The days, weeks, and even months following a personal injury can be difficult, to say the least. If you’re considering working with a personal injury lawyer to pursue compensation, it’s important to know what you can expect before, during, and after your case. Below, we’ll discuss five things you should be prepared to discuss with your attorney as the case gets started.

If you need to speak to an experienced injury attorney in Atlanta, contact Fairell Roy & Associates for a consultation. We provide dedicated legal representation for victims of car accidents, truck accidents, slip-and-fall accidents, and many other injuries.

It’s extremely important to be upfront and honest about previous injuries you’ve suffered before pursuing compensation for a new one. The opposing party’s insurance adjuster may try to claim that you sustained your current injuries in a previous accident, and your attorney will need to have access to your medical history in order to argue otherwise. You will also need to tell your attorney if you have suffered any injuries between the time the accident occurred and the time you filed your claim.

One of the best ways to support your attorney as they gather evidence is to journal about and document the injuries sustained in your accident. The more details you can provide about the injuries and how they’re affecting your life, the more equipped your attorney will be to defend you from the opposition and pursue compensation on your behalf.

Your attorney will also need to know if you’ve made prior insurance claims for accidents and injuries. There’s nothing wrong with pursuing multiple legitimate personal injury claims, but you don’t want your attorney to be caught off guard if the opposition brings previous filings to light. In the worst-case scenario, failing to disclose crucial information could result in your case being dismissed.

Previous insurance claims and injuries aren’t the only things the opposition will examine as you pursue your case — they’ll look into your criminal history as well. Remember, they’re looking for evidence that supports a lower payout or a total dismissal of your case, and painting victims as untrustworthy people because of a criminal background is a common tactic.

If you’ve ever been charged with a misdemeanor or felony, it’s important to provide your attorney with as much information as possible so that they can prepare for any questions that might come up. Moreover, if your case goes to trial, they can help you prepare for questions you might be asked while under oath.

As you can probably guess by this point, your personal injury attorney needs to know everything about your life that could become relevant in the case, and your financial circumstances are certainly no exception. If you’ve declared bankruptcy, there’s a chance that some, or all, of the damages awarded could be considered assets and taken by creditors. A skilled attorney may be able to negotiate on your behalf and argue that certain damages should be exempt, but they need to know the entire situation before they can help.

First and foremost, any hard feelings between you and your spouse could affect your case if they’re called to testify. You and your attorney could mount a defense, of course, but your time would be better spent on offense.

Your case could also be affected by the cause of your divorce. If your spouse has decided to leave you because of your injury, for instance, then your attorney may be able to use your circumstances to pursue additional non-economic damages.

Regardless of the cause, your attorney needs to know about current or future plans to divorce to protect and plan for any compensation you may receive. In some cases, part of your compensation could be awarded to your spouse.

Fairell Roy & Associates is also a family law firm. If divorce is a factor in your personal injury case, know that our team is in an excellent position to evaluate your options and help you pursue the best possible outcome.

These are just a few of the many things you should plan to discuss with your personal injury attorney as you pursue a claim. We’ll revisit this topic in more depth in the coming weeks and months, so make sure that you follow our blog and like our page on Facebook.

If you would like to get started with a consultation, contact us online or call our personal injury law firm. As you can see from our testimonials , we provide clients with aggressive representation and dedicated support that puts their needs first.

Let our skilled team help you pursue the compensation you need to recover and put your accident in the past.