Q. Tell us about yourself and your practice.
A. I originally moved to Pittsburgh to attend Carnegie Mellon University. I met my wife while in college and have lived here ever since, attending law school at Duquesne University. As a lawyer, I spent several years working in insurance and commercial litigation before deciding to open my own firm. My wife, son, daughter and I live in the suburbs, with our three dogs and cat.
Q. Do you offer free initial consultations?
A. Personal injury cases are normally handled on a contingent basis; therefore attorney fees and costs are deducted from any recovery. This provides individuals, who might not otherwise be able to afford to pursue a case to have their day in court.
Q. If a mom asked you to tell us what does personal injury mean what would you say?
A. Personal injury can have several meanings. In the context of a lawsuit “ personal injury” refers to a case in which an individual has suffered a physical (or mental) injury as a result of the negligent or deliberate conduct of a third party.
Q. Do you accept any of the pre-paid “ legal plans” that are offered to help with legal fees?
A. No. However, as most personal injury cases are handled on a contingent (i.e. %) basis there are no up-front legal fees to deal with.
Q. What is the process to file a personal injury lawsuit?
A. Once an individual meets with an attorney, the attorney will draft a lawsuit for his/her review and approval. The individual will verify that the facts contained in the complaint are accurate to the best of his/her knowledge, before the complaint is filed with the court. In state court , if the individual defendant is located in Pennsylvania, service is handled by the sheriff of the county in which the defendant resides. Upon service of the complaint, the defendant has twenty days to file a response with the court.
Q. How soon should one file a lawsuit?
A. This can vary from state to state. In Pennsylvania most personal injury claims have a 2-year statute of limitations. This generally means that suit must be filed within 2 years of the accident. It is advisable to contact an attorney following any accident, so that you can determine the appropriate statute of limitations.
Q. From a legal standpoint what is the meaning of pain and suffering?
A. Pain and suffering refers to those damages which cannot be calculated in definite monetary terms. Pain and suffering refers to those intangible aspects of damages such as the trauma,anguish , humiliation or ongoing pain that normally accompany a physical injury. This is in contrast to such items as lost wages or medical bills which can easily be calculated to specific dollar amounts.
Q. Can a person recover damages for injuries sustained on someone else's property?
A. Depending on where you are and why you are there, there are different standards for recovery based on accidents sustained on the property of others. As a general rule, if you are injured on someone else’ s property due to their negligence there is a possibility of recovery.
Q. How does one decide if he/she needs to hire an Attorney?
A. In order to protect your rights you should contact an attorney, as soon as possible following an accident. Information and evidence regarding an accident becomes harder to obtain, the longer you wait after an accident. Even if you don’ t file suit right away, you want to make sure that you are in a position to collect and preserve all available evidence for later use. In addition insurance companies and defendants are generally more responsive to an attorney as opposed to an individual, who is attempting to handle his/her claim on his/her own.
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