Hey SIRI, find me an Accident lawyer! Do you really think it’s that easy with Siri and Chat GPT? Lawyers advertise: Call Me if you have been in an accident, or …I will get you maximum recovery! Most will tell you the same thing…get medical treatment, take your car to a body shop, don’t talk or sign anything etc. However, it’s not that easy, though 50 years ago, as a young PI lawyer, I thought that was all there was to it.
I learned there was more to a PI case than seeing a chiro, and in those days settling for 3 times the meds… which is sadly no longer the case with most ins co’s. I had not yet learned about how to maximize a recovery. I was yet to learn about the psychological overlay when you drive and hear breaks screech, constantly look in the rear and side view mirrors, or have nightmares about the accident etc.
I didn’t know how to maximize a recovery with Loss of Past Earnings AND loss of Future Earnings, let alone future medical issues that could surface in 6 months to a few years. I didn’t understand why the plaintiff should not let their next door neighbor fix their car at a discount or why, when they were driving an expensive MBZ, they should not be limited to $35-50 a day the insurance company offers…for a cheap rental, when they should be able to rent a comparable car.
Many victims, thinking they are ok, later have problems, and then it is hard to prove they were from the accident. Many say, the most beautiful curve on a woman’s body is her smile, which disappears after an accident. Though she may initially think she is ok, she should still get a complete medical exam from a Doc who focuses on PI’s. An accident victim needs a doctor who understands symptoms don’t always surface the week after an accident and then knows how to document them in a med/legal report.
As a young lawyer I didn’t understand how important the med/legal report was, in addition to finding a specialized doctor, including an ortho and psychologist. For decades Gribow has advocated retaining a lawyer who can “assist” your doctor, many of whom were not taught how to a write a medical legal report in “Their Medical School.” This report is the single most important factor in getting more money for an injury victim and should be written as a report, not a summary of notes. Most “local” doctors fall into this category…and have unknowingly been writing reports wrong for years,…thus unknowingly decreasing the value of their Greater Palm Springs patient’s Accident cases. When that happens the lawyer has to beg the doctor to cut his/her bill. The chances are your doctor is one of these docs.
There is an art to writing a helpful med legal report. For years Gribow was a Faculty member at the International College of Orthopedic Surgeons, teaching “How to Write a Med/Legal Report” at their Annual Conference in Beverly Hills. Each doctor was gifted his 50 page Treating Physicians Manual, providing an “update on the management of back pain and back injury.” Most doctors don’t realize that stating the patient has recovered and is ok, or symptom free…is the KISS OF DEATH for the client… and attorney. Instead, they should consider, “Prognosis is Guarded.”
Doctors must understand the Insurance companies only pay those damages the patient is able to prove are from the accident. When describing your injuries, it’s best not to say “I can’t do…” Instead consider, “It hurts when I try to…”; “I am not able to do it as well”. The Medical Report arguably should read, there is a 50% chance, the patient will not make a full recovery, rather than a 50% chance of a full recovery. Gribow has also lectured to local colleges.
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Dale Gribow, Attorney at Law, is a distinguished “Boutique Concierge” CV PI/DUI firm, with over 25 “TOP LAWYER” AWARDS; 4 “Dale Gribow Days”; 8 “Man of the Year” Awards” (City of Palm Desert, City of Hope and California Senate)…and awarded “Mr. Charity.” He limits the caseload allowing calls to be answered and returned, the “OLD FASHIONED” way…by Dale, not an assistant.
Future columns ideas, contact Dale Gribow 760 837-7500/ dale@dalegribowlaw.com
