General Questions

(Q.) What if the Other Party (or their insurance) Contacts Me?

(A.) Advise them that you are represented by David Allen & Associates and give them our telephone number - we'll take it from there. Do not answer their questions about the incident or your condition.

(Q.) I lost my diary booklet - what was I supposed to record?

(A.) How the incident made you feel, what changes you made in your life due to your injuries, the treatment you are receiving, any other notes that you feel will help someone understand how your injuries affect you.

(Q.) What is Litigation?

(A.) This means that a lawsuit has been filed on your behalf against the adverse party. When a lawsuit is filed, a formal Complaint is prepared that summarizes the facts of your case and makes certain allegations about how the incident occurred, and what relief we are seeking in the court system. The Complaint is filed, it is then served on the adverse party. After the adverse party, now known as a Defendant, is served, that party has to respond to the Complaint with an Answer, which is a formal response to the allegations made in the Complaint. The Answer presents the defenses to the claim.

After the Complaint has been filed and the Answer received, a number of things happen, according to court rules. One of the major differences between the management of the case pre-litigation and the management of the case after it has been filed is that Court rules govern what we do and what we can not do.

After the initial Complaint and Answer, each side enters into a stage known as "discovery". Discovery consists of an exchange of information between the two sides so that you, now known as "Plaintiff", present information through a series of "interrogatories", which are questions asking about your case. These are questions which must be answered under oath and penalty of perjury. When these interrogatories are received, we will mail them to you and ask you to write out the answers to each question as fully and truthfully as possible. These answers must be returned to us within 10 days. An appointment will be scheduled for you to come to the office and we will assist in the preparation of the final answers. It is very important that you return the answers on time and keep your appointment. There is a deadline imposed by the Court. Failure to comply could result in monetary sanctions being imposed against your case by the Court.

You most likely will also be asked to produce certain documents, and perhaps will be asked to see a doctor chosen by the defense counsel to examine you with respect to your injuries. During the discovery process, we also will be obtaining information from the defendant. The entire process is intended to exchange information and to reduce the number of disputed issues down to those which are truly in question, and which need to either be heard by an Arbitrator or a Jury.

Part of the discovery process includes formal depositions, which are oral statements, under oath, given with a court reporter present. Your attorney will represent you in that proceeding in which you are asked questions by the defense attorney.

The litigation process can be a long and arduous one. This process can take a year or longer in certain instances. You should be prepared for long delays and time when it seems that nothing is going on in your case. Part of this is due to the restrictions imposed by the court system. For instance, the defense has 30 days in which to answer our Complaint. Very seldom will a defendant respond in less than 30 days. During that time, there is very little that we can do to speed up the process.

We will inform you when something is happening that requires your participation or response. You will be in contact with the attorney who is responsible for management of your case, as well as our paralegal who should be able to give you information as to status of your claim. Please be patient with our staff as we have many cases in litigation. Each case has a certain moment when it is the most important case on the docket. When interrogatories need to be responded to, when depositions are taken, when arbitration is imminent, or when the case goes to trial, your case is getting the full resources of our office. During times when we are waiting for the defendant's reply, there is nothing we can do except abide by the time limits imposed by the Court.

Be assured that we are giving your case all the attention necessary in order to bring it to a prompt and fair resolution. Your case may be brought to arbitration, which is a less formal dispute resolution process than trial. After arbitration, your case may also proceed to a jury trial. Of course, the attorney will always be watching the case for opportune times to settle the matter. We ask that you exercise patience with this process, which we understand is frustrating to many plaintiffs. You have been injured. Your injury was caused by someone other than yourself. We know you are anxious for a resolution. Your goals and ours are identical.

Since your case has moved into the litigation stage it is very important that we be able to contact you. If you move, change phone numbers, or are going on vacation and will be out of the area, please contact our office and advise us of these circumstances so we can maintain contact with you at all times.

(Q.) Will an Uninsured or Underinsured Motorist Claim Raise My Rates?

(A.) It should not. If you discover that your rates have been raised, contact your insurance company and ask why, if it is a result of the accident for which you were not at fault, let us know and we will talk to your insurance company about this.

(Q.) Will the Other Side Want to Talk to Me?

(A.) If your case goes into litigation, part of the discovery process includes formal depositions, which are oral statements, under oath, given with a court reporter present. Your attorney will represent you in that proceeding in which you are asked questions by the defense attorney.

Before litigation begins, the insurance company will contact you to take your statement, NEVER talk to an insurance company without your attorney present. The insurance company represents the person who has hurt you. It is their business to collect premiums, not to pay claims. The insurance company will try and get information from you which will allow to deny your claim.

(Q.) What if I Have a Different Question?

(A.) Just call or email us and we'll do our best to answer it!

(Q.) I forgot the name of the person Handling My Case was!

(A.) Just call or email us with your name and we can tell you!

(Q.) Why isn't my call always returned the same day?

(A.) Working on your case! Legal practice is often a waiting game. Your case manager will call or send a letter to the adverse party, insurance company, or medical provider, and then wait for a response. However, the first and most important wait is for you to finish the treatment recommended by your doctor. Your case manager cannot settle your case until the scope of your treatment and injury are known. This is why it is so important for you to let us know how you are doing on a regular basis.

(Q.) I can't afford medical treatment - what do I do?

(A.) It is often possible for this office to arrange a lien for your medical treatment. This means we contact the medical provider and offer to pay them when your case is settled. If your doctor has recommended treatment you cannot afford, don't hesitate, let us know! We may be able to help.

(Q.) What If I Need to Tell You Something and Can't Reach You by Telephone?

(A.) You can always call and leave a message with voicemail, or email and someone will return your call. Your e-mail will be attended most efficiently.

(Q.) I Don't Think My Doctor is listening to Me, What Can I Do?

(A.) Let us know ASAP!

(Q.) What if My Doctor Has a Question?

(A.) Just give them our telephone number or email address and we'll do our best to answer - or you can relay the question for them.