In the vast majority of cases our clients are our friends, and if they do not start out that way the relationship often progresses to that point. Given these circumstances, lawyers are rarely asked to solve only one problem for a client. We are often brought deeper and deeper into their personal lives. Sometimes this is necessary to adequately represent the client and solve their problems. Occasionally we face the situation where the line between a legitimate inquiry into the client's personal life and what is none of our business becomes blurred.
Domestic abuse is such an issue.
While inquiries about domestic abuse are expected in a dissolution case, it should also be part of every plaintiff attorney's repertoire. In my experience with personal injury and workers' compensation cases, domestic abuse has not been given serious thought by trial lawyers outside of their general recognition that it is a significant public policy issue. However, trial lawyers make a tremendous mistake if they think that domestic abuse does not affect the outcome of their clients' cases. In fact, the success or failure of a client's personal injury or compensation case often hinges on determining whether or not domestic abuse exists. What originally began as an isolated follow-up to a reference to domestic abuse in a medical record has now become a standard question that I ask in every case involving a workers' compensation claim by a woman with an upper body injury.