Showing posts with label reports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reports. Show all posts

Thursday, August 30, 2012

How do I present my case?

As experienced counsel, the lawyers at Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki LLP, personal injury lawyers Ottawa, are able to analyze and look at a particular set of facts and fairly quickly determine the strengths and weaknesses of a particular case. After such a long time of doing this work, the analysis is internalized, even automatic, and this initial impression of a case becomes the starting point for collecting evidence and building the details through self reports, medical reports, expert reports, witness accounts, and various records including financial documentation, receipts, tax returns and the like.The process for how a case is successfully built is sometimes glossed over in conversations with clients. Many clients simply want a win and a successful resolution of their claim and frankly are not interested in the mechanics of how the win is achieved. Hence, it was with pleasure that this writer recently met with a new client who indeed asked about all of the nuts and bolts of putting together a winning case. Meeting with this client got the writer to thinking about how important it is for clients to ask this question of their prospective lawyers. Any lawyer that you may be meeting for the first time should be able to confidently explain to you the legal process, in broad terms, within a few minutes. That lawyer should be able to respond to any question you have with confidence. Beyond outlining the legal process, the lawyer should also be able to explain how he or she plans to present your case so that you have the very best chance of succeeding. The manner of presentation, and deciding what will be presented, starts well before the trial.Determining how the case will be presented starts on the very first day of hiring the lawyer. From the notice letter to the person who caused the injury, to soliciting and obtaining reports, medical records, police reports, hiring an investigator, obtaining witness statements, expert reports and analysis, engaging case managers, and communicating with insurers and adjusters, all of these things factor immediately into the presentation of the case. How your case is presented, from the very first moment, will reflect the strength of your case, your determination to win, your preparation and willingness to commit financial resources to win. Weakness in any aspect of presentation will be picked up upon by insurances adjusters, insurance defence lawyers, mediators and Judges. And where weakness is detected there will be a push for you to compromise the value of your claim and quite frankly for you to take less than you would otherwise be entitled to.At QTMG LLP we are aware of the critical importance of presentation--from the very outset of any case. We believe that it is because of this awareness and our ability to explain it, draw a road map, and demonstrate the necessity of detailed preparation to our clients that we are so successful in our cases. It was a good experience again to have a client actually ask about the nuts and bolts of proving a case as the process of explaining it gave the client great comfort and it reinforced for this writer how a client who understands the purpose of the work is better able to contribute to the success of the case.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Traffic Accidents & Worst Intersections Ottawa

The City of Ottawa keeps and maintains statistics on road safety within the capital region. It releases these statistics to the public in an annual Road Safety Report published on the City's website. The Road Safety Report for 2011 was just released by the City. At Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki LLP, personal injury lawyers Ottawa, the statistical information provided by reports such as this, are invaluable in determining the circumstances around motor vehicle accidents. As a personal injury law firm, the vast majority of our clients are involved in car accidents, motor cycle accidents, and in representing them it is necessary to determine how the accident happened and who is at fault for that accident. This recent report reveals that in Ottawa in 2011 there were 349 collisions at intersections that were controlled with signal lights. Of those accidents there were only 2 major accidents that required hospitalization of accident victims. Significantly, in 2011 there were no fatalities from any of these accidents. So where is the intersection with the most collisions? That would be Hunt Club Road and Riverside Drive with 53 collisions. That is 10 more than 2011. While not the highest number of accidents, the intersection of Belfast Road and St Laurent Boulevard produced the most accidents that required a person to attend hospital. Aside from the "intersection accidents" the report reveals that within the city limits of Ottawa, there were a total of 15295 accidents (a 2.3% increase from 2010). The sombering details reveal that of those accidents there were 25 deaths--9 drivers, 7 passengers, 1 motorcycle driver, 1 cyclist and 7 pedestrians. As these statistics reveal, road safety in Ottawa is something that still can be improved. The loss of life, the number of injuries, all of these reveal the need for greater vigilance and care on the City's roads.