Blog Layout

How to Choose The Right Wisconsin Injury Attorney

Randy Rozek • March 12, 2010

he most important decision you must make following a personal injury is choosing your lawyer.  Finding the right Wisconsin Personal Injury Lawyer for your case can be a daunting task and it is hard work. It should not be taken lightly, especially in Wisconsin, because the law here makes it very difficult to fire your lawyer and find a new one to take over your case.

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.

Free E-Books 

$8.3 Million Verdict in a Negligent Security Case for TBI and PTSD

By Randy Rozek • October 27, 2023
After an ongoing struggle to bring justice to the victim of an attack at a Wisconsin diabetes clinic, attorney Randy Rozek of Rozek Law Offices, S.C. has won an $8.3 million victory in which a jury found hospital security at fault for the attack and the client’s resulting injuries. In 2014, Rozek’s client was in the waiting room of the diabetes clinic at a local children’s hospital when a 16-year-old girl with a history of violence viciously assaulted her. The victim, who was accompanied by her two young children, was “punched repeatedly in the face and head, had chunks of hair pulled from her head and was struck in the head with a chair,” Rozek said. The children, aged 9 and 11 at the time, were so frightened by the brutal beating that they fled to a stairwell for safety, fearing their mother had been killed by the attacker and that they would be next if the attacker was to find them. Rozek’s client survived the assault, but still struggles with symptoms of a TBI (traumatic brain injury) and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) following the attack.

Randy Rozek Elected Chair of the Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group

By Jayne Zabrowski • July 21, 2020
Congratulations to Attorney Randy Rozek on his election to be Chair of the American Association for Justice’s Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group. The American Association for Justice (AAJ) is the largest group of legal advocates for justice in the country. According to AAJ: “For over 70 years, AAJ has successfully defended Americans’ right to trial by jury and continues to fight every day to protect our practices, our clients’ rights, and our civil justice system.” The 3 pillars of AAJ are Community, Advocacy and Education. AAJ has over 50,000 members and has several different Litigation Groups made up of attorneys that specialize in different areas of the law. The Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group (TBILG) was established in 1991 in order to allow attorneys that handle Traumatic Brain Injury cases the ability to share their knowledge, techniques and experience. The TBILG has over 300 members from around the world. Pre-COVID19, the TBILG will typically put on two or three in-person conferences throughout the year and always had a reputation for bringing in great speakers and having a great turnout. Randy was asked about his election as Chair of the TBILG and had this to say: “It means a lot to me that my fellow trial lawyer colleagues bestowed upon my the great honor of leading the Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group for the next year. Our group is made up of some of the greatest TBI lawyers in the country, if not the world. I am proud to lead a group of great lawyers that have dedicated their practices to advocate for those individuals that have suffered from the devastating effects of brain injuries.” Rozek Law Offices, S.C. 3970 N Oakland Ave Ste 604 Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211 (414) 374-4444 https://www.rozeklaw.com/

Rozek Law Offices Implements New Coronavirus Procedures

By Randy Rozek • March 18, 2020
The vast majority of interactions between clients and Rozek Law Offices is not in-person contact. Typically, however, the initial contact between a potential client and Attorney Rozek would be an in person meeting. Due to the health concerns regarding the Coronavirus (COVID-19), Rozek Law Offices has implemented new technology that will allow potential clients to retain Attorney Rozek and Rozek Law Offices without an in-person meeting. A typical new client relationship with Rozek Law Offices now looks like the following:

ATTORNEY RANDY ROZEK Selected for Brain Injury Preferred Attorney Program in WISCONSIN

By Randy Rozek • August 20, 2019
MILWAUKEE, WI – We are pleased to announce that Randy Rozek, Rozek Law Offices, S. C., has been selected to the Brain Injury Association of America’s Brain Injury Preferred Attorneys Program. This is an exclusive partnership between the nation’s oldest and largest brain injury advocacy organization and one of Wisconsin’s foremost brain injury law firms. […]

How Do You Get Your Clients?

By Randy Rozek • October 31, 2018
The majority of our clients are referred to us from people in the community, doctors, judges, lawyers, other past clients that we have represented, but also we’re routinely asked to associate with other attorneys around the state or even around the country because we know the right experts and we get the right results. Because […]

Wisconsin Rideshare Accident Lawyer

By Randy Rozek • October 8, 2018
Wisconsin Rideshare Accident Lawyer Rideshare accidents is a new field of law with the advent of Uber, Lyft, and other companies that offer ride services. What we’re seeing in the law is that some of these companies don’t provide adequate training or even adequate background checks on their drivers. Not only are we have seeing […]

Victims of Coma Lawyer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

By Randy Rozek • October 3, 2018
Coma is a deep state of unconsciousness for a prolonged period of time, immediately following a coma or during a coma, the medical professionals are looking to eliminate the bleeding and eliminate the swelling of the brain. Following that, and even after the coma victim regains consciousness, they’re still likely going to be left with […]

What to Expect If You Have Been Referred to a Neuro Ophthalmologist

By Randy Rozek • September 7, 2018
If you’ve suffered a brain injury and you’re having vision problems, most likely, you’ll be referred to a neuro ophthalmologist. Some of the common visual disturbances following traumatic brain injury include light sensitivity, convergence disorder, blurred vision, seeing things in your visual field that aren’t actually there. A neuro ophthalmologist can help identify these types […]

What to Expect If You Have Been Referred to a Neuroradiologist

By Randy Rozek • August 20, 2018
A neuroradiologist is a radiologist that specializes in advanced imaging of the brain. If you’ve been referred to a neuroradiologist, they’ll do an MRI and then look for damage to certain parts of the brain. Most likely lesions in the gray-white matter interface, which is most susceptible to injury following brain injury. There will also […]

What to Expect If You Have Been Referred to a Neuroendocrinologist

By Randy Rozek • August 9, 2018
  If you’ve suffered a brain injury and you’ve been referred to a neuroendocrinologist, you can expect for that doctor to look for damage to your pituitary gland. If you’ve suffered a brain injury, most likely there was enough force involved to damage the pituitary gland or the hypothalamus, which connects the pituitary gland to […]
More Posts
Share by: