How Long Does It Take For A Lawyer To Evaluate Your Case In New York

Question: Why is it taking so long for your lawyer to make a decision whether to accept your case?

Answer: It should rarely take more than 4-6 weeks for a malpractice lawyer to make a decision about your case.

Initially, it may take 2-4 weeks just to get your medical records and sometimes it takes a bit longer. Once the lawyer has a set of your medical records, he should review them and send them to a physician for review. It may take another 2-3 weeks for the physician to review the medical records and discuss your case with the lawyer. In some cases, your lawyer may have a good reason why it took 4-6 weeks to evaluate your case and give you a decision whether he will accept it.

If your lawyer takes more than 6 weeks to evaluate your case, you need to find out why. Begin by asking for a meeting or phone conference with your lawyer. Ask your lawyer why he hasn’t made a decision about your case and how much longer he needs. Your lawyer might have a good explanation for the delay.

But in many cases, your lawyer is just sitting on your case and doing nothing. It’s your job to make sure that doesn’t happen. If your lawyer has taken more than 4-6 weeks to review your case, you should call him once every two weeks for an update about his progress in reviewing the case. You should ask your lawyer: “Have you received the medical records? Are you missing any of the medical records? Have you had the medical records reviewed by a physician? Have you spoken with the physician about my case?”

If the lawyer doesn’t answer your phone calls or gives you vague answers to your questions, it’s probably time to find a new lawyer.

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