The second most important protection you can have is adequate uninsured/under-insured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. If you are an active Wisconsin bicyclist and have the misfortune to be hit by a car and the driver flees the scene, the vehicle is considered under-insured; therefore, your UM/UIM insurance will likely cover your damages, medical bills, lost pay, and pain and suffering.

It is recommended that your UM/UIM limits are at least as great as your bodily injury limits. In short, UM/UIM protects you from the negligent actions of others while bodily injury protects others from your negligence. Both equally as important, not only for drivers, but for bicyclists as well.

If you have been injured in a bicycle accident and want to understand your rights to under-insured/uninsured motorist coverage, be sure to contact an experienced Wisconsin Bicycle Accident Attorney.

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In Wisconsin, you only have 3 years from the date of the accident to settle your claim or file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver or negligent party- this time limit is known as the Wisconsin Statute of Limitations. Once the three years has elapsed, an injury victims no longer allowed to seek recourse for his/her injuries.

There are a few exceptions to the “3-year limit” including when a claim involves a municipal government. Wisconsin personal injury claims against municipal entities requires the injury victim to provide the particular entity with written notice of the injury within 120 days of the event. The injury victim must also present the municipal entity with a detailed notice of the claim prior to the filing of a lawsuit. Other exceptions to the 3-year limit include, but are not limited to, cases involving property damage (6-years), libel or slander (2-years), and intentional tort (2-years). Also, the Wisconsin Statute of Limitations is different for minors and disabled individuals.

There are many statutes which apply limitations periods to civil actions. It can be difficult to keep track of the various statutes and their exceptions. If you have been injured in an accident and are concerned about losing your right to sue as a result of the expiration of the statutory limitations period, please consult with an experienced Wisconsin Personal Injury Attorney who can help determine which statute applies, and help preserve your right to recover.

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According to a National Highway Traffic Administration study, distracted driving accounts for 80% of all car accidents.

The Top 7 most distracting tasks that should be avoided while driving include:

• Reaching for a moving object
• Reading and Writing
• Applying Makeup
• Dialing a Hand Held Cell Phone
• Eating, and Drinking
• Texting, Talking and Listening on a cell phone
• Adjusting the Radio or CD Player

The most common distraction that causes the most car accidents involves dropping one’s cell phone while trying to dial or text and then trying to pick it up while driving. Reaching for dropped objects is twice as dangerous as other non-driving tasks including reading and changing the radio channel.

Not paying attention when driving can result in relatively minor car accidents such as collisions in parking lots; however, many times it results in serious crashes causing extensive damages, injuries, and fatalities. The good news is that distracted driving is avoidable.

According to the Wisconsin AAA, the average driver makes approximately 200 driving decisions per mile. As the number of activities increase so so the chances of an accident. And today, more than ever, we have so many opportunities to be distracted, changing songs on your iPod, glancing at the DVD your child is watching, entering an address into your navigation system, and texting a friend. A study done by the Virgina Tech Transportation Institute found that for every 6 seconds of drive time, a driver sending or receiving a text spends 4.6 of those seconds with their eyes off the road.

To reduce distractions, plan ahead. Map out your route before entering the vehicle. Eat before you leave the house. Shut off your cell phone and put it out of site. Once in the car, make a point to concentrate on keeping your hands on the wheel.

Many individuals do not believe that anyone will know if they are texting or talking on the cell phone and happen to be in an accident. It is important to understand that even if you are in a car accident caused by another driver, the insurance company will request your phone bill, review it, and determine if you were talking or texting at the time of the accident. If you were injured in the accident and are pursuing the other driver’s insurance for medical bill payment, you may loose your case based on your phone records.

Now before the Wisconsin State Assembly is a bill that was passed by the Wisconsin Senate banning texting while driving. This ban is proposed to help keep our roads safe. To assist with getting this bill approved, visit legis.wi.gov to contact your local legislator and request the passage of this bill.

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For more information on Wisconsin Car Accidents or to speak with a Wisconsin Car Accident Attorney about an accident that involved distracted driving.

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The recent popularity of Web 2.0 and Social Media sites have prompted the insurance industry to take notice. Many insurance companies now routinely utilize software programs that “scour” the Internet for social media information on injury victims. This includes all the popular social networking sites, including:

• FaceBook.com
• Twitter.com
• MySpace.com
• LinkedIn.com
• Classmates.com
• Ning.com
• Tagged.com
• Friendster.com
• and dozens of other sites

For years, unscrupulous defense attorneys hired by these insurance companies have used the formal discovery process to intimidate and harass personal injury victims. These defense attorneys now see social networking information as a new means to harass personal injury victims. Unfortunately, many judges have ruled in favor of defense attorneys and their insurance company clients in ordering the production of all of the social networking communications  under the theory that injury victims do not have a “reasonable expectation of privacy” when they communicate through these sites.

