How to Choose an Injury Lawyer

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By Shannon J. Sagan, Esq., The Dash Cam Lawyer®, Fla. Bar #10793

Shannon J. Sagan talking with a neighbour after a dash cam talk in Wellington, Florida
Shannon J. Sagan at a community dash cam talk in Wellington, Florida.

Before you sign anything, ask the firm these ten questions. You are about to hand a stranger a share of the only compensation you may ever receive for this injury. You are allowed to interview them first.

Nothing on this page is a sales pitch you have to take on faith. Every question below has an answer you can check, against this firm and against any other firm you are considering. Ask all of them. Ask us last if you like.

If you would rather just talk it through, call 561-561-3274. Talking to an injury lawyer is completely free and there is no obligation.

1. Who will actually handle my case day to day?

Why it matters. At many firms the lawyer you meet is not the person who works your file. You sign with a name on a billboard and spend the next year speaking to a case manager you have never met.

What a good answer sounds like. A specific name, and a straight answer about when you will speak to the attorney rather than staff.

Our answer. Shannon Sagan is the only attorney in this firm, and he meets with every single client. Gloria McAllister, the firm’s paralegal, works your file alongside him. Clients are given his cell phone number. The firm is small by design, and that is exactly what makes this possible.

2. How quickly will you go after the evidence?

Why it matters. This is the question almost nobody asks, and it is the one that decides cases. Dash cam footage overwrites itself in a loop, often within days. A business’s security camera may hold footage for a week or two before it is recorded over. A commercial truck’s onboard data can be lost on a schedule the trucking company controls. Once that footage is gone, your case becomes your word against the other driver’s, and their insurer knows it.

What a good answer sounds like. The firm should be able to tell you what a preservation letter is, who they send it to, and how fast.

Our answer. The investigation begins the moment the contract is signed. This firm was built around video evidence. We send preservation letters right away, we know how footage is authenticated under Fla. Stat. § 90.901, and we know that Florida’s all party consent rule under § 934.03 can affect the audio on your own recording. It is the reason the firm is called The Dash Cam Lawyer®.

3. Have you handled cases like mine, in the place where mine happened?

Why it matters. A crash on Okeechobee Boulevard is not the same as a crash on US-27. A cane truck collision during harvest season in the Glades involves different vehicles, different companies, and different evidence than a rear-end on I-95.

What a good answer sounds like. Specific roads, specific conditions, specific experience.

Our answer. This firm has been serving the residents of Palm Beach County for over 21 years, with a principal office in Palm Springs and a second office in Belle Glade by appointment. Belle Glade is where Shannon started his career, and the Glades is still part of the practice: farm worker injuries, sugar mill injuries, cane trucks on US-27 and 441 during the October to April harvest. We speak Spanish. Immigration status does not bar an injury claim in Florida.

4. What will this cost me, exactly?

Why it matters. “No fee unless we win” is not a complete answer. Fees and case costs are two different things, and the difference can be thousands of dollars.

What a good answer sounds like. A clear explanation of the fee percentage, what happens to costs if the case does not recover, and all of it in writing before you start.

Our answer. This firm works on contingency. There is no retainer and nothing out of your pocket to get started. The fee is 33 1/3 percent of the recovery before a lawsuit is filed, which is the standard contingency fee permitted under the Florida Bar rules. If there is no case, or we are unable to win or collect on your case, you owe us nothing in fees or costs. All of it is explained in writing, and you sign it, before any work begins.

5. What is my case worth?

Why it matters. This is the question everyone wants answered on the first call.

What a good answer sounds like. Honestly? It sounds like a refusal. Anyone who quotes you a number before reviewing your medical records, your coverage, and the facts of the crash is guessing, and a guess designed to make you sign.

Our answer. We will not give you a number we cannot stand behind. We will tell you what affects the value of a claim like yours, what we would need to see, and what the realistic range of outcomes looks like once we know more. Results depend on the unique facts and circumstances of each case.

6. What happens if I was partly at fault?

Why it matters. Many people never call a lawyer because they think the crash was partly their fault, or because an adjuster told them it was.

What a good answer sounds like. An explanation of Florida’s modified comparative negligence rule, not a brush-off.

