Five Reasons to Delay Contacting a Medical Malpractice Lawyer
1. Avoid paying a big up-front lawyer’s fee before knowing if you need a lawyer at all.
Experienced malpractice lawyers frequently request initial retainers in the $5,000 – $8,000 range. This gets you to exactly the same decision point as our Formal Report, so Malpractice Check offers much greater value at 10% of their retainer.
2. You may not find out if malpractice actually happened
“The Free Screening Interview”
Lawyers often advertise that they offer a ‘FREE’ initial screening interview, but they are mainly screening for how much the case may be worth — the ‘Big Case’ with large potential damages. If the final settlement is likely to be too low, it can be a waste of a lawyer’s time and money to determine if malpractice took place or not, and so you may never get to discuss the medical issues and know the truth.
3. Paralegal, junior lawyer, or nurse may assess your case
The “Free Medical Opinion”
Even if you do get to actually discuss the problem, the junior staffers who interview you are usually inexperienced in medical matters, and may reject your case because they are not medical specialists. Your case may be lost right there due to an inexperienced review.
Lawyers should not assess medical matters, and doctors should certainly not direct legal cases. Obviously the two professions should closely cooperate within their respective spheres of expertise, but in a logical sequence of involvement: Medicine first, Law second.
Our formal report undergoes a blind quality assurance review by our Medical Director and team before release.
4. You reduce the risks of signing a binding legal contract
“Contract Traps”
There are many reputable medical malpractice lawyers, many of whom we work with, but it is still prudent to carefully ‘Read the Fine Print’!
Hidden fees are not unusual. ‘No Fee’ may just mean no initial lawyer’s fees, but you may have to pay very significant ongoing ‘disbursements’ for the expert medical opinions they may arrange.
‘No Win – No Fee’ and ‘Contingency’ Realities
These enticements can be quite seductive and imply no risk to you – but the risk can actually be quite significant.
A lawyer will be spending a lot of money on your behalf, but if halfway through the process you or the lawyer want to terminate the agreement you signed, then you will be immediately liable for ALL the costs to date: lawyer’s time, expert opinions, etc. This could be a substantial sum. Relationships really do matter, and you may just not be getting along with your lawyer.
Furthermore, until the lawyer’s professional services are paid in full, there will be a ‘lawyer’s lien’ on your file; which means you will have great difficulty finding another lawyer to take on your case.
5. You remain in control – you may not need a lawyer at all
You may not need a lawyer at all if our Formal Report finds that there may be insufficient evidence that medical malpractice occurred, or if you’re just seeking peace of mind with no intention of suing for compensation.
All of the above are reasons to delay signing a client engagement/retainer agreement/contract with a lawyer until you obtain an affordable, expert and honest medical opinion, directly from Malpractice Check, and only then consider your next steps.
You must, however, remember that generally speaking a lawsuit must be started within two years of the event, depending on the jurisdiction. There are important exceptions to this general rule that usually only an experienced malpractice lawyer can advise you about.