS OF YOUR CLAIM.
If you have been injured in accident you may be worried paying for your medical bills, you may be incurring lost wages, and experiencing pain and suffering. The insurance company you are dealing with wants to pay you NOTHING, if possible, or the least amount of money it can get away with! If you don’t protect your rights, you may not be able to make a claim. Insurance companies have highly skilled attorneys and adjusters whose goal is to protect the company’s money and pay you as little as they can. You need an experienced OHIO personal injury lawyer to protect your rights and fight for you.
An Experienced Ohio Personal injury Lawyer can Reduce Your Stress Level
Being injured in a accident can be an ordeal. You are hurt – possibly undergoing surgery and rehabilitation. You can’t do the things you used to do. You life gets turned upside down. The bills for your medical care are mounting – but you don’t think YOU should have to pay them since the crash was not your fault. The insurance adjustor can be aggressive and obnoxious – minimizing your injuries and questioning your integrity. You may be off work. You may not have health insurance. You may be angry, upset and stressed out.
The first thing I do when I take your case is notify the insurance adjustor that he/she is prohibited from calling you any more. ALL communication comes to my office. This allows you to focus on recovering from your accident and injuries.
My job is to deal with the mountains of paperwork, investigate the crash, interview all witnesses, get the police report and police photographs, take more video or photographs, gather up your medical bills, medical records, proof of property damage and other documents, and deal with the insurer’s aggressive representatives. Your job is simply to get better!
Q: Do I Need a Lawyer At All? What does a Lawyer do that I can’t do?
The short answer is, “It Depends, but…”
You should talk to an experienced Ohio personal injury lawyer if your claim involves a neck or back injury, fractures, burns, scars, numbness/tingling, a head injury or concussion, surgery, wage loss, treatment by specialists, ongoing medical bills, months of treatment, physical therapy, MRI’s or other tests, or if your recovery takes longer than a week or two!
Insurance companies will challenge your claim on every level. In my experience of handling hundreds of personal injury cases I have found that insurance companies often blame the victim for the crash, in whole or in part. The insurance investigator will argue that you could have avoided the crash, weren’t paying attention, failed to “signal,” or committed some violation of the traffic law that, they say, renders your case worthless.
Insurance companies will also challenge your injuries and damages. Insurance adjustors, claims representatives and investigators are highly trained specialists with one job – to minimize the amount of money it takes to resolve your claim. They will contend that your injuries are not supported by the medical records, that you are “malingering,” that your injuries should have resolved quicker or that some prior injury or condition is the real cause of your problems.
Remember, the insurance company only has one goal – to minimize its payment of money to you.
You need an experienced Ohio personal injury on YOUR side, aggressively fighting to protect
YOUR rights. As your attorney my ONLY obligation is obtain the best result possible for YOU.
Do you have knowledge and experience in law, medicine, physics and the handling and negotiation of personal injury claims? If not, you probably lack the skill set necessary to maximize your recovery.
Can you do what a lawyer does? Most of it, maybe, if you really want to!
A lawyer wears many hats. Initially, the lawyer is an investigator – interviewing witnesses, evaluating the police conclusions as to liability and, if needed, working with a special accident reconstruction expert to properly analyze the crash.
A lawyer also works as an “analyst” – obtaining, reviewing, organizing and analyzing every single piece of paper related to the crash and your injuries. This includes all medical records and bills from all of your care providers – a time-consuming experience! Our office gathers up records every day and has the experience to expedite this often tedious process.
A lawyer also operates as a buffer between you and an often aggressive, or even obnoxious, insurance adjustor.
Of course, your lawyer uses years of study and professional experience to analyze the legal issues in your case and provide competent advice to you on how to proceed. Your lawyer is a professional negotiator, presenting your claim in a manner designed to maximize your recovery and handling all communications. Finally, if needed, your lawyer is a litigator, steering your case through the court system.
Q: Why do I need a “Personal Injury” Lawyer?
A: Personal injury claims can be complex and difficult. They require knowledge in many areas of law such as torts, contracts, insurance and litigation. Extensive knowledge of many areas of medicine is also required to be able to review, comprehend and analyze the hundreds of pages of medical records that many cases generate.
Personal injury claims have been the primary focus of my law practice for most of my 25 years as a lawyer. I have successfully handled hundreds of personal injury claims. I have written articles on handling injury claims, researched legal issues and jury verdicts relative to personal injury cases and taught other lawyers about handling personal injury claims at seminars. I belong to the Hamilton County Trial Lawyers Association and the Ohio Trial Lawyers Association, two groups of lawyers dedicated to protecting the rights of injured victims.
As an experienced Ohio personal injury lawyer, I can maximize your recovery in your personal injury case.
Q: What about property damage to my vehicle?
A: Insurers often try to minimize the monies paid to repair a vehicle – suggesting cheaper, off brand parts and components or the use of “special” repair shops on their “approved list.” In a ‘total loss” situation, you may disagree significantly with the insurer as to the value of your vehicle. Insurers, unfortunately, frequently make very low offers to settle your property damage claim.
