Practice tip – find out insurance policy limits before negotiating

STOP!!!! Before you order medical records, hire experts, draft a demand letter, etc!!
Find out the limits of the defendant’s auto insurance policy first. Why spend a bunch of money if the medical bills are at or above the policy limits? Find out what you’re dealing with first – here’s how:
215 ILCS 5/143.24b provides that an [...]

Important Ethics Opinion for Illinois Attorneys and Personal Injury Settlements

Here’s a common situation in the personal injury context: Plaintiff’s attorney negotiates settlement with the defendant’s insurance company. The parties strike a deal, but only on the condition that the plaintiff’s attorney guarantee to pay all liens and subrogation interests out of the settlement proceeds. No problem, especially since the attorney would pay the liens [...]

Specialization – good or bad?

As I tell people all of the time, I’m a personal injury and workers compensation attorney in Rock Island, Illinois. Our firm does personal injury, workers compensation, and medical malpractice. That’s it. No wills, no divorces, no criminal law, etc.
Some people believe that specialization is bad. I guess this is the old-time view of the [...]

Lawyers have nightmares

I was talking to my boss the other day about having nightmares about cases. It’s common, I’ve heard for all lawyers to wake up during the night, worried about cases, statute dates, discovery, juries, etc.
And from what I’ve heard, it only gets worse.
I woke up in a sweat a few days ago, fearing that I [...]