Incompetent attorney
- Thread starter Grabbit Allworth
- Start date
Loser Araysar
Chief Russia Correspondent / Stock Pals CEO
- 75,492
- 149,834
No, it was either/or. He wants to hit what they call the railroad lottery, and they are offering him instead 400k which is about 4 years wages and a college education to retrain
Grabbit Allworth
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 1,373
- 5,805
Araysar is correct, it's either or.
Look, I'm not going to cry about how my injuries have affected my life, but I'm young and my injuries were/are serious. I am not looking for the moon, but I do want what I feel is reasonable compensation for worsening my life, permanently.
I no longer have a career and have to start over. By the time I finish retraining I will be in my 40s. Entering the workforce as a completely inexperienced and partially disabled middle aged man is not exactly where I want to be.
Palum
what Suineg set it to
- 23,483
- 33,796
I know, I'm just butthurt because I played with trains as a kid and Amtrak is shitty.
Changing attorneys right before the trial might make it look like you doubt you can win. It's like telling everyone you were going to ace the test and then pulling the fire alarm the morning of the exam.
Palum
what Suineg set it to
- 23,483
- 33,796
Which if he has a solid case is only a net positive? Like, wtf do you think would happen the judge is going to call his bluff and go 'Oh I see new counsel eh? Must be shady summarily dismiss!'
Also, still amazed you people are offering legitimate advice with no payment in SS.
Grabbit Allworth
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 1,373
- 5,805
That's very true, but railroad defense attorneys are very savvy at knowing what level of trial experience your own attorney has and their negotiations reflect that. Since my attorney refuses to answer questions concerning his experience I can only assume he hasn't tried many cases or if he has, he's lost more than he cares to share. Either way, that's not very intimidating for a top tier defense team.
Assuming my assumptions are correct they know I have very little chance to win anyway, so changing counsel could damage my case, but I doubt it.
The guy I have on deck has tried hundreds of cases and won the vast majority of them.
Assuming my assumptions are correct they know I have very little chance to win anyway, so changing counsel could damage my case, but I doubt it.
The guy I have on deck has tried hundreds of cases and won the vast majority of them.
Vaclav
Bronze Baronet of the Realm
- 12,650
- 877
Didn't realize you were quite so young Grabbit - assumed you were already tipping 40 now. (around my age)
But yea, no one should discount how difficult it is to get back to something meaningful after getting disabled in a way that ruins your career. Honestly, that's a bigger concern for me here - because even if you get a big bankroll I can speak from experience you're going to get bored as SHIT of doing nothing after a few years of "vacation life" that having the payout will allow - neck injuries are going to suck for ALOT of career options. (Probably don't want anything on your feet, not too much phone work, maybe not too much watching a screen even (wife is finding she needs to use a neck pillow or be lying down currently - but again, only 3 months post-op ATM) - definitely can't do anything like firefighting/EMS)
And frankly, on the case itself - have you talked to the union about MINIMUM payouts and gotten a number of doctors beyond the first to retest the results? It could be if you've not asked that there's a "baseline" that you're basically guaranteed to get unless the prove that you've been EXTREMELY fraudulent (not talking a minor fib or two on an application) - and the difference is that with the hearing the payout could increase but that you're basically guaranteed X even if stuff goes sideways. I'd not be surprised if $300-400k is basically automatic and it's just the subjective stuff that will be fought over.
Loser Araysar
Chief Russia Correspondent / Stock Pals CEO
- 75,492
- 149,834
I'm more interested in why the lawyer isnt telling him his win/loss ratio or how many cases he has gloriously won and other lawyers that he has slain on the battlefield of the law.
Cad, what do you think? Did Grabbit hire Charlie Kelly to represent him?
Cad, what do you think? Did Grabbit hire Charlie Kelly to represent him?
Kirun
Buzzfeed Editor
- 18,703
- 34,864
Except they are paying you out for your ENTIRE career, so what are you losing? On top of that, you never have to actually show up to work anymore. That sounds like a pretty decent gig to me.
What does "partially" disabled entail, exactly? Sore back? Loss of movement in limbs? Joint pain? Yeah, welcome to getting old. Fortunately for you, you also get all the rehabilitation and surgeries covered as things start to deteriorate, because you can "claim" it's related to the injury.