Under Ohio law, you are entitled to your cost of repair, up to the “value” of your vehicle. You can choose who does the work on your vehicle. I work with many local dealers and shops to put together a package of information for the insurer that is designed to maximize what you receive for your vehicle.
Q: Why do you need an experienced Ohio TRIAL lawyer?
There are more than 40,000 lawyers in Ohio. Many have never tried a case to a jury. I have more than 25 years of trial experience and have been “Trial Counsel” in hundreds of cases. I have appeared in cases in many of Ohio’s 88 counties and have tried several cases to verdict during my career as a trial lawyer.
Unlike most personal injury lawyers, my legal experience covers both sides of the fence. Earlier in my career I spent several years as in-house trial counsel for a multi-billion dollar international insurer. I also worked as an insurance defense lawyer for an aggressive litigation law firm which handled cases for some 20 different insurance companies. This “insurance” experience provided me with an opportunity to watch insurance adjustors work and learn how decisions are made. I can put that knowledge to work for YOU as your Personal injury Lawyer!
Insurance companies know which lawyers try cases and which do not. I am not afraid to take your case to trial if that is what it takes to maximize the value of your personal injury accident claim. I have tried cases to verdict in many Ohio courtrooms. I remain fully involved and responsible for your case at all times.
Q: How soon after my accident should I call you?
A: Call me immediately. Do not talk to the other person’s insurance companies until after you have consulted a lawyer. I make a point of returning all calls and e-mails the day I receive them. If you have been injured in an accident you need to know right away what insurance coverage is in place to cover your medical expenses and lost wages.
Q: What are your fees for handling my personal injury claim? Are you going to bill me for the time you spend on the case?
A: I handle virtually all personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis. This means
I ONLY GET PAID WHEN I RECOVER MONEY FOR YOU. If there is no recovery there is no fee. I do not bill you for phone calls or for my time. You pay my fee at the end of the case
Q: Will I get to talk to YOU if I call 513-985-2500 or 888-883-2600?
A: Yes. I offer a FREE CONSULTATION on all accident claims. Every person who calls for a free consultation talks to me. I promptly return calls if I am unavailable but usually you will talk to me right away or later the same day.
Q: Should I call you even if I want to handle my claim myself?
A: Yes! While handling a case on your own can be risky I do recommend that in some smaller cases. I am happy to discuss your claim when you call and provide you with my insights and suggestions. If I think I can help you I will say so – if I think you are better off handling your claim on your own, I will honestly tell you so.
Q: Can I recover even if the other motorist never hit me?
A: Yes. Physical contact is NOT required for the motorist to be liable. People are frequently injured when they crash while taking evasive action to avoid a motor vehicle. Sometimes the other motorist does not bother to stop – or even KNOW that an accident occurred. The motorist can still be held liable if their negligence required you to take the evasive action.
Q: Can I recover even if the motorist’s insurer denies my claim?
A: Yes. A “denial” of your claim by an insurance adjustor may be based on an incorrect analysis of your claim by the insurer. The insurer may feel that you were at fault in a crash when you were not. If the insurer feels you were more at fault, it may “deny” your claim – this means the insurer simply refuses to pay. The insurer’s refusal to pay is sometimes jokingly referred to as the “WAP” defense – “We Ain’t Paying!”
The denial of a claim does not mean you cannot recover. In many cases, I have been able to re-open the claim after properly analyzing how the crash occurred. In cases where the insurer still refuses to consider the claim, only a lawsuit can move the claim forward. I have handled many cases which were initially denied but were then favorably settled after we filed suit. Sometimes the insurer needs a new voice – an insurance defense lawyer – to explain why it should settle.
Q: Does my own auto insurance cover accidents caused by someone else?
A: Your automobile insurance policy may cover you even if you are injured by another motorist. I will need to review your insurance policy before I can provide an complete answer. Frequently, though, coverage is available through the “uninsured/underinsured motorist” provisions or the “medical payments” provisions of your auto insurance policy if you are in a bicycle accident involving a motorist.
Q: Can I recover if the other driver had no insurance?
A: Yes. If you have uninsured motorist coverage, you may be able to recover money for your medical bills and pain and suffering even if the other driver had no insurance.
Q: How do I recover if the other driver only has “state minimum” coverage and my medical bills are more than the coverage?
A: Ohio’s “state minimum” coverage is only $12,500 and is one of the lowest in the country. Frequently, though, when an injured bicyclist’s medical bills and wage loss is calculated, the loss is approaches or exceeds $12,500.00. In such situations, the cyclist’s “underinsured motorist” coverage may apply. These claims can be very complex and a lawyer familiar with uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage should be consulted.
I have handled, and litigated, many complex insurance questions, including uninsured/underinsured motorist claims. Ohio courts have issued hundreds of decisions effecting such claims and familiarity with the current state of the law is critical to protecting YOUR rights.
