Video Summary
The video explains why personal injury lawyers in Louisiana might reject a potential client’s case. One primary reason is the inability to collect compensation; even if the other driver was responsible, they might lack insurance or assets (“a pot to piss in”). Lawyers generally do not make money unless the client collects, and they wish to avoid leading clients through months of heartache with no financial result.
Another reason lawyers reject cases is a reluctance to handle “hard work” or disputed liability, such as accidents that are not simple rear-end collisions. Attorney Lee Rudin shares an example of a client involved in a four-way stop accident whom other lawyers rejected because the police report did not favor her. By analyzing the situation and understanding that police reports are often incorrect, Attorney Lee Rudin took the case, filed a lawsuit, and leveraged the driver’s own statements against them to secure a full policy payment. The video concludes that success often requires a willingness to fight battles other lawyers avoid.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Does having a valid accident guarantee a lawyer will take the case?
No. Even if you have an actual accident or fall where you should be paid, a lawyer might reject the case if there is no way to get you compensated. - Why might a lawyer reject a case where the other driver was clearly at fault?
The case might be rejected if the at-fault driver has no insurance, no assets (“no pot to piss in”), and the client lacks uninsured motorist coverage. - How do personal injury lawyers get paid?
They work in a business where they do not make money unless the client collects money. - Why do lawyers have “hard conversations” with clients about rejecting their cases?
They do this to avoid putting the client through months or years of heartache, leading them down a path where they expect compensation that will never materialize. - Besides financial reasons, why else might a lawyer decline a case?
Some lawyers may not want to work hard or figure out cases with disputed liability, preferring simple cases like rear-end collisions. - Do police reports always accurately determine fault?
No. Attorney Lee Rudin suggests that police get it wrong “at least 50/50 if not worse”. - Why did other lawyers reject the four-way stop case mentioned in the video?
They rejected it because the police report did not read in the client’s favor. - How did the lawyer in the video win the case where the insurance company initially denied the claim?
He filed a lawsuit and demonstrated to the opposing lawyer that their driver was either lying or at fault, based on the driver’s statement to the police officer. - What was the outcome of the four-way stop case?
The opposing lawyer agreed to pay the client everything the policy had. - What distinguishes Attorney Lee Rudin’s approach from lawyers who reject complex cases?
Attorney Lee Rudin emphasizes knowing the “lay of the land,” being willing to stand up for the client when others won’t, and executing for them.
Transcription of the Video
“i called a few Louisiana injury lawyers about my case but they weren’t interested Does that mean I don’t have a case worth fighting then there’s other clients who say ‘Look I went to a bunch of different law firms and nobody wants to take my case.’ There’s a variety of reasons for that Sometimes it’s cuz they don’t have a case And and not that they don’t have an actual accident or a wreck or a fall that they should be paid on but there could be other reasons why the case isn’t any good And that could be because the other driver has no insurance and they don’t have uninsured motorist coverage So it’s not that the other driver wasn’t responsible but that other driver might not have a pot to piss in and there really isn’t a way to get the client compensated You know we work in a business that we don’t make money unless you collect And it would be bad business practices to go chase after somebody who has no ability to pay And I wouldn’t want to put you through the heartache of spending months or years thinking you’re going to get something for what happened to you when that’s never going to be a reality So we need to have the hard conversation with you to say ‘Look I’m so sorry this happened to you but I don’t see an avenue that we can make you whole And I don’t want to lead you down a path where you’re going to be dissatisfied cuz you’re not going to be dissatisfied with that other person as much as you’re going to be mad at me cuz I didn’t tell you months ago or a year ago that there was nothing we can do So that happens sometimes and we have to have hard conversations The other part of it is sometimes people just don’t want to work hard Meaning my other colleagues don’t want to work on something Maybe it’s a car accident where there’s some disputed liability and they don’t want to figure out well why is my client not at fault and they say ‘Look it’s not a rear-end collision We don’t want to take it.’ I had a case where a woman was at a four-way stop and she goes to the intersection and she gets hit The other insurance company denied the claim and said ‘Oh it was her fault.’ I said ‘Absolutely not.’ Other lawyers didn’t want to take it cuz the police report didn’t read in her favor But I looked at it and I said I’ve seen too many of these to know that police don’t always get it right In fact it’s at least 50/50 if not worse They get it wrong all the time So I looked at it and I said you know you were at that stop first based upon where the other car was You had the right away I don’t care what that other driver said In the police report they said that you were at the stop at the same time You were the one that had the right to go The fact that they hit you puts them in the wrong The insurance company didn’t like that We had to file a lawsuit But as soon as I got it in the hands of a different person at the insurance company and an intelligent lawyer I said ‘Look here’s the law and this is what the report says Either your driver is going to have to testify opposite of what he said to the police officer which means he’s screwed cuz either he lied to the police officer or he’s lying under oath Or if what he said to the police officer is believed you got to pay my client because he’s at fault.’ Lawyer agreed Paid us everything that the policy had Sometimes it just takes knowing the lay of the land being willing to stand up for the client when maybe somebody else wasn’t willing to get into that fight and then actually executing for them And that’s what we do”.
