In New York, lawyers are prohibited from contacting personal injury victims during the first thirty (30) days after an accident unless they have a prior relationship with the victim. Unfortunately, this ethical rule has not prevented personal injury lawyers from contacting accident victims in the first days after an accident–lawyers often visit hospitals to retain new personal injury clients in clear violation of New York’s ethical rules.

On occasion, our clients call us from a hospital within hours after an accident and tell me that a strange attorney visited them and solicited them as a client. THIS IS A BLATANT DISREGARD OF NEW YORK’S ETHICAL RULES! Lawyers who solicit clients at the hospital (known as “ambulance chasers”) represent the bottom of the barrel among lawyers. Such lawyers are desperate for work and instead of working under the rules of ethics like everyone else, they ignore the rules. Of course, injured victims do not know that the “ambulance chasers” are violating New York’s ethical rules and they assume that the lawyer is looking out for their best interests.

The worst lawyer for your case is the lawyer who shows up unannounced at the hospital to visit you. This lawyer is desperate and does not care about New York law or ethics. Further, this kind of lawyer will have no experience handling litigation and will simply settle your case for whatever he/she can get from the insurance company–this is often a fraction of the true value of your case.

If you are contacted by a lawyer in the hospital within days after an accident, AVOID THIS LAWYER AT ALL COSTS!!