If you have sustained an injury in Queensland and you are within the legal time frames, you may be entitled to make a compensation claim. In assessing whether you have what is needed to make a claim for compensation, a lawyer will look for the following:

1) Accident or event – that is how it happened, when it occurred, who was involved and what type of event it was, eg Car accident, work accident.

2) Negligent party – The lawyer will examine the available information to identify who is responsible for the accident or event happening. That party/person is the negligent party and who the claim will be made against. In most cases that person is protected by an insurance company and the lawyers will be communicating with the insurer, rather than the negligent party themselves.

3) Injury – The lawyer will gather evidence about your injury. Injuries vary in severity with some being a temporary issue that will resolve with treatment, and others are permanent and ongoing with a significant long lasting impact on you.

4) Losses – A compensation claim is designed to put you in the position you would have been in had the accident not occurred. The lawyer will look at the impact of the injury on your ability to enjoy life, work, look after yourself as well as any expenses incurred as a result of the injury.

You may have what is needed to be entitled to make a claim even when you don’t have the 4 elements discussed above. An example of this would be where you have suffered injury or illness that no one is responsible for but you have Income Protection or Total and Permanent Disability Insurance. In this situation your entitlement to make a claim is based on the terms of the insurance policy. We recommend seeking legal advice specific to your circumstances as soon as possible as there are important time limits to meet to ensure you have a valid claim.

Unfortunately there is no way to give you a specific or certain answer on how long it will take to reach a settlement in your claim. How long a claim takes to settle will depend on the unique circumstances of each case.

Once a settlement is reached in a case it is called a once and for all settlement. This means it is final and you can not come back seeing further compensation relating to that matter at a later time. So it is important that all losses and, as best as you can predict, future losses be taken into account when you reach a settlement. In assessing past and future losses it is important that your injury is stable, that means it has reached the maximum medical improvement, a simpler term for this is that the injury has stabilised, it isn’t getting better and isn’t getting worse. Lawyers have no way of knowing when your injury will reach this point and all losses can be assessed, this is why it is difficult to give you an exact time frame on how long it will take to reach settlement.

As a guide as to how long a claim might take to settle, settlement data suggests the average time to settle a claim from date of injury is approximately 18 months. Of course each case will depend on the specific and unique circumstances.

A good lawyer will work to protect your interests within the required time frames and work efficiently to gather the necessary evidence so that when your injuries are stable and all evidence is available they are in a position to advise you and promptly work towards reaching a settlement in your claim.

Each personal injury case is unique. While there are laws setting out procedures that must happen in each case, the individuals involved, the injury, the impact of that injury, the circumstances of the accident, the amount of evidence to gather and analayse, and length of time involved will vary from case to case. It is therefore difficult to give a meaningful average cost of hiring a personal injury lawyer in Queensland.

A more meaningful measure will be the lawyer’s estimate of fees. When you meet with a lawyer for an obligation free assessment, if they believe your claim is valid and worth pursuing, they will offer to act for you. It is a requirement that they give you a Costs Agreement and Costs Disclosure. This will set out the terms upon how they will charge you for the work they do. It is also a requirement that they give you an estimate of their fees. This estimate will be prepared giving consideration to the circumstances of your accident and what the lawyer believes will be involved in acting for you and bringing your claim to a successful conclusion.

A common question is what percentage of a settlement the lawyer will charge. This is known as a contingency fee and is not allowed in Queensland. However, law firms can offer you a percentage cap on fees, this means if the work they do is in excess of that agreed percentage, they will reduce their fees, this is an excellent assurance for you that the fees will never exceed that agreed percentage.

Understanding if your lawyer will charge an uplift fee is important. At Trilby Misso we do NOT charge an uplift fee. An uplift fee can be a charge of up to 25% of the lawyer fees, this can amount to a significant amount of money from your settlement.

We recommend reading more on No Win No Fee Agreements to understand your obligations and rights under the agreement.

When someone is involved in an accident and suffers injury and the associated losses with being injured, it is an already stressful and uncertain time, so having to find a lawyer can feel overwhelming.

A simple internet search using online directories or legal association websites (like the Queensland Law Society) will provide you with a selection of personal injury lawyers. You may even have family and friends who have had a similar experience and could make a recommendation. In narrowing down who to call, visiting the firms’ websites will give you a glimpse into their specialty, who they are and their offerings. Most law firms will offer you a free initial consultation, to help you find the right lawyer, we recommend using that initial phone call and/or appointment to explore the following:

Area of specialty – Like doctors, there are lawyers who run a general practice and others who specialise in one area. As personal injury laws and procedures are complex, it is recommended that you search for a lawyer who is a specialist in personal injury law. They will be the most qualified to help you, protect your interests by advising and acting on important time frames, knowing what evidence to gather and knowing how to best strategically work with the negligent parties and their representatives.

Location – People often begin looking for a lawyer by searching “personal injury lawyer near me”, however, the physical location of the lawyer’s office may not be a deciding factor. Rather, whether the lawyer is qualified to practice in Queensland, and how the lawyer will connect and communicate with you is important. With technology, home visits (recognising some injured people are not in a position to travel) or meeting at a mutually convenient location, the location of the actual office becomes less relevant. Knowing how frequently you are required to meet in person and how that will happen is worth establishing.

Fee Arrangement – Understanding the fee arrangement that the lawyer is offering you is important. Are they prepared to act for you on a no win no fee basis and what are the terms of the agreement? It is normal practice for the lawyer to give you a copy of the agreement to read over and to give you an opportunity to seek advice and ask questions in relation to that agreement.

Rapport – The initial phone call and/or appointment is a great opportunity for you to meet the lawyer you will be working with. You need to work with the lawyer for a significant amount of time and it is a matter that is incredibly important to you, so we recommend that you work with someone you have a good rapport with. Knowing if you have good rapport would mean that you feel like you can ask questions, that the lawyer is listening to you, you feel heard, the lawyer has taken an interest in you and can give you advice, even advice that you might not want to hear. You should be able to establish how good the lawyer is at communicating and their communication style in the initial appointment.  

You are not under an obligation to proceed with any lawyer you consult. It is important that you use the initial consultation to satisfy yourself of the matters discussed above so that you can be certain you have the right lawyer on your side.