Preparing To Meet With A Workers' Comp Lawyer

Marc Stookal

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It can be a big waste of time for both you and the lawyer if you aren't prepared for your first meeting. Being unprepared may also end up costing you money, because it will take longer for the lawyer you hire to get up to speed on your legal matter.

The lawyer will want to know who you are and how to contact you. Be sure the lawyer has your:

• Home address
• Work address
• Home phone
• Work phone
• Cell phone and/or pager
• Fax number
• Email address

You'll want to prepare a chronological summary of the facts leading up to your decision to meet with a lawyer. Important facts include:

• Your date of hire
• Your date of accident
• The exact name and address of your employer
• The salary that you were paid as of the date of accident and for a period of one year prior to the accident
• Detailed information about the injury you sustained. You should bring any medical records you have.
• The location of the injury, such as "in the main plant", "at machine #102", in the steam building".
• The name of the supervisor you notified of the accident
• The events leading to your injury and how the injury happened
• The first date that you were unable to work
• Your return to work date, if applicable
• The name of the workers' compensation carrier, their contact information and your file number
• If you have any correspondence from the carrier bring that to the first meeting. Dates are very important. You must be accurate.
• Get a calendar and mark down dates of when things happen and when you receive any notices or other documents. Bring the calendar to your meeting to use as a reference.
• A chronological list of your medical providers, including names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of treatments, types of treatments, testing information and future medical treatments. This is one of the most important parts of the attorney's evaluation of your claim.
• Information regarding prior injuries, both work- and non-work related
• If a machine or possible product was involved in the injury, be prepared to provide information such as type of machine, model number and age of the machine
• Performance evaluations
• Employee handbook
• All correspondence relating to the matter
• Witness statements

Spend some time thinking about what you may have on hand. Try to organize the documents in a logical manner before you meet with the lawyer.

Sometimes, a lawyer may also try to speed the information gathering process by sending you a questionnaire to fill out in advance of any meeting. If this happens, be sure to fill out the questionnaire and send it in to the lawyer's office before the meeting. Also send along copies of any available documents that may be requested in the questionnaire.

You should bring a list of other employees who may be witnesses.

You'll want to prepare questions to ask of the lawyer. These will usually be related to achieving your goals, since the main point of getting legal advice is to understand your rights. In theory, no question is too silly to ask. Keep in mind, though, that you don't want to scare a lawyer out of representing you. Questions you might ask a lawyer would include:

• What would the lawyer like to see in order to evaluate your case?
• What are your options, both legal and non-legal?
• How many similar cases has he or she handled?
• What percent of his or her practice is in the area of expertise that you need?
• Does the lawyer usually represent employers or employees?
• What problems does the lawyer foresee with your case?
• How would the lawyer go about handling your situation? What is the process?
• How long will it take to bring the matter to a conclusion?
• Would the lawyer handle the case personally or would it be passed on to some other lawyer in the firm? If other lawyers or staff may do some of the work, could you meet them?

Marc Stookal is a partner with the law firm of Nilson, Stookal, Gleason & Caputo, Ltd. in Chicago, IL.

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