Personal injury clients have completely unrealistic expectations when it comes to communication with their lawyers — and meeting those expectations is a major challenge for most plaintiffs’ personal injury lawyers.
Lack of communication, in both frequency and quality, is probably the most common complaint made by personal injury clients about their lawyers. Most plaintiffs’ personal injury law firms are regularly consulted by accident victims dissatisfied with their lawyers. While the consulted lawyer should encourage the potential client to communicate his or her concerns to the current lawyer, communication itself is almost always the problem.
When it comes to specific communication complaints, personal injury clients usually say either that the lawyer is not communicating often enough or has provided misinformation.
There are some key reasons why personal injury clients demand regular communication with their lawyers. The most obvious reason is that the lives of personal injury clients are in a shambles — they are unable to work, need care and treatment, can’t provide care to their dependents and worry about paying their bills. On top of all of that, the accident victim is in extreme pain and discomfort along with having his or her life scrutinized by the insurance companies involved. Under these circumstances, the personal injury client desperately needs a lawyer who can not only advocate on his or her behalf, but who will also answer questions in a timely and understandable manner.
Another reason why personal injury clients may demand constant communication with their lawyers may stem from the nature of the contingency fee relationship. Personal injury clients are most often charged legal fees on a contingency fee basis, meaning that they are not really being billed by the hour. Accordingly, there is no financial deterrent for personal injury clients to try to engage in communication with their lawyers — by whatever means, whether phone, email, text message or otherwise.
One solution to economically satisfy clients requiring frequent interaction is to set out some basic communication guidelines with the client right from the outset. Having a common understanding of appropriate levels and means of communication will reduce the level of frustration that may otherwise be experienced by both personal injury clients and lawyers. Clients who know they will receive a file update at the end of each month are less likely to call each week.
