You can ask a solicitor questions, disagree with their advice and, if it comes to it, move to another solicitor. Those rights often go unspoken. This guide sets them out for people in Ruse who were hurt on the road and are working with, or thinking about, a personal injury solicitor. Start with a free claim check if you're not sure you need one.
Macarthur & Wollondilly · Personal injury solicitors explained
Working with a personal injury solicitor from Ruse
General information about the solicitor relationship in NSW, not legal advice.
Postcode: 2560
- Free claim check, no obligation
- By phone & online, no office to visit
- Helping people in Ruse & Campbelltown North
Your solicitor's job, and what stays with you
Working with a solicitor is a partnership with clear roles. Your solicitor brings legal knowledge and handles the formal work. You keep control of your treatment, your information and the decisions that matter most. Here is how that generally divides.
Your solicitor's job
- Advising you on your rights and options, in plain terms
- Dealing with the insurer and preparing formal documents
- Gathering the evidence you authorise them to obtain
- Explaining any offer, then acting on your instructions about it
What stays with you
- Your treatment, and keeping your own records of it
- Giving clear instructions and accurate information
- Telling your solicitor promptly about any change
- Deciding whether to accept an offer or keep going
General information, not legal advice. How the work is split can vary, so ask your solicitor to explain it for your claim.
Ruse and the solicitor relationship
Whether it was Campbelltown Hospital, Camden Hospital or Liverpool Hospital that treated you, give your solicitor the name and dates so they can request the right records. Your council, Campbelltown City Council, has no part in a CTP claim or in regulating solicitors. Those rules are set for the whole state, which is why a solicitor's standing can be checked the same way from anywhere.
- Region
- Macarthur & Wollondilly
- Postcode
- 2560
- Nearest public hospital
- Campbelltown Hospital
- Local government area
- Campbelltown City Council
Is engaging a solicitor the right step yet?
Many motor accident claims are handled by the injured person with no solicitor at all. Others reach a point where formal advice makes a real difference. These lists are a general guide to which is which.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- An offer has arrived and you want advice before you decide
- Your injury is serious and the claim is likely to run for a long time
- The other side's insurer disputes what happened
- You would rather someone else dealt with the insurer for you
You may not need one
- What you mainly need is medical help or a new treating doctor
- Your injury has healed and your benefits have been paid
- You're managing your own claim comfortably and it's on track
A solicitor can't treat your injury. If you need a GP who understands the Certificate of Fitness, or physiotherapy or psychology, we can point you to doctors and allied health experienced with CTP.
Not quite your situation?
- Injured at work rather than on the road? That is usually a workers compensation claim, which runs under different rules from CTP. The free claim check can point you to the right help. Free claim check
- For what to do after an injury, the records worth keeping and choosing a lawyer in the first place, see the personal injury lawyer page. Personal injury lawyer in Ruse
- If you're ready to engage a solicitor and wondering about the first meeting and the costs paperwork, the compensation solicitor page covers that ground. Compensation solicitor in Ruse
- For the stages of a CTP file, from statutory benefits through to settlement, see the car accident solicitor page. Car accident solicitor in Ruse
Free claim check
Check your claim before engaging a solicitor
Call (02) 7238 7379 or request a callback. If a solicitor fits your case, we'll connect you with an independent one.
Solicitors, barristers and 'lawyers' explained
Whether someone calls themselves a lawyer or a solicitor, in an injury claim you are usually talking about a solicitor. Barristers are different. They are engaged for particular tasks, such as a hearing or a written opinion on a hard point, and they generally work on your matter through your solicitor rather than managing it from day to day.
Read next:Do I need a lawyer for my CTP claim?
Who decides what on your claim
Your solicitor works for you, on your instructions. In practice, they explain your choices, give their advice, and then do what you decide, within the law and their professional duties. The biggest decision, whether to accept an offer to settle, belongs to you. Take the time you need, and ask for the advice in writing if that helps you think.
Some instructions are standing ones, like 'email me rather than call' or 'don't ring me at work'. Others are one-off decisions. Both are yours to give and to change. If your circumstances shift, for example you move, return to work or your injury worsens, tell your solicitor, because it may change the advice.
Checking a solicitor's practising certificate
Checking credentials takes a few minutes. Confirm the solicitor's full name, then look them up on the Law Society of NSW register to see that their practising certificate is current. If someone else in the practice will do much of the work, you can ask who will supervise your file and look that person up too. None of this is rude; it's ordinary care with any professional.
Titles on websites
A firm's website can describe its people however it likes. The practising certificate and any accreditation are what the register and the Law Society actually record.
Read next:Do I need a lawyer? Quick check
What you tell your solicitor, and who else sees it
It helps to know what stays private. Conversations with your solicitor are generally confidential, and some may be privileged. But a claim runs on evidence, so medical reports and records relevant to your injury are generally shared with the insurer. If there's something in your history you would rather not see in the file, raise it with your solicitor early and ask what must be disclosed.
Others in the room
If a friend or relative joins your meetings, check with your solicitor first about anything sensitive. Who is present can sometimes matter to whether advice stays privileged.
The Law Society's specialist accreditation scheme
When a solicitor describes themselves as an accredited specialist, they mean a Law Society of NSW scheme that recognises depth of experience in one area of law. Solicitors apply voluntarily, pass an assessment and must keep working in the area to keep the title. It is a useful signal, but only one. It tells you nothing about fees, availability or how clearly a solicitor explains things.
About the lawyers we connect people with
We describe the independent lawyers we connect people with by their experience with motor accident claims, not by any title. Whether a particular solicitor holds accreditation is a fair question to ask them yourself.
If you want a different solicitor
If you're thinking about moving to another solicitor, first tell your current one what isn't working. Sometimes one frank conversation fixes it. If not, you are generally free to go. The new solicitor will usually handle the transfer of the file. Keep your own copies of key letters throughout, so a change never leaves you without the basic information about your claim.
Complaints, and where they go
Many problems with a solicitor come down to communication: calls not returned, decisions made without you, or a bill you didn't expect. Say so in writing, and be specific about what you want to change. If the problem is serious, or raising it gets nowhere, the NSW Legal Services Commissioner's office deals with complaints about lawyers' conduct and legal costs. Changing solicitors is a separate option.
Frequently asked questions
In NSW, solicitors need a current practising certificate, issued by the Law Society of NSW. You can generally confirm that a solicitor holds one by searching the Law Society's online Register of Solicitors using their full name. If they don't appear, check the spelling or ask them how they're registered. It only takes a few minutes, and it's reasonable to check before you sign anything.
It's a title granted under the Law Society of NSW's specialist accreditation scheme to solicitors who have shown substantial experience in one area of law, such as personal injury, and passed the scheme's assessment. It's voluntary, and plenty of experienced injury solicitors aren't accredited. If a solicitor uses the title, you can ask which area it covers. The lawyers we connect people with are described by their experience, not by this title.
Start by putting your concern in writing to the solicitor or the principal of their practice; many problems are resolved that way. If not, complaints about NSW lawyers generally go to the Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner, which deals with conduct complaints and disputes about legal costs. Time limits can apply to costs disputes. Complaints about how a CTP insurer has treated you are a separate matter for a different body.
Solicitors in NSW practise under the Legal Profession Uniform Law, which sets professional and ethical rules. The Law Society of NSW issues practising certificates and oversees standards, and the Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner receives complaints about lawyers. Solicitors also owe duties to the court. In practice, rules about honesty, confidentiality, conflicts and costs disclosure generally apply to any solicitor you work with.
A conflict can arise where a solicitor's duty to you clashes with a duty to someone else, or with their own interests. One example is acting for two people from the same crash whose interests may pull in different directions. Solicitors generally must avoid acting where there's a conflict, or manage it within strict rules. If you're worried about one, ask the solicitor directly; they should explain.
It means telling your solicitor what you want done. Your solicitor advises on the options and their risks; you decide. Some instructions are big, such as whether to accept an offer or challenge a decision. Others are everyday, like how you want to be contacted. Your solicitor acts on your instructions, within the law and their professional duties, and should tell you if they can't follow one.
Personal injury solicitor: suburbs near Ruse
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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.