The most common type of accident case we handle at the Ziff Law Firm is the rear-end collision. These accidents usually occur because the driver who causes the accident is either not paying proper attention (i.e. talking on their cell phone, adjusting the radio, doing their nails—no kidding!) or unsafe driving (i.e. going too fast, following too closely).

Just yesterday, there was a bad accident in Horseheads because a Lowe’s truck driver was following another car too closely. WETM-TV covered the accident with a televised and an online story: “Tailgater Causes Multi-Car Crash on I-86.” Follow the link to read the story or check out the text included below.

As a New York personal injury attorney for more than 20 years I have handled more than my share of these cases. Rear-end collisions are tough on those not to blame – I mean what safe recourse do you have to stop someone from following you too closely? You can tap your brakes, which just seems to egg on some tailgaters, you can let them pass or speed up yourself. It doesn’t seem fair that you should have to compromise your safe driving habits because someone else is acting recklessly – and you shouldn’t. All you can to is take yourself out of the situation when it’s safe to do so – like letting an antsy driver pass you.

Thankfully, no-one was hurt in this I-86 accident. But to top off the aggravation of this incident, the Lowe’s driver was driving with a suspended license! You might think that a clean license would be a requisite for the job!

Thanks for reading,

Jim

_________________________________________

James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com
E-mail me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

Tailgater Causes Multi-Car Crash on I-86

Reported by: Meagan Kolkmann

Email: meagankolkmann@wetmtv.com

Last Update: 5/17 12:39 pm

HORSEHEADS- A tailgater created a big mess for commuters on I-86 West this morning.

Around 9 a.m., a three-car crash brought traffic to a near standstill.

Cars were back up for about an hour while police and emergency crews worked to clear the road.

State police say it all started when a Lowe’s truck was following a Volkswagen in front of it too closely.

When the truck crashed into the back of the Volkswagen it sparked a chain reaction.

That’s when an R.V. smashed into the back of the truck.

Luckily nobody was injured in the crash.

State police say the driver of the Lowes truck was driving with a suspended license.

Ziff Law Firm Attorney Adam Gee is developing quite a name for himself in the area of motorcycle law.  Adam handles  motorcycle  cases from all over New York and Pennsylvania, not just in the firm’s headquarters in Elmira (Chemung County).  On any given day, Adam could be in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany, Scranton/Wilkes Barre, Williamsport and anywhere in between.  It makes for some hectic days, but Adam wouldn’t have it any other way!

Readers of this NY Injury Law Blog already know Adam literally wrote the book on motorcycle insurance in NY, “Would You Ride Your Motorcycle Naked?”.  You can request your free copy here. Since the book was published more than a year ago, Adam has distributed more than 500 copies to area bikers.  The reception to Adam’s book has been amazing.  Bikers have been shocked to find how poorly covered they were with their insurance, and that they could increase their coverage by 5-10 times for just a fraction of the cost.

Adam is also proud of his involvement with Solo Practice University, an online forum that allows Adam to teach other lawyers from across the country how to handle motorcycle classes.  Adam and fellow Ziff Law Personal Injury Attorney Jim Reed are both faculty members of Solo Practice University

The Ziff Law firm is now proud to announce that Adam has presented a live webinar, Motorcycle Law 101 on Avvo.com. Avvo is a national site that allows consumers to obtain free legal information from attorneys.  The site also ranks attorneys on a scale from 1-10, and allows prior clients to review their attorney’s performance.  Please feel free to join Adam as he covers the basics of motorcycle law  and answers listeners’ questions

You would think if you are badly hurt in a car accident, it would make sense for you to pursue a BIG judgment against the driver who hit you, right? Not necessarily…

A recent dialogue with a client  got me thinking about how backwards it may seem to folks when I tell them that I cannot recommend taking their case to trial because they may be better off taking the insurance money – even if that insurance money clearly is not sufficient to fully compensate them for their injuries.

Heck, if the insurance money isn’t enough, why wouldn’t you want to get a judgment against the bad guy and then collect the money directly from the bad guy?

