At Berman & Simmons, we get hundreds of inquiries a year. Unfortunately, there are many cases we don’t take on due to a variety of circumstances. Here is some information about the cases we handle, how to prepare for your first call to our firm and the information we need from you during the intake process.
Cases We Handle
We focus on personal injury law and our goal is to seek justice and compensation for people who have suffered serious injuries or have died due to others’ negligence. Our trial attorneys specialize in lawsuits involving:
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Cases We Don’t Handle
We get many inquiries about cases we don’t handle or those outside of our practice areas. To save you time, before you contact us, please check this list of cases we DO NOT handle.
What to Expect
Before you contact us, to ensure the process is productive, below are some basic intake steps to help you prepare for the conversation.
Step 1: Free Preliminary Intake Screening by an Intake Specialist
If you or someone you love has been seriously injured and have questions about a potential case, don’t hesitate to contact us online or call as soon as possible after the incident.
If you send an online form, our intake team will process it, and an Intake Specialist will call you back. If you call, you will speak first to our receptionist, who will transfer you to one of our Intake Specialists. If they’re busy, please leave a message and they will call back promptly. You won’t speak directly with an attorney at this stage.
Understanding Negligence, Causation, and Damages
The initial intake screening for basic information takes about 10-15 minutes. To assess a potential case, we will ask a series of question intended to understand the following:
1. Negligence – Did the other party (the defendant) breach their duty of care? We need to understand: “What is the negligence you experienced and when?”
2. Causation – The breach of duty was the direct cause of the injury. We will need to understand: “How do you believe the negligence or wrongdoing caused your injury?”
3. Damages – Did you or a loved one (the plaintiff) suffer a serious injury or loss because of the other party’s negligence? We will need to understand: “What serious injuries or losses did you sustain?”
A bad outcome alone is not enough to prove negligence. We will need to show you suffered a significant personal injury and that another party’s negligence directly caused it.
Information We Need
Our Intake Specialists cannot give legal advice and are only gathering initial details about your potential case (or the one you’re contacting us about) to share with one of our personal injury attorneys. The information we gather includes, but isn’t limited to:
• Contact information, including full legal name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, etc.
• How you found Berman & Simmons (online search, referral, Google Business Profile, Google Ad, etc.).
• Type of personal injury or medical malpractice case. If we don’t handle it, we may be able to offer a referral.
• A brief incident timeline, including the date and location.
• A summary of injuries.
• Name(s) and location(s) of the healthcare center(s) where medical care was received.
• Name(s) and location(s) of the healthcare provider(s) who provided treatment.
• Name(s) of the insurance provider(s).
• Name(s) of other parties involved, including witnesses.
• Any relevant photos or video.
It’s helpful to have correct spellings of names, providers, facilities, etc. for conflict checks.
Step 2: Free Case Review by a Lawyer
Once our Intake Specialist has gathered information from you, we will send a summary of your potential case to one of our lawyers to determine if it’s viable. If we need more information, the attorney or a member of their team will contact you for more details and begin further investigation.
An initial review does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Step 3: Case Decision: Decline or Accept
If We Decline Your Case, We’ll Notify You
For several reasons, we may not be able to take on your case. In fact, many cases we review are declined. If that happens, our legal team will notify you within a few business days and archive the matter.
If Your Case is Accepted: We’ll Investigate Further
Upon acceptance, a member of the lawyer’s staff will contact you to schedule an initial meeting. The attorney will learn more about the incident and how it has affected your life. They will answer your questions and explain the next steps. If we decide to move forward, you will then sign an agreement to establish an attorney-client relationship with Berman & Simmons, and our communications will remain confidential.
Depending on the type of case and severity of the injuries, the next phases will include some or any of the following actions leading to a resolution:
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Resolving a Case Takes Time and Patience
Some cases take months or even years to resolve. It takes time to gather the necessary evidence and information, and medical records if needed, evaluate injuries and damages, negotiate with insurance companies, and if necessary, prepare for trial. We will guide you through every step and do our best to ensure you receive a fair outcome that reflects the full extent of your damages. We’ll handle all the legal details while you focus on your recovery.
We work with you on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing upfront and only if we settle or win your case.