Grabbit Allworth
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 1,373
- 5,805
There hasn't been anything said here that any injury attorney would charge for. I could easily get a free hour or more of face time explaining my case to a dozen attorneys here where I live.
Like I said, I'm not looking for real advice. It's really just banter.
Like I said, I'm not looking for real advice. It's really just banter.
yerm
Golden Baronet of the Realm
- 6,001
- 15,473
1. Talk to another lawyer who works on contingency and let him review this for you, for free. he'll let you know if changing horses mid stream will help or hurt.
2. Post some fucking titties. Stromm server brother or not, this isn't livejournal, post some.
3. Try to get a better settlement and be willing to take it if you do. Just because your superlawyer lined up wins mad cases does NOT mean he wins them all for 100% of what they went in for.
2. Post some fucking titties. Stromm server brother or not, this isn't livejournal, post some.
3. Try to get a better settlement and be willing to take it if you do. Just because your superlawyer lined up wins mad cases does NOT mean he wins them all for 100% of what they went in for.
Vaclav
Bronze Baronet of the Realm
- 12,650
- 877
Considering the surgery he quoted, the wife's cervical fusion + diskectomy before she had it was risking permanent paralysis and had her in constant extreme pain (talking 15mg of oxycodone four times a day for 18 months level bad while they were figuring out why that she claimed wasn't enough to completely dull it) and had her right arm so weak she couldn't even lift more than 5 lbs or even do writing motions with the arm. (she actually taught herself to sign things with her left because of needing to sign things without her right for so long)
What he's talking about treads on "never walking again if not handled appropriately" territory with extreme pain levels. (Wife constantly quoted 10-11 range on a 10 pt scale, but her pain threshold sucks, realistically probably a constant 8 or so though)
And on "never having to show up to work anymore" - it's not as nice as it might sound after a few years. Might sound great to you as someone currently working, but trust me - if you ever end up in his shoes, you'll regret it unless you've got something like a dozen kids/grandkids to become a "job" instead.
Erronius
Macho Ma'am
- 16,480
- 42,418
Many railroads are so worried about people getting injured that they'll often offer people buyouts for early retirements. The last thing they want is someone getting hurt a year before they can retire and getting a settlement, so it's often cheaper for them to offer buyouts. My ex stepfather got a buyout from the UP, and he was working fucking clerical bullshit at the time. He was about as likely to get hurt on the job as an elephant is likely to fall out of the sky, and they still offered him a significant buyout to get him to essentially retire early.
Grabbit, you need to not fuck around with representation. I don't know if the attorney is decent or not, but if you don't either then you need to look elsewhere. You should know better than anyone how vicious the Railroads get about this kind of thing, and you also need to watch your back. If you don't settle then I wouldn't be surprised if you start having agents follow you around.
This shit is serious, and it isn't a slam dunk. I don't know if you were coming out of service or not when this happened, but with the way FELA is worded the RRs can try claiming that they weren't negligent, that the oil leaked during operation and that they had provided a "reasonably safe" work environment. They can go after you for shit as minor as not wearing approved boots, or even boots that aren't rated as slip proof or oil resistant, and you can end up with nothing. That's unlikely since most RRs have rigid boot programs, but that's just an example.
I don't know if the lying shit will be an issue or not, beyond possibly scaring you away from going to trial. The issue of your honesty, or lack thereof, means jack and shit when it comes to you slipping and falling the fuck off an engine. Especially when it's on tape. As far as who you choose, you want to go into it looking for someone that isn't afraid to tussle with the RR and someone who the RR might be more willing to come to terms with. This union dude, if you have a bad feeling then go fucking talk with this other guy. The first guy could just do the minimum the Union wants done so that they can claim that they're looking out for their local while simultaneously trying to avoid pissing the RR off and letting you get shafted in the process. In fact, I'd probably avoid anyone Union related for the simple fact that Union/Company politics are so in favor of the companies anymore that the risk might not even be worth it. I mean I don't know how the UTU is there, and I'm generally pro-Union, but I also have to say that the RR unions aren't but a pale shadow of what they used to be, many have no balls when it comes to standing up to the RRs and I've heard a ton of stories of local chairmen who gave zero fucks about the members and seemed to be more interested in using their position as a way to ingratiate themselves with RR management.
I'd change from the first guy for the simple fact that he wouldn't answer your question. That doesn't exactly inspire confidence.