The short answer is that sometimes judgments aren’t worth the paper they are written on. You have heard the expression “You can’t get blood from a stone?” Likewise, you can’t collect on a judgment unless the person against whom you have the judgment has some money or other assets subject to collection. The plain hard truth is that most often when a person does not have good insurance coverage, they also don’t have any real $ to collect against.

• First, collection may be difficult/impossible because of the lack of assets. You may think, why not get a judgment anyways? What if the person who didn’t have the assets to settle a judgment suddenly hit the lottery or came in to a lot of money? Well, first we would have to know about his windfall – and he’s not going to make that easy. Then he’d have to be dumb enough to put it in a bank where we could reach the money – THEN we might be able to collect on the judgment.

However, collecting on a judgment is very tough and there are plenty of ways for a debtor to hide or shelter money from collection. In fact, I have a judgment for $400,000 I obtained 8 years ago and I have spent close to $30,000 on collection lawyers and we have yet to receive a single penny. For all of these reasons, pursuing a judgment doesn’t turn out to be the solution one would think…

• Second – and this is related to the first point – we don’t get a penny of the money from the car insurance carrier unless we sign a Release releasing the driver from any personal liability. In other words, we are over a barrel – if we want the insurance $, we have to let the driver go. I know the insurance payment is only $25,000, but $25,000 is better than a possible zero.

Now, don’t get me wrong – the insurance will pay $25,000 toward the judgment, but that is all they would be required to pay. So that leads us to the third point…

• Third, it costs money to pursue a judgment because to do so we have to go to trial and the average cost of a trial like this would be approximately $8,000-$10,000. This is just for costs (i.e. doctor’s testimony, court costs, transcription fees, etc.) and doesn’t include a penny of my fee. I hate the idea of eating up that much in costs when the maximum insurance coverage is only $25,000.

For all these reasons, I think pursuing a judgment is not always a good idea. Ultimately, however, it is the client’s decision and I will pursue whatever course he prefers. I just help him make an informed decision.

I hope this clarifies this issue for my blog readers. Please, if you have questions about this topic, don’t hesitate to call or e-mail me for more information.

Thanks,

Jim
_________________________________

James B. Reed
NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com
Office: (607)733-8866
Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)
Web: www.zifflaw.com
Blogs: NYInjuryLawBlog.com and
NYBikeAccidentBlog.com

I recently had an e-mail from a concerned personal injury victim about his case. The writer is not a client of mine, but he was hoping I could give him some advice about the statute of limitations on legal malpractice claims.

I told him that the time limit to bring a legal malpractice claim in NY  is “generally” 3 years from the date of the alleged malpractice by the attorney (ie the first date you feel the lawyer screwed up).

The reason I qualified this statement by saying “generally” is that there are a few, very limited exceptions to this 3 year time limit requirement (more on this below).

In this man’s situation, his case may be dismissed – and that could have been caused by legal malpractice by his own attorney. Through no fault of his own, this victim is looking at his case being dismissed before he even really gets started because the time limit to bring a NY legal malpractice case (3 years) has already expired.

The sad part is that he might not have any recourse because he was so caught up in his medical situation that he didn’t even know the applicable time limit for bringing a lawsuit against his lawyer. Now he has discovered that he may have to hurry up and file a legal malpractice case – if he can – before the 3-year window to bring a legal malpractice case closes.

He wanted to know if this was all the time his case had left – and if there were anything else he could do.

Statute of limitations in legal malpractice cases can be very tricky to determine and often are very fact-dependent.

My usual rule of thumb is to use 3 years from the date of the alleged malpractice.  Any date other than that can become very risky because you are relying on exceptions to the general rule.

With that said, there is an exception generally referred to as the “continuous treatment doctrine” that is occasionally applied in medical malpractice cases. It says the clock doesn’t start to tick on the time limit to file a malpractice claim until the last date the defendant doctor continued to provide active treatment to the patient.

