In your mind, retaining an attorney may seem like a needless waste of money particularly if you feel you can settle the case yourself. In this column, we will examine when and if it is necessary to obtain an attorney when you have been involved in an accident. In doing so, we will also provide you with a framework to help you estimate how much your claim may be worth and will tell you what both attorneys and insurance companies don't want you to know. If you are involved in an accident, there are two legal concepts you must understand before you can make an intelligent decision as to whether you should retain an attorney or how much your case may be worth. Legal liability defines who caused the accident.
Liability is often easy to determine.
In a typical automobile accident one party will be cited for a traffic violation in connection with an accident. For example, assume that Driver A is sitting at a red light in his car headed south on a street. Driver B is operating his motor vehicle on the same street directly behind Driver A. Driver B is not paying attention to what he is doing and hits the back of Driver A's vehicle while Driver A is stopped at the red light. In this situation, Driver B has failed to maintain a safe distance from Driver A and would be cited for causing the accident. In certain situations, both parties may be partially liable for an accident.