Grabbit, you need to not fuck around with representation. I don't know if the attorney is decent or not, but if you don't either then you need to look elsewhere. You should know better than anyone how vicious the Railroads get about this kind of thing, and you also need to watch your back. If you don't settle then I wouldn't be surprised if you start having agents follow you around.
This shit is serious, and it isn't a slam dunk. I don't know if you were coming out of service or not when this happened, but with the way FELA is worded the RRs can try claiming that they weren't negligent, that the oil leaked during operation and that they had provided a "reasonably safe" work environment. They can go after you for shit as minor as not wearing approved boots, or even boots that aren't rated as slip proof or oil resistant, and you can end up with nothing. That's unlikely since most RRs have rigid boot programs, but that's just an example.
I don't know if the lying shit will be an issue or not, beyond possibly scaring you away from going to trial. The issue of your honesty, or lack thereof, means jack and shit when it comes to you slipping and falling the fuck off an engine. Especially when it's on tape. As far as who you choose, you want to go into it looking for someone that isn't afraid to tussle with the RR and someone who the RR might be more willing to come to terms with. This union dude, if you have a bad feeling then go fucking talk with this other guy. The first guy could just do the minimum the Union wants done so that they can claim that they're looking out for their local while simultaneously trying to avoid pissing the RR off and letting you get shafted in the process. In fact, I'd probably avoid anyone Union related for the simple fact that Union/Company politics are so in favor of the companies anymore that the risk might not even be worth it. I mean I don't know how the UTU is there, and I'm generally pro-Union, but I also have to say that the RR unions aren't but a pale shadow of what they used to be, many have no balls when it comes to standing up to the RRs and I've heard a ton of stories of local chairmen who gave zero fucks about the members and seemed to be more interested in using their position as a way to ingratiate themselves with RR management.
I'd change from the first guy for the simple fact that he wouldn't answer your question. That doesn't exactly inspire confidence.
Grabbit Allworth
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
- 1,373
- 5,805
You're a jaded one aren't you, Kirun? Not to mention I don't think you actually understand the specifics of the case.
Back/joint pain? I wish that's all it was. We all have pain as we age, but I have been in amazing physical condition my entire life. In the old real life picture thread I had multiple homos swinging on my ball sack. Just sayin'. I've always taken care of myself. I'm a gamer but I looked like a large NFL safety (use to anyway).
Now, my spine is wrecked. I am in pain EVERY single day and can do none of the things I use to enjoy. I'm not selling you a sob story here. You have nothing to offer me. And I don't really give two fucks for sympathy. I wanted to avoid talking about my actual injuries, but doctors don't put steel plates and screws in the necks of people without serious injuries. I have permanent nerve damage in my left arm that will never go away. As well as serious pain in my back. My mailbox is about a 2% grade at the end of my driveway, but just walking up and down that is very painful due stress it puts on my back.
The fact is, had I not gotten hurt while performing service for my employer I wouldn't be fucked up for life. It's their fault that the goddamn government had to pass laws to penalize their asses to oblivion for not taking steps to protect us.
TL;dr. Fuck you, Kirun.
Back/joint pain? I wish that's all it was. We all have pain as we age, but I have been in amazing physical condition my entire life. In the old real life picture thread I had multiple homos swinging on my ball sack. Just sayin'. I've always taken care of myself. I'm a gamer but I looked like a large NFL safety (use to anyway).
Now, my spine is wrecked. I am in pain EVERY single day and can do none of the things I use to enjoy. I'm not selling you a sob story here. You have nothing to offer me. And I don't really give two fucks for sympathy. I wanted to avoid talking about my actual injuries, but doctors don't put steel plates and screws in the necks of people without serious injuries. I have permanent nerve damage in my left arm that will never go away. As well as serious pain in my back. My mailbox is about a 2% grade at the end of my driveway, but just walking up and down that is very painful due stress it puts on my back.
The fact is, had I not gotten hurt while performing service for my employer I wouldn't be fucked up for life. It's their fault that the goddamn government had to pass laws to penalize their asses to oblivion for not taking steps to protect us.
TL;dr. Fuck you, Kirun.
Loser Araysar
Chief Russia Correspondent / Stock Pals CEO
- 75,492
- 149,834
You should use this in the opening statement at trial and then pull out screenshots of the posts to really hammer home the point as to how devastating this injury was.