The corollary to this exception in the legal malpractice world is the “continuous representation doctrine” and it would suggest that the clock doesn’t start to tick on the attorney’s malpractice until the last date the attorney represented you on the particular matter that you allege he screwed up.

As I said before, these are general exceptions and the courts can be very strict in applying these exceptions to the facts of any particular case.  Accordingly, competent malpractice lawyers prefer not to ever rely on these exceptions and try to bring the action within 3 years of the date of the alleged malpractice.  I refer to this as the KISS principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid!

Because determining the proper time limit is so important (and fatal to your case if you do it incorrectly!), I urge anyone with a this issue to consult with an experienced malpractice lawyer ASAP!

I hope this helps.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866  Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

E-mail me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

As an experienced injury lawyer, you often demonstrate how smart you are by the cases you DO NOT take – as much so as by those cases that you DO take.

While I certainly don’t mind a challenging case (and I have taken many over the years!), there are certain types of cases where the law is so stacked against you that you just have to know when to say NO.

Sad to say, school sports injury cases are an example of the type of case that is virtually impossible to win.

Why?

Well, the law is stacked against you in many respects.  First, there is a defense known as the “assumption of the risk doctrine.” Basically, this doctrine contends that people who are voluntarily engaging in a sport, assume the risk of the types of injuries that are inherent in that sport, and therefore they cannot recover for those injuries.

For example, if you are a pitcher on a baseball team, you assume the risk that a batter might hit a ball that hits you in the mouth. Likewise, if you are a baseball spectator, you assume the risk that a foul ball might hit you. On both of these scenarios, there are tons of NY cases that have been dismissed by the court because of the assumption of risk doctrine.

Two great blog posts, “Assumption of Risk Doctrine Bars New York Sports Injury Lawsuits – Part 1″ and “Assumption of Risk Doctrine Bars New York Sports Injury Lawsuits – Part 2 (Baseball)”, by NYC attorney John Hochfelder explain the assumption of the risk doctrine as it applies to many sports:  baseball, floor hockey, wrestling and soccer.

With all of that said, there ARE some types of sports injuries cases that MAY be a possible case despite the assumption of the risk doctrine.

These cases usually involve an injury that is NOT inherent in the nature of the sport or a hazard of a type that is generally not assumed in that particular sport. For instance, if there’s a metal spike sticking up out of the ground in the base path to second base and a school knew about that hazard and failed to take any steps to remedy that condition, that might give rise to liability against the school.

The bottom line is that it is VERY difficult to decide if you have a good case or not and therefore it is usually best that you consult with an experienced injury lawyer to determine if you have a case or not.

If you want to e-mail me the details of your case at jreed@zifflaw.com, I am happy to let you know what I think.

Thanks for reading,

Jim
_________________________________
James B. Reed
NY & PA Injury & Malpractice Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
Mailto: jreed@zifflaw.com
Office: (607)733-8866
Toll-Free: 800-ZIFFLAW (943-3529)
Web: www.zifflaw.com
Blogs: NYInjuryLawBlog.com and
NYBikeAccidentBlog.com

I had the pleasure of handing over a sizable settlement check to the victim of a Pennsylvania Motorcycle Collision the other day.  It’s a pretty common occurrence, but the circumstances of this particular case made it particularly satisfying.  My hope is that by sharing the information on this blog, I can keep a future motorcycle client from making the same mistake.

This client  didn’t come to us when he was first hurt.  He made the mistake of calling one of those firms who advertise on TV about every 15 seconds.  So they sent an “investigator” to him to have him sign a retainer agreement, and made him travel to their BIG CITY office several hours away to meet with some paralegal.  Everything seemed to be going fine until the time came to discuss settlement with the insurance company.  It turned out that who was at fault for the collision was a little bit of an open question, so the insurance company decided they wouldn’t pay a penny and basically dared the attorney to sue them.

This is where things get really interesting.  You see, the client had a really significant injury.  If this “BIG CITY” lawyer with the multi-million dollar advertising budget could convince the insurance company that their driver was at fault, the insurance company would surely offer up the entire policy due to the nature of the biker’s injury.  For whatever reason, this “BIG CITY” attorney couldn’t convince the insurance adjuster to do this.  That kind of thing happens.  Insurance companies don’t stay in business long if they hand over money every time an attorney comes knocking with an arguable claim.  If the insurance company refuses to pay anything willingly, the next step is clear:  you sue them and start heading for trial.  It doesn’t mean there will necessarily be a trial, as after the discovery part of the law suit is concluded there will be another round of negotiations where the case may settle, but you have to keep the case moving.

What happened next astounded me.  This “BIG CITY” lawyer with the tough guy commercials tucked his tail and ran for the hills.  He told the client he would no longer represent him.  Now that the case might actually take a little work, this “BIG CITY” lawyer wanted nothing to do with it.

So the client came to me.  I couldn’t figure out why the “BIG CITY” lawyer dropped the case, as it seemed like a good case to me.  I sued the case and proceeded with the litigation.  I was eventually able to convince the insurance company that their driver was at fault for the accident, and they agreed to pay my client the fully policy limits.

There are a couple lessons to be learned from this case.  First, spending millions of dollars a year on tough sounding TV commercials doesn’t make a lawyer tough.  Second, you don’t have to drive to a big city to get quality representation.

If you need a personal injury attorney, ask your family, friends and neighbors who they may have used.  Do some research, and make an informed decision.  As the above situation reveals, which attorney you choose can make a huge difference in how your case comes out.  Ask any attorney you meet with if they are willing to take your case to trial if necessary, and how many similar cases they have tried.     Insist that you actually meet with the attorney that will be handling your case and not some “investigator”.  After all, do you really want to hire an attorney who is “too busy” to meet with you himself?  If you are too far away for the attorney to drive to meet you, aren’t you too far away to drive to meet the attorney?

Everything for this client ended up working out for the best.  I just worry about that firm’s other clients.  Heaven help them if the going get tough in their case.

Thanks for reading,

_______________________________
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
NY and PA Personal Injury and Malpractice Attorney
The Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, NY  14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com

In the aftermath of a NY auto accident you may think a lawsuit is the best means of achieving justice and receiving just compensation. Don’t be shocked to hear this from a lawyer, but there may be some compelling reasons NOT to bring a lawsuit.

I’ve been receiving the New York Injury Times online newsletter by Gerald M. Oginski, an experienced accident attorney practicing in the New York City area. Gerald has some great advice and he’s given his permission for me to repost a recent article from Gerald Oginski’s Blog. Be sure to visit www.oginski-law.com to read more of Gerald’s excellent advice on the topic or to request a copy of his book, “Secrets of a New York Medical Malpractice Lawyer.”

’7 Reasons You May Not Want to Sue’

- by Gerald M. Oginski (originally posted at www.oginski-law.com)

If you were involved in a car accident, there’s an excellent chance that you would bring a lawsuit against the driver of the car that hit you. In this article, I explain 7 reasons why you may not want to bring a lawsuit if you were involved in a car accident:

1. You were not injured. You’d think this was self-explanatory, but it’s not. There are two types of claims you can bring in an auto accident. The first is a property damage claim for the damage to your car. The second is a personal injury claim which would be for the physical injuries you suffered, the medical expenses, your past and future pain and suffering, as well as lost wages and potential lost future wages.

2. Your friends will think you are greedy. Some people feel that the only reason to bring a lawsuit is because you are looking to “make money” off the system, and why not? It’s only the insurance company’s money. Other people don’t look at their injuries as a way to make money. They’d rather go to work and earn money the old-fashioned way by working for their income.

During a trial, a good trial lawyer can make the following argument when asking a jury to understand what his client went through and why he’s entitled to compensation:

Let’s suppose that this morning Mr. Jones put an ad in the newspaper and said he’d give away one million dollars, for free! Just show up at his door, and the first one there will get it. No questions asked. How many people do you think would sprint out their door and race to be the first one in line? Thousands of people would try. But …what if you placed certain conditions on getting that $1,000,000 dollars?

Let’s say now that the ad said that in order to get that one million dollars you had to be involved in a horrific head-on collision that ejected you from the car and you landed 30 feet from the car. How many people do you think would still be waiting on that line? A lot less than started. But what if the ad went further, and said that before you could get that money, you not only had to be involved in this terrible car accident, but you had to have suffered a fractured pelvis, shattered both of your femurs (the largest bone in your body – they’re the thigh bones) had to be placed on a respirator for 20 days, intentionally put into a medically-induced coma for 10 days, and had major reconstructive surgery to fix the broken bones. How many people do you think would still be standing on that line? Not very many, but maybe one or two very desperate souls.

What if we added a few more conditions on to that advertisement, so that in order to get that “free” million dollars, you had to learn how to walk all over again, you had to spend three months in a rehabilitation center, and had to have two more surgeries to fix complications and infections that happened from the original surgery. Then on top of that, explain that their daily activities would have to be forever changed and they could not play sports, run, jog, ski, play basketball, football and everything they liked to do before the accident. How many people do you think would still be standing at the door seeking that “free” million dollars? Nobody.

That’s what a good trial attorney tries to explain to a jury in a significant accident case. The money will help pay for medical bills and modifications to their home to ambulate. It will provide a safety net for the injured victim and their family. Anyone who thinks a seriously injured car accident victim is suing because they’re greedy should read this article. In addition, they should spend at least one day in a victim’s home watching them struggle with daily activities such as tying their shoes or buttoning their shirt. Only by showing someone the tremendous hardships you face will they realize how important it is to obtain full compensation for your injuries.

3. What good will the money do you? This is a famous defense attorney line. This is used during negotiations, and also used during summations. “Plaintiff’s attorney is asking for millions for his client. Think about this … what good will the money do him? He can’t use it. His medical expenses … sure, give it to him, he deserves it. But the millions he’s asking for? No way. His injuries prevent him from going out and spending such huge exorbitant amounts of money.

The reply to this argument is not what you think. As much as you’d like to shake some sense into the defense lawyer, this is a better approach. “Look, your client created the problems that my client suffered. He didn’t do anything to create this accident or his injuries that stem from this accident. My client has incurred medical expenses in the thousands of dollars. Who is going to pay for those expenses? Should he, or his insurance company, have to foot the bill for your client’s wrongdoing? I don’t think so. That only covers his medical expenses in the past. What about future medical expenses that he’s sure to have? You’ve got to cover that as well.

This doesn’t even begin to address the compensation that he’s entitled to for the suffering he’s endured from the time of the accident until today. Don’t forget about the future suffering he’ll have from his injuries and medical care he’s going to need to treat his ongoing problems. This is known as past and future pain and suffering. Thankfully for injured victims in New York, there is no cap on pain and suffering awards.

To answer the question above … it will do a lot for the injured victim and their family.

4. You don’t know a good New York lawyer anyway. If you don’t know a good lawyer, you should keep looking. There are many ways to find a good attorney. Importantly, you want an attorney who has handled many cases just like yours. You want someone with experience. The question of whether you want a big New York City firm, a small firm, or even a solo practitioner is simply a matter of personal preference. Keep in mind that whomever you choose, you must feel comfortable with him or her. Always ask, “Who is going to be handling your case day to day?” “Who will be appearing on your conferences with the Court?” “Who will appear at your deposition, and the depositions of the people you have sued?” “Who will be trying my case if it goes to trial?”

If you don’t mind many different attorneys handling different parts of your case, then you should have no problem going to a large firm.  If you want the same attorney to handle your case from beginning to end, you may want a small firm or experienced solo practitioner.

5. The chances of you recovering money are not good unless you have a significant injury. That may be true. If you have a minor injury, then your compensation will likely be minimal. If your injuries are significant, the compensation you may be entitled to may also be significant. Each case will differ. The answer also depends on where your case is venued – that is, which court it’s in. Is it in the Bronx or Brooklyn? Or is it in Westchester or upstate Albany?

