What will my Solicitor do for me if I have a Road Traffic Accident?*

If you are unlucky enough to be involved in a road traffic accident, Cantillons Solicitors should be on your list of people to call following the event.Initial meeting The initial meeting with your solicitor at Cantillons is very important as this is an opportunity for us to extract all of the necessary information from you while it is fresh in your mind, post-accident. This meeting can often times be quite lengthy and it is important for your solicitor to take a detailed note of everything that is recited throughout this meeting.At the end of this meeting we should be in a better position to advise you whether you should take the next step to lodge an application with the Injuries Board.Injuries Board ApplicationLodging an Injuries Board application involves a step by step process where certain time limits must be adhered to. In order to lodge this application, you will need a medical report that sets out what injuries you have sustained. This can be arranged by us at Cantillons Solicitors or by your treating doctor.   We will have to ensure that all of the correct Defendants (either persons/corporate entities) involved in the accident are listed on the application form. In order to ascertain the correct Defendants it may be necessary for us to carry out some searches, including searches in the Companies Registration Office and/or the Motor Taxation office (to ascertain the registered owner of a car).  We will also need some information from you in relation to what out of pocket expenses you have incurred as a result of this accident so we can claim for these in your Injuries Board application. Once your application has been registered by the Injuries Board, time will stop running against you. During this period (usually six-nine months), the Injuries Board may seek to have you assessed by a medical practitioner of their choosing. The waiting period can often times be quite stressful for the applicant, and it is important to keep in touch with us, at Cantillons Solicitors, throughout this time to let us know how your injuries are progressing.Injuries Board AssessmentAfter roughly six- nine months, the Injuries Board may decide to make an assessment of your case (if the Defendants agree to this). At this point, the Injuries Board will write to your solicitor advising them that an assessment has been made.  We, at Cantillons Solicitors, will play a very important role here as we will need to advise you whether this assessment is appropriate given your injuries and the expenses incurred.   We will advise you to either accept the assessment offer or, on the other hand, we may advise you that the assessment is too low, and in that case you should reject the offer. If the offer is rejected, the clock starts ticking against you again, and you need to move on to the next step (the issue of Court proceedings) without delay. We, at Cantillons Solicitors, will ensure that these time limits are adhered to.Issuing ProceedingsIf you (or the Defendant(s)- they can also reject the offer) decide to reject the Injuries Board assessment, this matter will go down the court route. You will need to meet with us at this point and we will advise you on what this entails. Clearly the object is to ensure that you are adequately compensated.  We, at Cantillons Solicitors, will advise you and decide what court to issue proceedings in.  A Personal Injuries Summons will be finalised by us at Cantillons Solicitors. Once this document is drafted, you will need to review it and approve same. We will ask you to swear an Affidavit in relation to the contents of the document. Following this, the Personal Injuries Summons is issued by the appropriate court office.   This stamp stops the clock again, and gives you one year to serve your proceedings on the Defendant(s).Court CaseBetween the time the proceedings are served and the first day in court there will be many obstacles to overcome. We will be working behind the scenes in order to ensure the requisite court documents are lodged at the correct points in time. There will also be further medical appointments to be arranged by us and by the Defendant(s). You will need to meet with us on a regular basis in order to update us on your injuries and your out of pocket expenses. Throughout this time, the Defendant(s) may approach us and invite you to settlement talks. We, at Cantillons Solicitors, will need to advise you carefully at this point, and decide whether the case is at a point where it can be settled or whether it would be best to wait. If settlement talks do proceed, your solicitor’s negotiating skills will be crucial.If the case does proceed to court, we will advise you on what will take place, and what you will need to do. Court can be extremely daunting for people, so it is often reassuring for people to have us there by their side throughout this process.ConclusionYour solicitor is vitally important to you following a road traffic accident for the reasons listed above. Most importantly, people are often intimidated by the process involved with taking a claim, and it is reassuring for people to have a solicitor advising them throughout this time. At Cantillons Solicitors, our aim throughout this course is to keep the stress for our clients to a minimum and to get them the best result possible.Contact us at Cantillons Solicitors at +353 (0)21 -4275673 or info@cantillons.com if you would like more information on making a road traffic accident claim.* In contentious business, a solicitor may not calculate fees or other charges as a percentage of any award or settlement.  Share on Social