by winburnlawHow Do I Know What My Case Is Worth?
Unfortunately, you probably can’t know unless you have legal help.
When buying a new house, people usually have an idea of what a house should cost because they can see what other houses in the neighborhood are selling for. If a person has a serious injury, there is no similar way to evaluate the case. Everyone is different and a person is not a product. That is why it is important to hire a personal injury attorney with the background, training and experience to provide advice on the value of your case. See our “In the News” and “About Us” pages on our website (winburnlaw.com) for some examples of our past cases and our background in handling injury cases for over three decades.
We offer free consultations to help make this determination and help you make a more informed choice. Our background and experience in doing this (see the “In The News” page of this website) can easily be compared to others in making a good decision about who should be hired to handle your case.
If you believe you have an accident claim contact us for a fee evaluation – if we take your case, we don’t get paid unless we get money for you. Our law office reviews cases throughout the State of Vermont – in Manchester, Bennington, Rutland, Burlington, Woodstock, St. Albans, Brattleboro, Montpelier, Woodford, Springfield, Wilmington, the Northeast Kingdom and anywhere else where there is jurisdiction in the State of Vermont.
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by winburnlawIf I Do Not Live In Vermont, Can I Make A Vermont Car Accident Claim?
Many people from out-of-state visit Vermont and unfortunately are involved in automobile accidents here. No matter where you live, you have a right to make a claim for that accident in Vermont under Vermont law.
Our office only handles personal injury matters and we deal with insurance companies on behalf of our clients whatever state they live in if they had a Vermont accident.
If you have been involved in a car accident in Vermont, we would be pleased to speak to you and further advise you as to the merit of your case.
We handle cases from Bennington to St. Albans, Vermont, the Northeast Kingdom to Brattleboro and all points in between.
Of course, cases can be settled without filing a lawsuit and most insurance companies have branch offices throughout the United States - their local branch will usually handle your claim.
If you believe you have an accident claim contact us for a free evaluation!
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by winburnlawShould I Give A Statement To An Insurance Company If I’m Involved In An Accident?
Insurance companies frequently want to take statements from people involved in accidents. Their representation to the public is that they want to take statements to preserve evidence and investigate the accident. Sometimes this is the case but giving a statement also provides the insurance company with information that can be used against you at a later time.
Insurance companies are professionals at taking statements and asking the types of questions that are designed to prevent cases from being made against their insured (and themselves). If a statement is made voluntarily without legal advice it can sometimes hurt the case of the person giving the statement, no matter how good the motives are for the person giving the statement. It is always better to have legal advice so that there is an equal playing field in this type of circumstance. Call us for a free evaluation before you give a statement to any insurance company to protect your rights!
We handle cases all over the State of Vermont – in Bennington, Burlington, Brattleboro, Rutland, Woodstock, St. Albans, Montpelier, Manchester, Springfield, the Northeast Kingdom and anywhere else where there is jurisdiction in the State of Vermont.
If you believe you have an accident claim contact us for a free evaluation.
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by winburnlawI Like Insurance Companies – The TV Ads Are Funny – Should I Really Make A Claim Against Them?
Insurance companies spend huge amounts of money on advertising. They sponsor popular television shows where they have very likable and funny characters as their spokespeople – geckos that sing and dance and tell funny jokes and wise-cracking Flo immediately come to mind. However, when you make a claim, they are no longer “like a good neighbor” and you really are not in “good hands”.
Insurance companies are a business and the way they make money is by keeping the money and not paying it to claimants. To the extent that they can do this, their business will be more profitable. It is logical for a business to do this.
However, there is really more involved for claimants who are victims of someone else’s negligence should be treated better because they did nothing wrong and that is what insurance is supposed to be for. Insurance companies should also protect their negligent insured from being sued by properly paying claims – they should minimize a person’s misery from an accident if it was caused by people they insure. This rarely factors into an insurance companies’ evaluation of a bodily injury claim and would seem naive if someone in the insurance adjusting business actually made this point to another insurance company person. It is all a matter of dollars and cents and is answered by the question “how much do I have to spend on this case?” If an insurance company sees that it is in their financial interest to settle a case then they will settle it. If there are other factors involved (like will the claimant’s lawyer actually sue us based on past experience) make their decision based on that – not whether it is morally correct to do the right things and will sometimes they can delay a settlement or not settle it at all, to try to force the hand of the claimants and their attorneys.
If you believe you have an accident claim contact us for a free evaluation – if we take your case, we don’t get unless we get money for you!
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by winburnlawWhat If I Don’t Want To Make A Claim Because I Don’t Want To Financially Hurt The Other Person Who Caused It?
Every insurance policy has an insurance limit that states a maximum amount of money the insurance company will pay on a claim. The lawyers and their clients will know what it is although it is rarely something that can be explained to a jury if a trial is required. Juries are usually not allowed to be told whether insurance even exists.
Since most cases settle without a trial, it is extremely uncommon for a person’s personal assets to be at risk if a trial takes place. The wrongdoer’s insurance premiums could go up, depending on the insurance company – but they have insurance for a reason. It is not a favor or gift by their insurance company – they paid for it!
Very few people have the resources to pay verdicts and besides, that is why they have insurance. If a jury award exceeds the limits of an insurance policy our office can sometimes make a bad faith claim against the insurance company since they would have had an opportunity to settle within the policy limits. Instead, the insurance company gambled with their insured’s money with the hope that a jury would allow them to pay less so that they would save money. If that happens then the insurance company may have to pay for their negligence in failing to settle a claim within the limits of their policy. When they have an opportunity to settle and protect their insured’s assets, but end up with a verdict that exceeds the policy limits, the argument can be made that they have been negligent in their handling of the matter to the detriment of their insured – called a “bad faith” case.
However, it is uncommon for a verdict to exceed an insurance company’s policy limits anyway if the insurance company is looking out for their insured instead of themselves. Generally, the plaintiff’s lawyers do not ask the jury for more than they know they are going to be able to collect because it won’t matter.
We handle cases all over the State of Vermont – in Bennington, Burlington, Brattleboro, Rutland, Woodstock, St. Albans, Montpelier, Manchester, Springfield, the Northeast Kingdom and anywhere else where there is jurisdiction in the State of Vermont. If you have a personal injury problem feel free to contact us.
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by winburnlawWho Is The Top Judge?
The highest State court in Vermont is the Vermont Supreme Court and the Chief Justice is Rutland attorney Paul Rieber, at least as of December, 2019. (Some day he will retire). There are five members of the Vermont Supreme Court and a majority vote is needed to make a decision. There is usually a written opinion by the Court at the conclusion and their written opinions are published in a bound volume called Vermont Reports. They are also available online.
These cases go back to 1824 and can be considered precedent that lawyers and courts are supposed to follow. These opinions can change over time but it is rare that there is an outright complete reversal of a previous case, because of a legal concept called “stare decisis”.
If you believe you have an accident claim in Vermont, we would be pleased to speak to you and further advise you as to the merit of your case. We handle cases from Bennington to St. Albans, Vermont, the Northeast Kingdom to Brattleboro and all points in between.
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by winburnlawWhat Is The Difference Between Arbitration And Mediation?
People sometimes confuse arbitration and mediation. Mediation is merely a settlement meeting. The parties can either settle or not settle, depending on what they perceive to be in their best interests. A mediation does not require any particular result and often there is no result at all and the case does not settle. Mediations are mandated in most filed cases in Vermont, whether you want to or not.
On the other hand, arbitration is essentially a substitute trial. The parties agree to one or more arbitrators who hear evidence and render a decision that usually ends the matter and the decision will usually be enforced by Vermont Courts.
The positive part of arbitrations is that they can be quicker and less expensive and not require as many formalities as a trial. On the other hand, many people do not want to have arbitrations because they would rather have a jury of their peers make the decision and because they cannot agree on “fair” arbitrators.
Arbitrations are frequently forced on consumers as a result of a larger agreement (an auto rental agreement, for example) and dictate the range of arbitrators that can be selected. Obviously, as with juries, a bad arbitrator is as bad as a bad jury. There is a concern that mandatory arbitrations that are forced on people are essentially rigged to provide the outcome desired by the company who wrote the contract. Most arbitration agreements of this kind are usually not favorable to claimants and are favorable to businesses, insurance companies and the groups who wrote the contract.
Litigants can also voluntarily agree to arbitrate in lieu of going to trial. In these circumstances, each side agrees to the rules governing the arbitration. With the advice and input of their attorneys arbitration can be a good process and be an advantage to both sides, but it always depends on the facts.