If you don’t have any injury, or the injury was minimal, your case may be dismissed without ever getting to trial. Your injuries may not meet the “threshold” that is needed to continue your case. There are specific guidelines relating to the type of injury you must have to bring a case in the Supreme Court of the State of New York – which by the way, is the trial-level court.

6. The driver of the car that hit you will not like you if you sue him. My response is “So what?” Why would you care about what the other driver thought? You shouldn’t. The other driver was careless and his carelessness caused you permanent injury. If you want to live your life worried about what other people think, then you should re-think what you do on a daily basis.

A decision to sue someone isn’t about whether you’re popular or whether someone will or will not like you. It’s about your fundamental right to be repaid something that is owed to you. When a wrongdoer causes harm, he becomes obligated to pay you for your harm and the disability that he has caused. That’s an obligation we as a society recognize, not just in New York, but throughout the United States.

7. Your picture might appear in the newspaper. In most accident cases in New York your picture will not appear in the newspaper. Most cases are not deemed “newsworthy” by the local newspapers. They’re a common occurrence and unless it’s an extremely slow news day, or there’s something unusual about your particular case, it is unlikely your picture or your case will get any mention in the newspapers.

Conclusion

After reading this article you should have a better understanding of whether you should or should not bring a lawsuit if you’ve been injured in a car accident in the State of New York.

Thanks for reading, and thanks to Gerald for allowing the NY Injury Law Blog to post his advice!

- Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

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Congratulations are in order for my colleague Jim Reed, managing partner of the Ziff Law Firm. Jim, who is a busy guy with his practice and legal blogs, was just reappointed to serve on the New York state Independent Judicial Election Qualification Commission.

Each judicial district in New York has an IJEQC. They screen judicial candidates, reviewing the qualifications of candidates seeking election to our state’s high courts: Supreme, County, Surrogate’s, Family, New York City Civil, District and City.

Each commission has a limited number of members, and they are VERY carefully selected. Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman picked Jim Reed to serve on the commission. Jim is one of only 12 commission members selected from the entire Sixth Judicial District.

The Commission’s work is important. Chief Administrative Judge Ann Pfau, described how the Commission “promotes  greater confidence in the judicial election,” because voters know that judges have been evaluated and they have the qualities to do a good job.

Judge Pfau even thanked Reed for continuing to serve on the Commission, specifically because of the considerable time and effort it takes.

Jim has been practicing for more than 20 years, specializing in personal injury, medical malpractice and legal malpractice cases.

Some of his other achievements:

• He’s written two books about  “Learn the Five Deadly Mis­takes that can KILL Your Acci­dent Case!” and “Learn the Five Secrets to Buying Auto Insur­ance in NY.”
• He has personally handled several million dollar-plus cases, and is an active member of the New York Academy of Trial Lawyers and the New York Trial Lawyers’ Association.
• He has also been honored as a New York Super Lawyer by the publishers of Law & Politics Magazine.
• He has two blogs, the NY Injury Law Blog AND the NY Bike Accident Blog.

I could probably go on some more, but I wouldn’t want to embarrass Jim or anything! It is a big deal to be appointed – again – to the  ndependent Judicial Election Qualification Commission. I hope you’ll join me in congratulating Jim Reed for this honor.

Sincerely,

Adam
______________________________

Adam M. Gee, Esq.
NY and PA Personal Injury and Malpractice Attorney
The Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com

The Ziff Law Firm is proud to announce that Adam Gee, one of our injury and malpractice attorneys and an author of this blog, was recently added to the faculty of Solo Practice University™ . Solo Practice University™ is a web-based educational and professional networking community for lawyers and law students. Adam will be teaching a class on one of his favorite areas of practice, motorcycle accident law. Adam is the author of a book on motorcycle insurance entitled “Would You Ride Your Motorcycle Naked?”

“Motorcycle collisions have become an important part of my practice, and I learned very quickly that motorcycle collisions aren’t like other automobile cases” explains Adam. “The biggest mistake an attorney new to handling motorcycle cases can make is assuming the way they handle a car crash will work in a motorcycle case; the rules are different, the people are different, the science is different, and the attitudes of the insurance adjusters and jurors are different. Recognizing this at the front end is key to obtaining a just result for your client at the conclusion of your case.”

