Solicitors don't make the big decisions on your claim. You do, on their advice, including whether to challenge a decision and whether to accept an offer. If you're in Woolloomooloo and weighing up legal help after a crash, it helps to understand the relationship before it starts. We offer a free claim check and, where a case needs one, connect you with an independent solicitor.
Sydney CBD & inner city · Personal injury solicitors explained
You and your personal injury solicitor: a Woolloomooloo guide
General information about the solicitor relationship in NSW, not legal advice.
Postcode: 2011
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Dividing the work: you and your solicitor
People sometimes expect a solicitor to take over everything. They don't, and they shouldn't. Some tasks only you can do, and some decisions only you can make. This is a general picture of who does what.
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.
Instructing a solicitor from Woolloomooloo
If St Vincent's Hospital, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital or Sydney Hospital treated you, tell your solicitor. With your signed authority, gathering those records is usually part of their work, not yours. Living in the City of Sydney area places no limit on which NSW solicitor you use. What counts is that they hold a current practising certificate and deal with motor accident claims, wherever they happen to be based.
- Region
- Sydney CBD & inner city
- Postcode
- 2011
- Nearest public hospital
- Sydney Hospital
- Local government area
- City of Sydney
Do you need a personal injury solicitor?
Engaging a solicitor is a serious step, usually with a written agreement and an ongoing working relationship. It is worth taking when your claim needs it, and not before. Here is a rough guide.
Often worth talking to a lawyer
- The other side's insurer disputes what happened
- You would rather someone else dealt with the insurer for you
- You started the claim yourself and it has become hard to manage
- You need formal advice on a decision the insurer has made about you
You may not need one
- What you mainly need is medical help or a new treating doctor
- You're managing your own claim comfortably and it's on track
- Your injury has healed and your benefits have been paid
Legal help and medical care run side by side. Ask us about doctors and allied health who know CTP claims, including GPs who complete the Certificate of Fitness.
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 Woolloomooloo
- If your question is about the first meeting, what to bring and the costs documents, the compensation solicitor page fits better. Compensation solicitor in Woolloomooloo
- For the stages of a CTP file, from statutory benefits through to settlement, see the car accident solicitor page. Car accident solicitor in Woolloomooloo
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.
Who's who in legal help
Most people deal with only one lawyer during a motor accident claim, and that is their solicitor. The solicitor gives advice, deals with the insurer and keeps the file moving. If a claim needs a hearing or an opinion on a difficult point, the solicitor may brief a barrister, who then works alongside them. Knowing who is who tells you who to ask, and who answers for what.
Read next:Do I need a lawyer for my CTP claim?
If you want a different solicitor
Changing solicitors part-way through a claim is allowed, and people do it for many reasons: poor communication, a move interstate, or a loss of trust. It's worth being clear about why before you switch. The new solicitor can generally request the file. Ask both what happens to fees for work already done, because arrangements vary and surprises help nobody.
Checking a solicitor's practising certificate
A practising certificate is, in effect, the licence a solicitor needs to provide legal services. In NSW the Law Society of NSW issues them, and you can generally search its online register to confirm a solicitor holds a current one. If you can't find someone, check the spelling, ask them for their full registered name, or contact the Law Society.
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
You instruct, your solicitor advises
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.
If you're unsure what your solicitor is asking you to decide, say so. It's reasonable to ask what happens under each option, what the risks are, and what they would recommend and why. You can also ask for time to think or to talk it over with family. Instructions given under pressure are the ones people most often regret.
Keeping your information confidential
Two ideas protect what you tell your solicitor. Confidentiality means they generally can't share your information without your consent. Privilege, in broad terms, can stop communications made to get legal advice from being handed to the other side. Neither is absolute, and medical evidence about your injury is generally shared with the insurer as part of the claim. Ask where the lines fall.
Others in the room
Having a family member on a call is usually fine, but a third party's presence can sometimes affect whether a conversation stays privileged. Ask your solicitor before sharing sensitive details in front of others.
Accredited specialists, in plain terms
The Law Society of NSW runs a specialist accreditation scheme. Solicitors with several years of practice, including substantial time in one area such as personal injury, can apply, and those who pass its assessment may call themselves accredited specialists in that area. It is formal recognition of depth in one field. Many capable solicitors are not accredited, and the title says nothing about how a particular claim will go.
About the lawyers we connect people with
The lawyers we connect people with are described as independent and experienced in motor accident claims. If a formal title matters to you, ask the solicitor directly which ones they hold.
Concerns about a solicitor
Most concerns are worth raising with the solicitor first, or with the principal of their practice. If that doesn't resolve it, complaints about lawyers in NSW generally go to the Office of the NSW Legal Services Commissioner, an independent body that deals with complaints about conduct and about legal costs. That is separate from a complaint about a CTP insurer, which goes elsewhere. Time limits can apply, so don't leave it too long.
Frequently asked questions
Generally, yes. If the relationship isn't working, you can move your claim to another solicitor, who will usually arrange for the file to be transferred. Your first solicitor may be entitled to payment for work already done, depending on the agreement you signed, so ask how that will be handled before you switch. It's often worth raising your concerns directly first, because many problems can be fixed.
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.
No. Accreditation is optional, and a solicitor doesn't need it to handle a motor accident claim. What matters more is real experience with NSW CTP claims, which you can ask about directly, along with how the solicitor will keep you informed. The title is one signal among several, not a requirement, and its absence isn't a warning sign on its own.
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.
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.
It depends on the stage. Some weeks are busy; others are quiet while the solicitor waits on medical reports or the insurer. A reasonable arrangement is one you agree at the start: how you'll be contacted, roughly how often, and who covers when your usual contact is away. If a long silence worries you, ask. Solicitors are generally expected to give clear and timely advice as a matter progresses.
Personal injury solicitor: suburbs near Woolloomooloo
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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.