Our answer. Under Fla. Stat. § 768.81, a person found more than 50% at fault cannot recover anything. At 50% or less, a claim is still possible, with the recovery reduced by the share of fault. Fault is also something that gets argued, not something the other driver’s insurer gets to decide on its own. This is exactly where video changes the conversation.

7. What are my deadlines, and have I already missed one?

Why it matters. Florida has two clocks running, and most people only learn about them when one has already run out.

What a good answer sounds like. The firm should name both without having to look them up.

Our answer. You have 14 days from the crash to seek initial medical care, or your Personal Injury Protection benefits are gone under § 627.736. Not reduced, gone. Your own insurer is obligated to pay up to $10,000 toward your initial medical care, at 80% of medical bills and 60% of lost wages, or $2,500 without an emergency medical condition determination. For crashes on or after 24 March 2023, you generally have two years to file suit under § 95.11(4)(a). If you are close to either deadline, say so when you call.

8. Should I give the insurance company a recorded statement?

Why it matters. The adjuster will usually call within days, sound friendly, and ask for one.

What a good answer sounds like. A clear no, with the reason.

Our answer. Never give a recorded statement before speaking to a lawyer, including to your own insurer. Your own insurance company is not neutral in this. A recorded statement given while you are medicated, exhausted, or still in shock becomes a document that is used later to argue your injuries are minor. Talking to an injury lawyer first is completely free, so there is no reason to take that risk.

9. How will I know what is happening with my case?

Why it matters. The most common complaint about injury firms is not the outcome. It is silence.

What a good answer sounds like. A concrete commitment: how often you will hear from them, and who to call.

Our answer. This firm takes on a limited number of cases on purpose. A smaller caseload is what makes real communication possible. You have Shannon’s cell phone number, and Gloria is reachable at the office. You will not be chasing a call centre for an update on your own case.

10. What if you take my case and I change my mind?

Why it matters. People are afraid of being trapped, so they delay calling anyone at all.

What a good answer sounds like. A plain explanation that you can change lawyers, and what that involves.

Our answer. You are not locked in. A Florida contingency agreement gives you a three day window to cancel, and if you cancel within it you owe your lawyer nothing. After that window, if you decide to move your case to another firm, the firm can place a lien for the hours already worked. That lien is paid out of the eventual recovery, not out of your pocket.

A few things about this firm you would not learn from an ad

He has been where you are. Shannon was the passenger in a rollover crash. He spent weeks in the hospital, came out of it with a permanent hand injury and a brain injury, and had to bring a claim against three different insurance companies. He knows what the phone calls, the paperwork and the recovery feel like from the other side of the desk.

He will tell you if you do not have a case. If you were not injured, there is not much a personal injury lawyer can do for you, and you will be told that on the first call rather than after you sign.

He gives dash cams away. More than 1,400 of them so far, to Palm Beach County residents and even to drivers in Georgia, because the evidence that wins a case has to exist before the crash happens.

He is skeptical of how this industry advertises. A settlement figure on a billboard tells you almost nothing. It does not tell you what the insurance policy limits were, how many insurers paid, how badly the client was hurt, what the medical bills and liens took out of it, or what the client actually went home with. Firms advertise the gross number because it is the biggest one available. The honest questions are what the client received and whether the firm got everything the coverage allowed, and no advertisement will answer either.

The firm has recovered over $30 million for injured clients. Results depend on the unique facts and circumstances of each case.

Talk to a Palm Beach County injury lawyer, free consultation

Bring these ten questions. Ask them here, ask them anywhere else you are considering, and compare the answers for yourself.

Call 561-561-3274 or send the questions below and we will answer them in writing.

No recovery, no fees or costs. Fees and case costs come out of the recovery, and the fee arrangement is explained in writing before we start.

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    Shannon J. Sagan, Esq. · Florida Bar No. 10793 · The Dash Cam Lawyer® · Serving Palm Beach County, Florida

    Disclaimer: This page is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; consult a licensed Florida attorney about your specific situation.

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        Palm Springs Office

        3003 S. Congress Ave,
        Suite 2E, Palm Springs, FL 33461

        Belle Glade Office

        1100 South Main Street,
        Belle Glade, FL 33430

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