Straight answers, before you call anyone

Nothing up front. The fee is a percentage of what we recover, stated in writing before you sign, and there is no fee at all if there is no recovery. Case expenses are advanced by the firm and repaid from the recovery.

There is no fee, and you are not billed for the expenses the firm advanced. That is what a contingency arrangement means and it is why the firm is selective about which cases it takes.

Usually your health insurance, medical payments coverage on your auto policy, or a provider willing to treat on a lien. Those liens then have to be negotiated down out of the settlement — which is real, unglamorous work that directly increases what the client keeps.

Generally two years from the date of injury (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33). Once it passes the claim is gone, regardless of how strong it was.

Yes, and much shorter. A claim against a Georgia municipality generally requires written ante litem notice within six months (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5); a county, twelve months (O.C.G.A. § 36-11-1); the State, twelve months (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26). Miss the notice and the two-year period is irrelevant.

The rules for minors are different and generally more forgiving, but do not rely on that — the associated claims belonging to the parents can expire on the ordinary schedule.

You can still recover as long as your share is under 50 percent, and your damages are reduced by that share (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33). Because 50 percent is a cliff rather than a slope, the fault split is usually where the real fight is.

Not before speaking to a lawyer. You are not required to, and the questions are written to produce admissions about fault and about how badly you are hurt — before you know either answer yourself.

Then your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage is the claim. Georgia insurers must offer it and many drivers carry more than they realise (O.C.G.A. § 33-7-11). Send us your declarations page.

An early offer is made before anyone knows what your treatment will cost — which is precisely why it is made early. Signing the release closes the claim even if you need surgery three months later.

It depends on the medical picture, the wage loss, the permanence of the injury and the insurance actually available. Any firm that gives you a number before reading your records is guessing, and the guess is usually low.

Mostly determined by how long your treatment takes, because a claim cannot be valued until your doctors know where you will end up. A claim resolved before suit is often months after treatment ends; a filed case is usually a year or more.

Most clients never do. Most cases resolve before or during litigation — but the ones that resolve well are prepared as though they will not.

Yes. Omar reviews every case and signs every representation agreement. That is the trade-off of a small firm, and it is deliberate.

Most Georgia agencies release crash reports through BuyCrash, usually a few business days after the crash. You will need the date, the location and a name or report number.