You have an attorney for your aircraft accident / burn injury case; Now what?

9. Keep your California aircraft accident attorney advised of any residence changes or telephone number changes and vacation dates or other times when you will not be available. Provide him with the name, address, and telephone number of a relative or close friend who will always know your whereabouts.

10. Once you have retained a California aircraft accident attorney, do not communicate with the other party or his insurance company except concerning the property damage to your vehicle (if your attorney is not representing you on the property damage aspect of your claim, as is the normal case). For instance, if you were accidentally burned, the insurance company may want to ask you about your burn injury. Do not discuss your injuries or the accident with anyone unless you have discussed it with your California aircraft accident attorney first and he agrees you may discuss it with a specific person. Direct all inquiries to your attorney. You may communicate with your insurance company and answer any questions asked of you after you have cleared approval from your attorney (except in the case where both parties are represented by the same insurance company). This is purely for your protection and avoids pitfalls that can arise from misguided communication. In one aircraft accident case we handled the insurance investigators for the defendant almost arrived before the NTSB.

11. If you have health insurance, provide this information to all the health care providers with whom you are treating and ask them to bill your insurance directly.

12. There may be times of little contact between you and your California personal accident attorney. This does not necessarily mean your California personal accident lawyer has forgotten or neglected you. Rather, he will be engaging in some or all of the following:
a. Communicating with your doctors and other health care providers to monitor your physical condition;
b. Conducting an investigation of the factual circumstances of your case;
c. Taking witness statements if possible;
d. Taking client statements;
e. Videotaping and photographing the accident scene where necessary;
f. Researching applicable law in your case and applying it to facts as necessary.

13. Meanwhile, keep a record of your pain and any resulting mental distress in a diary or calendar. Your diligence in keeping a record of your physical condition can greatly affect the value of your claim, and may ultimately affect the amount of money you receive. Should your case need to be litigated, your diary may be admissible as evidence and, moreover, may assist you in answering questions about your injuries and recovery (facts can easily be forgotten as time passes). Since such a diary may be admissible, take care to make accurate entries.

14. If your injuries prevent you from returning to work, you may be entitled to sick leave from your employer, disability insurance (if you have it), workers compensation, or state disability. Should you be unable to work, your California personal lawyer should encourage you to contact the proper entity about benefits that may be available to you.

Should Your Attorney File Suit Immediately?
An experienced California personal accident attorney will make one of the following threshold decisions on your case: