If a claim check has pointed you towards legal help, the next questions are practical. What will the solicitor ask for, what will you sign, and what changes with the insurer once someone is acting for you? People from Dural rarely need to travel for any of it. Meetings generally happen by phone or video, and documents go back and forth by email.
The Hills · Working with a compensation solicitor
Dural: the first weeks with a compensation solicitor
Not a law firm: a free triage and referral service. This page explains what happens once you engage someone.
Postcode: 2158
- Free claim check, no obligation
- By phone & online, no office to visit
- Helping people in Dural & Kenthurst
What engaging a solicitor means
Engaging a solicitor means formally asking them to work on your claim. It usually starts with a short phone call to check the basics: when the accident happened, what the insurer has decided and whether any deadline is close. If the solicitor can help, a first meeting follows. After that, you receive written information about costs and, if you decide to go ahead, sign a costs agreement. Only then does work on your file properly begin.
You don't have to find a solicitor on your own. After a free claim check, if your case calls for legal help, we can put you in touch with an independent solicitor who works on these claims. The first conversation is a chance to see whether you're comfortable with them. If you're not, you can say so. Engaging a solicitor is always your decision, and so is the timing.
What happens at the first meeting
A first meeting is mostly the solicitor getting a clear picture of your claim. You'll talk through what happened and where things stand with the insurer, and they'll read the documents you bring and check the key dates. Towards the end, they'll usually say whether and how they can help, how their costs work and what they would do first if you engage them.
Try not to leave the first meeting unsure about the next step. Ask what the solicitor will do first, what they need from you, and roughly when you'll hear from them. If they give you a costs disclosure or a costs agreement, you don't need to sign it there and then. Read it later, somewhere quiet, and ask about anything that's unclear.
- Checks whether any deadline is close
- Reads the insurer's letters and decisions
- Explains how their costs are worked out
- Outlines what they'd do first if you engage them
Dural and the practical side of engaging a solicitor
If Westmead Hospital or Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Hospital treated you, the solicitor will usually want those records early. Your written consent lets them request the files, so you don't have to collect them. Being north of Castle Hill makes no practical difference to engaging a solicitor. The first meeting, the paperwork and later updates can all happen by phone, by video and online. Whether you live in The Hills Shire Council area or anywhere else in NSW, engaging a solicitor for a motor accident claim works the same way: a first meeting, a costs disclosure, a costs agreement, then work on your file.
- Region
- The Hills
- Postcode
- 2158
- Distance to Castle Hill
- ~6 km
- Local government area
- The Hills Shire Council
Is it time to engage a solicitor?
Engaging a solicitor makes most sense when something in your claim needs acting on. If the claim is simply running, you may not need anyone yet. These lists are a guide, and a free claim check can help with your own facts.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- You started the claim yourself and it has become too much to manage
- You're handling a claim for someone who can't manage it themselves
- A decision letter has arrived and the time to challenge it is already running
- Letters are piling up and you can't keep track of what needs answering
You may not need one
- Payments and treatment approvals are arriving without problems
- You'd like general information before speaking to anyone
- You've recovered and don't expect ongoing effects
If treatment has lapsed since the crash, sort that out alongside any legal step. Doctors and allied health familiar with CTP claims can review your injuries and complete a Certificate of Fitness.
Not quite your situation?
- Hurt at work, or in a crash while you were working? That is usually a workers compensation claim first, which is a different scheme from CTP. Tell us what happened and we can point you to the right help. Free claim check
- If you haven't yet worked out what kind of claim you have, or whether any lawyer would help, the compensation lawyer page starts there. Compensation lawyer in Dural
- If your question is how a no win, no fee arrangement works and what might still be payable, the no win, no fee page explains it. No win no fee lawyer in Dural
- For checking a practising certificate, understanding how solicitors are regulated or moving your file to someone new, see the personal injury solicitor page. Personal injury solicitor in Dural
Your first meeting pack
Bring what's easy to find and note what isn't. The list below covers the documents solicitors most often ask about at the start of a motor accident claim. Scans or clear phone photos are generally fine.
- Your CTP claim number, if you've lodged a claim
- Photos of the scene, the vehicles or your injuries
- A written list of your questions about costs
- Every letter and decision from the insurer, with the dates you received them
- The police event number, if the crash was reported
- Payslips, tax returns or other records of what you earned before the accident
- A list of your GP, other doctors and allied health practitioners treating you
General information, not legal advice. Each solicitor may ask for different documents, and time limits apply.
Free claim check
Free claim check, then the right help
Our claim check is free and there's no obligation. We'll look at your claim and, if it needs legal help, connect you with an independent solicitor.
Meeting by phone or video
Most solicitors who work on motor accident claims are used to meeting clients by phone or video. It suits people who are in pain, can't drive yet, live far away or are juggling treatment. You'll usually be sent a link or a call time in advance. Find somewhere quiet, have your documents nearby, and keep a notepad handy for anything you want to remember.
If you'd prefer to meet in person, ask. Some solicitors can arrange it, although it may mean travelling. For most people, though, a phone or video meeting followed by documents sent electronically is simpler. Keep copies of everything you sign and send, in one folder or email thread, so you can find them again quickly.
The costs disclosure and costs agreement
Before or soon after you engage a solicitor, you should generally receive a written costs disclosure. It explains how the solicitor's costs will be worked out, gives an estimate of the total where they can, and usually sets out what you can do if you have a question or a concern about costs later. It's information rather than a contract, but it tells you what to expect.
Once you're comfortable with the disclosure, you'll usually be asked to sign a costs agreement. This is the contract between you and the solicitor about costs. There's no need to sign it on the day you receive it. Read it in your own time, ask someone you trust to look over it, and write down your questions. A solicitor should be willing to explain any clause in plain English.
Ask for it in writing
If a solicitor answers a costs question by phone, ask them to confirm it by email. A written answer is easier to check later, and it becomes part of your records.
Read next:No win, no fee explained
Dealing with the insurer once you've engaged someone
Once you engage a solicitor, they'll usually tell the insurer that they're acting for you. From then on, most letters and requests about the claim will generally go through them. That doesn't cut you off from the insurer entirely, and it doesn't mean you stop receiving payments or treatment approvals. It simply means the formal side of the claim now has someone checking it.
Engaging a solicitor doesn't mean you can't answer your phone. If your case manager calls about payments or treatment, you can generally talk it through as usual. Where a conversation turns to fault, settlement or anything that needs your signature, it's reasonable to say you'd like your solicitor involved and to ask for the request in writing.
What happens in the first few weeks
Expect some paperwork in the early weeks. Authorities to release your records, forms confirming your details, perhaps a questionnaire about your injuries and how they affect your day. Return them promptly, because the solicitor can't request records without them. As information comes in, they'll start to form a view of your claim and what it needs next.
Your part in these weeks is simple but important. Keep going to treatment, keep your Certificate of Fitness current, and pass on any letter from the insurer as soon as it arrives. Tell your solicitor about changes, such as a new diagnosis or a change in what you can do. Small updates help them keep the file accurate from the start.
- Signing authorities to release your records
- Requests to hospitals, your GP and treating practitioners
- A request to the insurer for copies of its file
- A check of every deadline that applies
Frequently asked questions
In the first weeks, the solicitor gathers information. You'll usually sign authorities for your records, send copies of insurer letters, and answer questions about your injuries and earnings. The solicitor tells the insurer they're involved, checks every deadline and looks at any recent decision. By the end of that early stage, you should generally have a plan for what comes next. Keep going to treatment throughout.
Often you can. Many solicitors send costs agreements and authorities through a secure online signing service, and some accept a scanned or photographed signature. A few documents may still need a handwritten signature, or a witness, depending on what they're for. The solicitor will tell you which is which. Keep a copy of everything you sign, even when it's done with a click.
In most claims, yes. Many people keep speaking to their case manager about treatment approvals, payment dates and travel costs. It's sensible to tell your solicitor about those conversations, and to check with them before agreeing to anything more formal, such as giving a statement, attending an assessment or signing a form. If you're unsure whether a call is routine, ask the case manager to put the request in writing.
A costs agreement is the contract between you and the solicitor about how costs will be charged and paid. Read it before you sign, and take it away if you need time. Check that it matches what you were told, and ask about any clause that isn't clear. If it's described as a no win, no fee arrangement, the no win, no fee guide explains what that generally means.
It's the written information a solicitor generally gives you about their costs before, or soon after, you engage them. It usually explains how fees are worked out, gives an estimate of the total where possible and mentions other expenses that might arise. It isn't the agreement itself; it's there so you can make an informed decision. Read it closely, keep a copy and ask about anything you don't follow.
An authority is your written permission for someone to release information to the solicitor. Hospitals, doctors and other organisations generally won't send your records to a third party without one. Signing them early lets the solicitor request records directly, so you don't have to chase each one yourself. Read what each authority covers, and ask if you're unsure why a particular record is needed.
Compensation solicitor: suburbs near Dural
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CTP Lawyer is not a law firm. This page is general information, not legal advice; the independent lawyer you speak with can advise on your own situation.