Q: My friends daughter was hit by an elderly woman as she was crossing the street. She died as a result of her injuries.
This happened in portland,Oregon. It has been nearly a year and the lawyer ( retained on a get paid when u get paid basis) keeps telling her that they are waiting to hear back from the insurance company. Is my friend obligated to continue with this law firm or can she seek different help? And can someone please refer me to some attorneys that are licenced in both cali and Oregon?
A:
You can fire you attorney whenever you want. If you fire the attorney, he has a lien on the case for the reasonable value of his attorney fees to date. It will not increase the attorney fees. He just gets a portion of the fees that will be charged by the new attorney. This can make it harder to get new representation since the new attorney will not get the full contingency fee.
Your friend doesn't need an attorney licensed in OR and CA, just an OR license. If she searches for Portland wrongful death attorney, she will find some. Or search Justia or Avvo or lawyer.com, etc.
A: You are not bound to stick with the lawyer you have, as a client can discharge his lawyer at any time. I don't know the facts about the case, but the insurance company may be arguing that the daughter was J-walking at the time, and claim so kind of comparative negligence on her part (under California law). Insurance companies don't like to pay money. Your attorney has had plenty of time to get this case rolling. I would look for another attorney. You should have a police report that tells you who was at fault. Since the accident happened in Oregon, you will need to have an Oregon attorney.
A:
yes, you can discharge a lawyer at any time.
it does not increase the legal fees you will pay.
the number of lawyers on the case just work out a division of the fees.
if she calls me i would be happy to research an Oregon lawyer.
what city in Oregon?
Dale Gribow 760 837 7500; dale@dalegribowlaw.com
A: She should look for a member of the Oregon Assn for Justice in the county where it happened. As far as first attorney I usually suggest an in person visit--a lot of lawyers are really bad at explaining what is going on. But a young person with a long life expectancy would normally bring a quicker result unless the police report shows that she was not crossing at a crosswalk, was running, etc. In that case it may not be open and shut and some delay is understandable.
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