I have been the injured client. Now I represent them.

Nothing up front. Injury cases are handled on a contingency fee, which means my fee is a percentage of what we recover and no attorney fee is owed unless we recover for you. The case review itself is free, whether or not you hire me.

Case expenses — records, filing fees, expert witnesses — are explained and set out in your written fee agreement before you sign it. You will never be surprised by a bill from me.

Generally it comes down to three things: someone else was careless, that carelessness hurt you, and there is insurance or another source to pay for the harm. Plenty of people call me who do not need a lawyer, and I tell them so.

You do not have to figure this out on your own, and asking costs you nothing. If you were hurt and someone else was at fault, it is worth one phone call before you talk to an adjuster.

Less time than most people expect, and the rules differ between Indiana and Kentucky. In Indiana, most injury claims must be filed within two years. In Kentucky, some injury claims must be brought within one year, while motor vehicle claims generally run two years from the last payment of basic reparation benefits. Claims against a city, county, or state agency can require written notice within a matter of months.

Those are general rules with real exceptions in both directions, and once a deadline passes the claim is usually gone for good. Please do not assume you have time — call and let me check the dates that apply to your situation.

Not before you have talked to a lawyer. You are required to cooperate with your own insurer under your policy, but you are not obligated to give the at-fault driver’s insurance company a recorded statement, and early statements are routinely used later to minimize injuries you did not yet know you had.

The same goes for signing a broad medical authorization or accepting a quick offer. Once you hire me, those calls come to my office and you can stop dreading your phone.

You may still recover. Both Indiana and Kentucky reduce an injured person’s recovery by their share of the fault rather than barring it outright, though Indiana bars recovery if you are found more than fifty percent responsible, and different rules can apply to claims against government defendants.

Adjusters assign blame early, and they are generous to themselves when they do it. Their first version of events is not the last word.

Straightforward cases often resolve in a matter of months. Serious injuries take longer, largely because settling before your doctors know what your recovery looks like is how people get shortchanged on the care they will still need.

Value depends on the medical treatment, the future care, the lost income, the strength of the liability evidence, and how the injury changed your daily life. Any lawyer who gives you a number on the first call is guessing. I would rather tell you what your case depends on, then go prove it. Past results are no guarantee of a future outcome; every case is different.