When asked why he agreed to join the faculty of Solo Practice University™, Adam explained there were two major reasons. “First, I want to do whatever I can to make sure that bikers receive top notch representation. If I can help other attorneys across the country avoid some of the pitfalls and overcome the problems I have discovered in handling these case, I feel it is my obligation to share that information. Secondly, I fundamentally agree with the message and purpose of Solo Practice University™. Law school teaches you how to think like a lawyer. They teach you how to read and analyze cases, where to find the law, and give you the very basics in a number of different areas of practice. The scary reality is that law schools are horrible at teaching you how to actually practice law. Solo Practice University™ bridges that gap by allowing experienced attorneys to give real world instruction on finite areas of law. This is what law schools should be teaching their students.”

Please visit Adam and a host of other great attorneys as they teach the topics they know best at Solo Practice University™.

Here is a hilarious guest post, “Self-Help Legal Switcheroo” by Rick L. Law, an Elder Law attorney in Aurora, Illinois. Rick exposes the absolute flim-flam that is legal advice and documents on the Internet. Here’s Rick’s Guest Post:

“We all like to save money — especially on legal matters. Millions of people are now using do-it-yourself online legal form services like www.legalzoom.com. To check it out, I went there, too. Their home page proudly raves, “Save time and money… created by top attorneys… helps you create reliable legal documents… we even review your answers and guarantee your satisfaction.” There is even a testimonial from an attorney who says, “As an attorney, I have been pleasantly surprised with the ease and efficiency of legalzoom.”

What is not as obvious, at the very bottom of the home page, is their disclaimer of liability. Go ahead and scroll down to the bottom of the page—you’ll see the disclaimer in very light print. It states:

“The information provided in this site is not legal advice, but general information on legal issues commonly encountered. Legalzoom’s legal document service is not a law firm and is not a substitute for an attorney or law firm. Legalzoom cannot provide legal advice and can only provide self-help services at your specific direction. Please note that your access to and use of legalzoom is subject to additional terms and conditions.”

The words “additional terms and conditions’ is a hot-link that if you click on it will take you to an even longer disclaimer! The disclaimer guts all of the assurances of reliability and suitability of use that you may have assumed were part of the “actual review of your answers and guarantee of satisfaction.” YOU ARE THE “LAWYER” WHO CHOOSES THE LEGAL FORM!

If you decide to be your own lawyer, please understand that legalzoom has the best of all worlds. They advertise that they will provide you with the best form of your choosing and save you money — but if you ever have a problem because of that document, they’re not responsible. You are the one who made the decision about which legal document was right for you and your circumstances.

Just yesterday in a meeting with a client, that client exclaimed, “Wow, I never knew that there were so many things to think about in our estate planning.” I responded, “You know, that’s what most people say when it comes to estate planning, disability, Medicaid, or veteran’s benefits. You don’t do this work every day, so you just can’t know all of the issues.”

The real value of what any professional counselor does is listen to your description of your circumstances and goals, and then choose the best course of action.

There is an old story about a factory which shut down due to an equipment failure. The owner of the factory called a renowned expert to rush to the factory to get things moving. The owner told him, “This shutdown is costing us $100,000 per day!” The expert arrived, walked around the faulty machine, then took out a screwdriver and adjusted a thing or two. Within moments the machine came back to life and the factory began to hum with activity. The owner was thrilled — until he was given a bill for $10,000. He roared, “But it took you less than 10 minutes to fix the machine — it cannot possibly cost $10,000!” The expert calmly responded, “No, it took me a lifetime to know exactly where and how to use that screwdriver. The bill is $10,000—but the value to you is $100,000 per day.”

Moral of the story: The right solution for the circumstances often requires a lifetime of preparation.”

- Rick L. Law, http://ricksblog.lawelderlaw.com

Thanks for reading – and thank you, Rick for the guest post!
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com