There have also been instances where defense attorneys have asked their legal assistants, paralegals, and even family members to “friend” an injury victim in order for the defense attorney to obtain the social networking communications. While this clearly violates the Wisconsin Supreme Court Rule prohibiting communications with a person that is represented by a different attorney, the damage may have already been done.

If you have been involved in a Wisconsin personal injury accident, be cognizant of the fact that there is an insurance company out their trying to invade your privacy and ALWAYS assume they will be reading your social networking status updates, posts and messages.

For more insight on how to protect your Wisconsin Personal Injury Case, Order your free copy of a Consumer’s Guide to Personal Injury Claims in Wisconsin.

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The key to finding the right lawyer for your case is to develop an organized system to assist you and to stick to that system. The following 5 steps will help you in your decision-making process.

1.     Determine the Type of Case You Have

In order to know what type of lawyer you need, you must know what type of case you have. For example, if you are injured on the job, then you likely need a worker’s compensation lawyer. If you are injured in an accident with a semi-truck, then you need a lawyer with experience handling truck accidents. The Internet is a great resource for general information.

2.     Identify the Type of Injury You Have

Research your particular injury. Personal injury lawyers insist on running generic, catch-all ads, instead of focusing their ads on particular injuries. Many “run-of-the-mill” personal injury lawyers believe they can make more money by handling every injury case that comes in the door. While almost all personal injury lawyers have experience handling neck and back injuries, most personal injury lawyers do not have experience with more specialized injuries, like traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, RSD, amputations, scars, etc.

Instead of handling all types of injury claims, many highly successful personal injury lawyers limit their practice to specific types of injuries. This allows them to better focus their time. They are not learning new medicine for every case. They are very comfortable with the best experts in the fields of medicine in which they practice and they are not intimidated when faced with medical experts that have been retained by the insurance companies to say that their client was not injured. As a result, they are in a much better position to obtain the appropriate amount of damages for their clients with those particular types of injuries because they have a better idea as to the amount a jury may award for these kinds of injuries.

3.     Search for Names of Potential Lawyers

Once you know what type of case you have and what type of injury you have, you can start searching for lawyers that have experience in those types of cases with those types of injuries. Again, the Internet is a great resource. The Yellow Pages may also be of benefit, however, not as much help just because there is a limited amount of information that can fit on one or two pages. Television is even less helpful, because of the time limit on the ads.

Once you have your list of possible lawyers, you should do the following:

• Read their particular websites closely
• Check out the organizations to which they belong. They may belong to particular organizations that deal with your particular case or your particular injury
• Ask around. The majority of quality personal injury lawyers get most of their cases from referrals.

4.     Call and Request Written Material From the Lawyer

It is absolutely critical that you choose the right lawyer the first time in Wisconsin. You obviously have the option of calling the lawyer and setting up an appointment, however, if you first get written material from the lawyer, then you cannot be pressured into signing something you may later regret. You will be able to first read the lawyer’s educational materials and then decide on your own time whether this lawyer is right for you and your case.

If you call a law firm for written materials and instead of politely sending some information they attempt to get you into their office, then beware. If they do not have informative, written materials, or if they are pressuring you to come in and sign a retainer, then they are probably not reputable.

Keep in mind that the ethics rules prevent lawyers from directly contacting you in person, by telephone, or by email. If this happens you should report it to the Office of Lawyer Regulation.

5.     Set Up an Appointment and Ask Questions

Now that you are comfortable that you have done the necessary background research, it is time to set up a face to face meeting with the lawyer. Think of this meeting as your chance to cross-examine a lawyer. Ask the tough questions and don’t let the lawyer side step around any important questions. If they are competent, they will appreciate your persistence and answer your question much more directly.

So what questions do you ask? Here are some suggestions:

• How long have you been practicing law?

• Have you ever had a case like mine, i.e. auto accident, truck accident, motor cycle accident, slip and fall, products liability, medical malpractice, etc.? How many? How did they turn out?

• Have you ever represented people with my type of injuries before?  How did those cases turn out?

• Do you belong to any professional organizations that are pertinent to my case? (Examples include accident or injury-specific groups, such as the American Association for Justice (AAJ) Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, AAJ Interstate Trucking Litigation Group, etc.)

• Have you ever been disciplined by the State Bar of Wisconsin? If so, for what?

• How do you obtain most of your cases?

• How many active cases are you personally handling at the present time?

• What is the most difficult thing about my case?

• What is the process involved in handling my case, i.e. what steps will you go through?

• Who will be working on my case?

• When will my case be ready to be resolved?

• How much money is my case worth? (No lawyer can answer that question with any specificity but you should still ask. If the lawyer does give you a specific number walk, no run out the door).

• How much is your retainer fee and how is it structured?

Hopefully, this post will enable you to make an informed decision in hiring the right lawyer for your Wisconsin Personal Injury case. Click on the link for more information on Choosing a Personal Injury Attorney in Wisconsin.

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