Clients with strong cases know that they will get paid full value eventually. However, the majority of cases are ones that require some negotiation. Most cases have value or I would not take them, but we do take the plaintiff as we find them. So, a lot of clients who claim back pain from a car accident have prior back pain due to being over 50. In other cases, the car damage was not severe or there is something else for the defense lawyer to hang their hat on to defend the case. These cases require negotiation and can settle because both sides have strengths and weaknesses.
So, the epic battle, push/pull, negotiation, or normalizing expectations begins. I recently had a client say “you’re the expert on value” out of the blue. It was so unexpected and unusual it was refreshing. Many clients have no idea of value and overestimate what their case is worth. Like jurors or like people in any area, if you are not a specialist at valuation of a personal injury case, you will have no basis to make a judgment. That’s just the way it is. I don’t know how to tile a bath and I expect that there are good tile guys and bad ones. But all the tile people would agree that a level surface, grout, a tile cutting tool, etc. are needed. Those are just the basics. In my world, the severity of your injury, extent of disability if any, lost earnings, and expenses are generally areas that make up valuation. But many people’s injuries are mostly pain and suffering from an injury that is of debatable origin. Is your disc bulge from the accident or old age? Are your headaches from the concussion or just a migraine flare which you had before? Is your case on liability so strong that we are only discussing damages or is your liability case weak?
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That end of year feeling/The holiday season
Posted on November 22, 2023 in Uncategorized
Sometimes, timing is everything. Right now is the last few weeks that we can get cases settled with the insurance companies before the year closes out. The companies want to close their books on cases that can be closed and the claim reps are under pressure to get their case load down and resolve those cases that they can resolve. I usually prepare for this time by sending in a lot of demand letters in October and they are supposed to bear fruit at this time of year. This year seems to be holding to form and claim reps are randomly calling me looking to settle cases that will have to settle at some point.
As always in personal injury law, there is nothing like a lawsuit to motivate action on a case. My policy is to always put my strongest cases into suit as soon as possible. There is no reason to negotiate presuit on a case that has strong liability and damages. Why take short money and waste time on a case that will get the client a nice strong settlement. There is no good reason for that.
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The Rough and Tumble of Personal Injury Practice
Posted on November 22, 2023 in Uncategorized
I had an amusing past week in practice. I was contacted by a guy in a tough part of town who had what seemed like an interesting case with real damages. He was assaulted on a commercial property with a long history of prior assaults on the property. He suffered broken bones and other injuries. He had fired his prior lawyer and called me. I went to see him and was not thrilled with the neighborhood, the client, his situation, or his general demeanor. Through long experience, you get a feel for people whether you are a good lawyer or a bad one. You just meet enough people and you know how the client is or will be. I had the client sign a retainer letter at his house, discussed his case with him for an hour and left the area. I had fired him the next morning after he called my cell and my office about ten times about new lawsuits to file, domestic abuse and a raft of other stuff. I think that that was the fastest sign up and termination in my history. Next!
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Posted on November 22, 2023 in Uncategorized
U.S. President Joe Biden pardons the National Thanksgiving Turkey, Liberty, during the annual ceremony on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, U.S., November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Leah Millis
I am looking forward to a nice vegan vacation and hope that everyone has a place to go and people to reconnect with for this uniquely American holiday. We all have something to give thanks for. Whether it is the memory of past Thanksgiving holidays or loved ones lost or the new generation at the Thanksgiving table, there is good and bad and happy and sad that comes with the season.
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GO MAYOR PARKER
Posted on November 14, 2023 in holiday
Ah, the holiday season. I got my first static electric shock this morning and it always serves as a reminder that winter is coming.
On another note, Cherelle Parker was elected as the first female Mayor of Philadelphia. She has a lot on her plate and while it is nice to have a historical change and perhaps some more energized leadership, results matter. I expect that we will have 8 years of her, and we can only hope that she is able to fix up the quality of life that makes people want to live AND stay in Philadelphia. I think that policing and enforcement of quality-of-life crimes has to be at the top of the list with the City’s really pathetic education system second. After that, the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Country is coming to Philadelphia and will be a big deal for all of us who live here.
I happen to field a ton of calls from Philadelphia people who want to sue the City. Amusingly, if you google sue the City of Philadelphia, you see www.neuwirthlaw.com above the City of Philadelphia’s own site. So, I get a lot of calls about: 1) dirt bikes/atv’s terrorizing people; 2) Kensington’s drug abuse culture; 3) gun violence killing people. Those seem to be the hot topics to call about. I cannot help with any of these things. These are all government functions. While we are not Somalia or Yemen, it is tough to say that you are running a functioning City if you cannot protect the vast majority of law-abiding citizens from the extreme minority of jerks who make things unpleasant.
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128 GRAZER WINS FAT BEAR WEEK 2023!!
Posted on November 14, 2023 in In the News
You have no idea what I am talking about? In a nutshell, every year forest rangers monitor which grizzly bears return to eat salmon in Alaska on the Katmai river. An informal competition watch has developed and this female bear ate the most and gained the most. Sleep well mama bear. At least she wont have to run Philly when she wakes up in the spring.
More importantly, do you engage in risk taking behavior? I don’t skydive or free solo rock climb because they are too dangerous. But, I read a lot of medical records and a lot of us engage unwittingly in risk taking behavior that might as well be like skydiving. If you live in the suburbs, you don’t walk enough. I was just in NYC and everyone is thinner there because they walk all the time. They are also prettier and taller, but I think that has something to do with the drugs they are using. So, before you end up looking like 128 Grazer in January, try to get 7,000 steps in a day or just do something physical every day, however small. Your body and future will appreciate it. I have a friend who is 73 and had a heart attack and recovered, but his doctor said he needs to exercise more to keep healthy. Exercise had never really been part of his life and he had to start at square one to learn how. It’s a long road to learn how to do something at 73 for the very first time. It just is. If you start walking now, you may lose the fat bear challenge, but you may feel better in 20 years.
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WHAT DO I DO WHEN A SIGNIFICANT VALUE CASE COMES IN OR DEVELOPS?
Posted on November 14, 2023 in For Lawyers
So, a case of $500,000 or more in value needs more time and attention and funds spent than a case with a smaller value. The usual distinguishing factors for these higher value cases is a loss of earnings that is legitimate. Not two weeks of work at $1500/week. I am talking about totally taking you out of your career and costing you $200,000 over 20 years or so. That takes a few fractures or a major injury and turns it into something more valuable.
But I cannot snap my fingers and say your case is worth more. It must be proved in Court and that takes experts and experts take money. So, if you have a severe injury that keeps you from doing your job, like a concussion that results in trouble reading or trouble hearing etc., I will hire someone to explain why you cannot do your occupation. Usually, this is a physiatrist or other doctor who, for litigation purposes, can connect up why an injury prevents you from doing your job. Then, I also must hire an economist to project your future lost earnings. The two work together to really tote up what your losses look like and the losses get big fast because of lost benefits, Medicare contributions, health insurance lost etc. This is a regular part of what I do in higher value cases. It makes the case cost more, but it is worth it to the client and outcome down the road. If I do not take these steps, an insurer will not view the file as significant because I will not have done the basics to get the evidence of future losses admitted.
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WHY IS SALTZ MONGELUZZI ADVERTISING? The changing face of Personal Injury Lead Generation
Posted on November 08, 2023 in Case Matters
I was watching Monday Night Football and Bob Mongeluzzi’s ad shows up on TV. Bob is a legend in our business and likely one of the most successful personal injury lawyers in the City of Philadelphia if not the world. However, this is the first time I have ever seen them advertise on TV. Why now? Well, I think that things have changed post-covid and with the maturation of internet ads, internet lead generation, and new players coming into the area.
First, Morgan and Morgan has made a huge ad push into Philadelphia. Often, they suffer from the same troubles as the Cheesecake Factory does or Wal-Mart. If you want to be treated like a number and don’t know where else to go, you will likely end up with Morgan and Morgan. Their size matters campaign is picking off a certain number of potential clients and this must be affecting Mongeluzzi.
I recently received a case from a disgruntled Morgan and Morgan client. It was an amusing failure to properly understand the case. The police report got the responsible or negligent party wrong and Morgan rejected the case. The lawyer rejecting it had minimal experience and was listed as a pre-trial specialist. To me, that is a lawyer who is just cutting their teeth and not really trusted to do much but reject or accept cases. I am not complaining.
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