Oregon Personal Injury Legal Questions

If you are wondering whether you can have copies of lawyer related documents you have signed then the answer is "yes". A lawyer has a professional and ethical obligation to keep their client reasonably informed. My advice is simply to ask for copies of what you want. Court filed documents are open to the public for inspection and copying as well.... Read More

Different jurisdictions have different rules with respect to the deposit of settlement or verdict monies/awards for minors. It also depends upon the financial institution where the monies are deposited. If the "bank" won't release the funds to you upon showing your ID then look first at the disbursement is set out in the court order restricting the funds in the first place. You can always go in front of the probate or similar commissioner or judge and request an order of disbursement now that you are 18. You would want to go to the court jurisdiction where the restriction was made in the first place. Explain to the judge or commissioner the situation and I would bet that you get an order that you can present to the bank and get your settlement bucks.... Read More

Almost every day we get a request for evaluation of a claim. We cannot respond to such a request, as there are simply too many elements to be considered. These include percentage of fault, age and health and background of the claimant, the nature of the injury, the treatment, the diagnosis, the prognosis, the cost of the treatment, and the outcome. Also to be taken into account in some cases are the amount and type of insurance coverage and the name of the insurance company. Most attorneys offer a free conference. We suggest that you talk to a few lawyers. Also, you should know that an independent study showed that claimants did better, even after fees, with a lawyer than without.... Read More

As you are describing your case as a "slip and fall" case, I am assuming that you have a contingency fee attorney-client retainer agreement with your attorney. If there is no written agreement, you should probably call the Oregon State Bar as written agreements with very specific disclosures are required in such cases. If, on the other hand, you have an hourly fee attorney-client retainer agreement, that written document should set forth the terms and conditions under which your initial retainer is applied to the attorney's hourly fee for work actually performed. In this case you should be getting statement from the attorney detailing exactly how the $6,000 retainer was applied to the work performed. Again, if there is no written retainer agreement you really need to contact the state bar. If there is a written fee agreement but you are unhappy about how the lawyer is not giving you the right information, the state bar has a fee arbitration service you can contact through the state bar's website.... Read More