Q: My health insurer has sent me a “subrogation” letter and seems to want me to pay money back! What is “subrogation”?
A: “Subrogation” is a very important and complex legal concept that arises in virtually every injury claim in which there is health insurance. The core of the concept of “subrogation” is that an injured party may be required to pay back his or her health insurer, auto insurer or disability insurer out of the proceeds of a personal injury claim settlement! If you try to handle your claim without a lawyer, you may not realize that you may have to pay back your insurer and you may settle for too little money. If your medical bills are paid by Medicare or Medicaid, there are specific laws which may require you pay back the government for accident-related medical bills. The possibility of a “subrogation” claim is one very important reason why you should contact a lawyer for advice on your bicycle accident claim!\
I have successfully resolved hundreds of “subrogation” issues for my clients. Frequently, if the proper arguments are aggressively made, subrogation claims can be negotiated such that the insurer takes no money, or less than it demands from you. This negotiation with your own insurers is part of the service I provide and another way I am able to maximize your recovery.
Q: How do I know if I have a good personal injury or accident claim?
A: You need to contact me and we can discuss your case. I offer a
FREE CONSULTATION about your claim.
Q: Should I accept an offer from an insurance company?
A: Without discussing your case with you in detail, it is impossible to know if the offer the insurer has made even comes close to the reasonable value of your claim. Remember, the insurance company’s representative is a well-trained, highly skilled advocate with an important job—to minimize the amount of money the insurer pays you.
Your claim is a “thing” which has a value in a very special marketplace –a marketplace where only a judge or jury can set the “true” value.
As your lawyer one of the “hats” is acting as an “appraiser” of claims for my clients. If you wanted to sell an old oil painting, ’65 Mustang or Pete Rose rookie baseball card, I would send you to an appropriate expert to have those “things” valued since I lack the training and experience to provide you with a reasonable value. I would tell you to NOT accept the word of the person who wanted to buy those things as to the true value!
With a personal injury accident injury claim, the same reasoning applies. The insurer wants to “buy” your claim. Unless you have training in law and medicine, and experience researching jury verdicts and trying cases, you probably do not fully understand the factors that make your claim more or less valuable and lack the ability to determine if the insurer’s offer is “in the ballpark” of the value of your claim.
My experience includes successfully resolving hundreds of cases over the past 25 years. I have put cases together from start to finish, researched legal and medical issues, consulted with appropriate experts, including bicycle accident reconstruction experts, visited the scenes of almost every accident I’ve been involved with, studied police reports, analyzed medical records, negotiated simple and complex cases and taken cases to trial. This experience and skill set provides me with the qualifications to analyze and maximize the recovery in YOUR claim!
Q: Will my case take up a lot of my time?
A: No. Once I take a case, I handle everything. We gather up all the paper, handle all dealings with the insurer and work to settle your claim. You will only need to keep my office informed of your treatment and recovery.
Once you have recovered and we have all of your documents, I will discuss my analysis of your case with you and together we will decide on a settlement negotiation strategy. I will discuss with you EVERY offer made by the insurer. YOU make the decision about whether to resolve the case or not.
In fact, some cases are resolved with only a few telephone calls with the client. If your case cannot be settled, and a lawsuit is needed, then your time involvement would increase.
Q: Will I have to go to trial?
A: Probably not. Over the years I have noted that I settle roughly 75-80% of all personal injury claims before a lawsuit is even filed. Of the 20-25% of cases in which a lawsuit is filed, only 1-2% of those ever get to “trial” as most are settled before trial. Unless your claim fits into that 1-2% of cases that cannot be settled short of trial, you can be reasonably assured that the likelihood of your going to trial is very slim.
Q: What types of accident and injury cases do you handle?
A: I handle virtually any Ohio case where someone is hurt or killed. These include personal injury, wrongful death and products liability cases, including:
- All types of crashes and collisions involving cars, trucks, busses, semi’s, bicycles, recumbents, scooters, wheelchairs, rollerblades, mopeds and motorized bicycles.
- Dog attacks
- Product Liability claims
- Explosions
- Plane Crashes
- Wrongful Death
- Brain Injuries
- Catastrophic Injury claims
- Burns
- Fractures
- Disc Injuries – Bulging discs, Herniated discs
- Nerve Damage
- Surgery
- ATV accidents
Q: Where in OHIO do you handle cases?
A: I have handled hundreds of personal injury and accident cases throughout southern Ohio, including Cincinnati, Dayton, Hamilton, Middletown, Batavia, Lebanon, Georgetown, Hamilton County, Clermont County, Butler County, Warren County, Brown County, Highland County and Adams County. I have handled cases throughout Ohio, including Cleveland, Columbus, Toledo, Zanesville, Bellefontaine, Marietta, Portsmouth, Ironton and Troy. I provide a
FREE CONSULTATION about personal injury, accident or bicycle cases to EVERYONE!
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