Changing Personal Injury Lawyers After Commencement of a Claim

An injury compensation claim can take up to 6 months (sometimes longer) to resolve. During that time, a lot can change. Your relationship with your lawyer might deteriorate or they might be too busy with other cases to give your compensation claim the attention it needs, you may be tired of dealing with different injury lawyers within the same firm, or you may find that another lawyer is just a better fit for you and/or your compensation claim.

The good news is that if you are not satisfied with how your lawyer is handling your compensation claim, you have the right to choose a new compensation lawyer.

Is There a Penalty for Changing My Personal Injury Lawyers?

In short, no. There are no penalties for changing compensation lawyers, however, most law firms include a clause in their agreement with you that requires you to pay their fees if you terminate the retainer. Law firms will usually agree to release their files to your new compensation lawyer on the basis that the new firm agrees to cover their fees and costs, however this is at the firm’s discretion and not guaranteed.

Sometimes, your new lawyer will be willing to “pay out” another law firm’s costs to ensure the smooth transition of your compensation claim file. It is also worth considering the time (and therefore cost) it will take your new lawyer to get up to speed on your file.

Is It Expensive to Make a Claim with Personal Injury Lawyers in Cairns?

Cairns Personal Injury Lawyers guarantees that there are no hidden costs in their services. The only time you will have to pay them is after your win your compensation – if they don’t win, you don’t pay.

Cairns Personal Injury Lawyers act for clients in Cairns as well as throughout Queensland and the Northern Territory on personal injury compensations claims, including:

WorkCover claims –arising from a workplace incident
Motor vehicle accident claims – whether you are the driver of a motor vehicle involved in an accident, a passenger in a motor vehicle involved in an accident, or a pedestrian or cyclist involved in a motor vehicle accident
Public liability claims – when you are injured in a public space
Dependency claims – when you are the financial dependents (such as the children, wives, or husbands) of a person who has been killed in an accident.
It is essential to identify very early the type of claim that you’re entitled to make as some types of claims have time limits on how long you have to lodge your compensation claim.

Your injuries, and the circumstances in which they happened, need to be closely investigated at the earliest opportunity to identify all possible claims and all possible defendants.

Failing to identify the type of personal injury claim, or the right to bring a claim across more than one category, can mean you lose the right to compensation.