If we can be of service please feel free to contact us at winburnlaw.com or toll free at 800‑640‑5100. We handle cases from Bennington to St. Albans, Vermont, the Northeast Kingdom to Brattleboro and all points in between.
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by winburnlawDo People Really Get Millions Of Dollars Because They Spill McDonald’s Coffee On Themselves?
In Vermont, the answer is no. Yet, most people have heard about McDonald’s hot coffee case and believe this to be universally true because “everybody knows its true” regardless of which new paper or new show they watch. The facts and details of what actually happened are found in a movie called “Hot Coffee” that Variety described as an “eye‑opening indictment of the way big business spins the media”. You can go to www.hotcoffeethemovie.com for more information. In the HBO documentary film, Susan Saladoff interviews the actual people involved and the facts of the case rather than the fiction than what is promoted by insurance companies and other big businesses to be true. The public is predisposed to believe the fiction, presumably because it is in line with the perception people have about the system and accept a conclusion without actually knowing the facts of the case. Insurance companies promote this fiction because it is good for their bottom line to disparage claimants and the Court system.
The reality is that cases are decided by skeptical jurors who do not want to be fooled. Most are predisposed to believe that the “hot coffee case” is the way things usually turn out in court and don’t want to be a part of anything like that. However, when was the last time you ever heard of this kind of result in Vermont? Yet, nearly two decades have passed and most people think the “hot coffee case” is a common example of frivolous lawsuits that “clog” the courts and take advantage of the system. This is completely untrue, but you would have to practice personal injury law for 40 years to know the “real truth”.
This is why you need a personal injury attorney to help you through the process. Wherever you live – in Bennington, Burlington, Brattleboro, Rutland, Woodstock, St. Albans, Montpelier, Manchester, Springfield, the Northeast Kingdom or out‑of‑state, if you have had an accident in Vermont, Winburn Law Office can help. If you have a personal injury problem feel free to contact us at (802) 447-0100 or www.winburnlaw.com.
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Law Offices
by winburnlawWhy Would A Case Be A “Federal” Case?
There are two court systems in Vermont – the State system and the Federal system. In personal injury cases, jurisdiction depends on the amount in controversy and the connection of the parties to Vermont. Sometimes there can be an advantage to file in Federal Court, other times State Court is more appropriate, but more frequently a case does not qualify to be filed in Federal Court. These are complicated issues that require legal advice to protect your rights.
If you believe you have an accident claim contact us for a fee evaluation – if we take your case, we don’t get paid unless we get money for you. Our law office reviews cases throughout the State of Vermont – in Manchester, Bennington, Rutland, Burlington, Woodstock, St. Albans, Brattleboro, Montpelier, Woodford, Springfield, Wilmington, the Northeast Kingdom and anywhere else where there is jurisdiction in the State of Vermont.
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by winburnlawWhat Is The “National Board of Trial Advocacy”?
The NBTA “board certifies” lawyers in “civil trial advocacy” in a process sanctioned by the United States Supreme Court. It is probably the most significant way a lawyer can show their professional credentials. Doctors have used Board Certification for many years to denote their specialty in different areas of medicine.
The concept behind this process is that certification will assist the public in identifying attorneys who have experience and background to represent them. To be board certified, a lawyer has to take a test that is somewhat similar to a bar examination, show proof that they have actually tried cases, prove meaningful participation in court and have exhibited good conduct throughout their practice. There are very few lawyers in the State of Vermont who are board certified and they are listed at Nblsc.us. This organization requires payment of an annual fee and also requires re-certification every five years so that continuing proof of standards is maintained.
Patrick Winburn of Winburn Law Offices has been board certified in civil trial advocacy for over 20 years – longer than any other attorney in the State of Vermont.
Winburn Law Offices limits its practice to personal injury matters. It is one of the few offices in Vermont to restrict its practice in this way.
We represent people throughout the State of Vermont – in Springfield, Brattleboro, Woodstock, St. Albans, Rutland, Montpelier, Newfane, Manchester, Wilmington, the Northeast Kingdom, Burlington, Bennington and anywhere else where there is jurisdiction in the State of Vermont. If you have a personal injury problem contact us for a free consultation.
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