AboutThomas Hurwitz Expertise Thomas R. Hurwitz, has practiced law in multiple areas throughout his career. He is highly respected in the legal community for his work as a Personal Injury attorney, where he has represented both injured people and insurance companies. He was just chosen by his peers as a "Super Lawyer" - one of Minnesota`s Best Lawyers. The fact that he has experience on both sides of personal injury law means that he has a thorough understanding of all aspects of personal injury law and settlement values. This promotes quick and favorable settlements for his clients.
Experience Mr. Hurwitz is know for his expertise in almost all areas of law. He gets calls from other attorneys almost daily asking for his advice on how they should handle cases on which they are working. This is on many different areas of the law.
Organizations Mr. Hurwitz is a member of the Minnesota State Bar Association, the Hennepin County Bar Association, and joined the Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association in 1990. Mr. Hurwitz is listed in Who's Who in Executives and Businesses and the National Registry of Who's Who for his work as an attorney.
Education/Credentials Thomas Hurwitz graduated from Hamline University School of Law in 1986 with a Juris Doctorate degree. While in law school, he was on the Dean's List.
Awards and Honors Thomas R. Hurwitz has received numerous commendations for his commitment and excellence as an educator of law, including being selected as the Law Department Chair and the Law Department's Lead Instructor. He is currently teaching law at two colleges as well as his running his law practice.
Question I fell in a resort in FL resulting in a broken ankle and foot. The sidewalk was cracked and uneven causing me to fall. This happened in Nov 06. They have been calling me periodically checking on my progress. The break has been extremely painful and I have really suffered. How much is a personal injury like this worth?
Answer The laws of different states differ greatly. You need to contact an attorney where this happened. Do this immediately as there are real time limits. If you do not do what is required within the time limit, you will have NO case regardless of the merits. The insurance company routinely stalls to negotiate past the time, and you get nothing. A lawyer will not let this happen. There may also be notice requirements, depending on the defendant and the state. DO THIS RIGHT AWAY!!!!!
There are way too many unknowns here for me to feel comfortable saying any figure. There are so many different pieces that come into play in determining the value of a case. One thing that is very likely, however, is that once you settle, this matter is completely over and you will never be able to go back.
Any settlement potentially could have long reaching effects that you may not even consider. That is why people hire an attorney to protect their interests and look out for them. Don't take this the wrong way, but there may be many factors involved in this case that could greatly effect the settlement value of the case, that a non-lawyer won't ever consider, because they do not deal with personal injury cases on a daily basis. And there is study after study that shows that when an attorney is involved, statistically, the client gets more money even after the attorney takes his/her fee, than if there was no attorney involved in the first place.
Regarding the above unknowns, there are so many different things that come into play I wanted to list just a VERY few to give you an idea of what I am talking about. First, what are juries like in your locality? Are they conservative with money? How have defense verdicts been? Second, what kind of witness would YOU be? nervous? likeable? And, what does your doctor say about your condition and what kind of witness would he/she be? How strong of a report could the doctor write regarding: 1) what is wrong with you, and 2) what the prognosis of a full recovery will be, and 3) if there are possibilities of future complications. These are just a FEW!!! things that attorneys take into consideration when we are determining the value of a case. Also, what are the policy limits of the at-fault parties? These things could also greatly effect settlement possibilities.
