Okay, so you just got in an accident and everyone’s telling you to get a lawyer. You’ve decided to hire an injury lawyer—now what actually happens next?
I’m gonna walk you through the entire journey your case takes, step by step. From that first phone call to potentially sitting in a courtroom. We’ll break down each stage so you know exactly what to expect and why. Because here’s the thing – most people have no clue what they’re signing up for, and that uncertainty can be way scarier than the actual process.
So let’s start with that first meeting.
Your First Meeting: What Actually Happens
You made the call and now you’re sitting across from this lawyer. But what are they actually looking for? Most people think lawyers just want to know about the accident, but there’s way more happening in that room.
The attorney is basically playing detective. They’re asking about your injuries, sure, but they’re also figuring out if your case is even worth taking. Like, they want to know every single detail about what happened, but they’re also listening for red flags that might make your case a nightmare to handle.
Here’s what’s wild – they’re evaluating liability strength by assessing whether the defendant breached their duty of care, measuring your injury severity in terms of economic and non-economic damages, and calculating the cost of investigation based on those factors. If your injuries are minor but the case looks super complicated, they might pass. If your injuries are serious but the other driver was clearly at fault, you’re probably getting a yes.
They’ll ask you to bring police reports, medical records, and photos – basically key documents that prove what happened, and these records are protected by attorney-client privilege. The more documentation you have, the better your case looks. But here’s the thing nobody tells you – they’re also watching how you tell your story, because that’s exactly how you’ll sound to a jury later.
You know how some people get all flustered when they talk about stressful stuff? Your lawyer is taking notes on that. They need to know if you can handle tough questions from the other side’s attorney. Can you stick to the facts? Do you come across as honest and reliable?
The consultation is free because they’re interviewing you just as much as you’re interviewing them. They need to know if you’re someone they can work with for months or even years. Attorneys gauge clients’ communication needs to ensure expectations align from the start.
Attorneys review publicly available posts to ensure your claims about injury align with what you share online. If you’re posting pictures of yourself doing physical activities right after claiming you can’t work because of back pain, that’s a problem. They’ll straight up tell you to clean up your online presence or they won’t take your case.
The attorney is also thinking about their workload and whether they have the resources to handle your specific type of case. Some lawyers focus on car accidents, others handle slip and falls. They want cases that fit their expertise.
By the end of that meeting, you’ll know if they think your case is strong and what your next steps look like. In Nevada, contingency agreements are written and typically range from 33-40% of recovery. They’ll also give you a realistic timeline, which is usually way longer than people expect.
And if they decide to take your case, the real detective work starts.
The Investigation Phase: Building Your Case Behind the Scenes
This is where your attorney transforms into a full-scale investigative operation. While you’re recovering, your lawyer is out there gathering evidence you probably didn’t even know existed.
They’re pulling surveillance footage from nearby businesses. You know those cameras outside gas stations and stores? Your attorney issues preservation letters to prevent destruction of footage or records, then calls every single place within a few blocks of your accident. They’re asking for footage from that day, and honestly, some of these cameras catch way more than you’d think. Sometimes they get lucky and find video that shows exactly what happened.
They also canvass the area to find eyewitnesses, often reaching out to bystanders and local businesses. Not just the people who stuck around to give statements to the police. They check with people who work nearby, delivery drivers who might have been in the area, even people walking their dogs.
Here’s something crazy – they might hire accident reconstruction specialists who use crash data recorders and detailed measurements. These experts look at skid marks, damage patterns, and even the physics of how the cars moved after impact. This helps confirm speed or impact angles, showing if someone was speeding or if they hit their brakes before the crash.
Your medical records become crucial evidence. Your attorney requests ER reports, physical therapy records, and future care plans to link each treatment directly to the accident under what’s called the eggshell plaintiff rule. They need to connect every injury to the crash, not something you might have had before.
They’re also dealing with the insurance companies, but not the way you think. They’re not just making phone calls asking for money. They’re actually building a case file to prove why you deserve compensation. Every doctor’s note, every missed day of work, every prescription – it all becomes evidence.
Sometimes attorneys consult economists for future lost earnings calculations. Like, if you can’t go back to your old job because of back problems, they figure out how much less you’ll earn for the rest of your career based on vocational expert analysis.
The whole time, they’re documenting everything because they know the insurance company is going to fight them on every dollar. They take photos of your injuries as they heal. They keep track of every medical appointment you miss work for. They even document how your injuries affect your daily life.
This investigation phase creates the foundation that makes insurance companies take your case seriously. Without all this evidence, you’d be at their mercy. And once this file is complete, the real battle begins.
Negotiation and Beyond: When Things Get Real
Your attorney starts the negotiation phase by sending a comprehensive demand package once you reach maximum medical improvement. This package includes a liability explanation, economic and non-economic damage summaries, and exhibits like medical records, photos of your injuries, statements from your doctors about your future treatment needs, and calculations showing how much money you’ve lost from missing work.
The insurance company will come back with a lowball offer, and this is where most people would panic and take whatever they can get. Like, they might offer you five thousand dollars when your medical bills alone are fifteen thousand. It’s pretty insulting, but your attorney expected this.
Your attorney knows this is just the opening move in a structured pre-litigation phase that often involves multiple counteroffers. They’ll counter with their own number, usually higher than what they actually expect to get. Then the insurance company comes back with a slightly better offer, and your attorney counters again. This back and forth can happen like ten times before anyone gets serious.
Here’s something powerful – in Nevada, unreasonable delay or denial can lead to a bad-faith claim, giving attorneys serious leverage against insurance company tactics. If negotiations stall completely, they’ll file a lawsuit, which totally changes the game because filing triggers the discovery process where both sides must exchange evidence under court rules.
Suddenly that insurance adjuster who was being difficult isn’t making the decisions anymore. Now there are defense attorneys involved, and they know that going to trial costs way more than settling.
During discovery, your attorney might take depositions where they question the other driver under oath. Common discovery tools include interrogatories and requests for production. They’ll ask about what happened that day, whether the driver was texting, if they’d been drinking, stuff like that. Your attorney is looking for any details that make the other driver look worse.
The insurance company’s lawyers will also want to take your deposition. They’ll ask you questions under oath about your injuries, your medical history, and how the accident affected your life. Your attorney will prepare you for this because these lawyers are pretty good at trying to trip you up.
Most cases settle before trial, but if yours doesn’t, your attorney will present your story to a jury who decides how much you deserve. They’ll show photos of your injuries, bring in your doctors to testify, and basically make the jury understand exactly what you went through.
This whole process might seem overwhelming, but that’s exactly the point.
Conclusion
Having an attorney means you’re not navigating this complex system alone. The legal process isn’t as scary as it seems when you know what’s actually happening behind the scenes. Your attorney is basically your guide through a system that’s designed to confuse and overwhelm regular people.
They handle all the complicated stuff while you focus on getting better. They know which forms to file, how to talk to insurance companies, and what your case is actually worth. Plus, they must act in your best interest and communicate clearly under professional conduct rules.
Without a lawyer’s expertise in evidence preservation, negotiation, and courtroom rules, you risk leaving money on the table. If this breakdown helped you feel more confident, hit like and subscribe for more legal clarity.
