The questions clients ask us most.

Personal injury cases are legal disputes that arise when a person suffers injury and other harm in an accident caused by another person or entity. Usually, the responsible party's insurance company will pay money to the injured victim for medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other damages.

Missouri and Illinois each set their own filing deadlines for personal injury claims, and the clock generally starts on the date of the accident.

Wrongful death cases work differently, with the clock generally starting on the date of death rather than the date of the underlying accident. Because these deadlines vary by state and by case type, and missing one can end a claim entirely, it's best to talk to an attorney as soon as possible about your specific situation.

We work on a contingency fee basis. You pay no fees unless we win your case.

We also advance all costs related to your case, investigation, expert witnesses, court costs, so you do not pay anything out of pocket while we work on the case.

We collect the medical records and bills relevant to your case so we can move into making an official demand for settlement to the insurance company on your behalf. Depending on the case, that demand can go out right away or only once treatment has progressed further, whatever gives your claim the strongest footing.

From there, negotiations between our team and the insurance company begin. This process can be lengthy, especially if the insurance company is being less-than-forthcoming about their client's responsibility for the accident or about how much they will pay.

Not much. It is our job to handle the back-and-forth with the insurance company about a fair settlement on your behalf. You will not need to participate in those discussions directly.

We do want you to be readily available to our team should the process reveal the need for more information from you. And we keep you informed at every key stage, clients consistently tell us our communication is one of the things that sets us apart.

Our focus on the first call is getting the details of what happened so we can determine whether we're able to move forward with your case. We'll ask questions about the incident, your injuries, and where things stand, then give you an honest read on whether it fits our practice.

If we take your case, we'll keep you updated on the potential timeline as it becomes clearer. If our firm is unable to provide value to your case, we will refer you to a trusted attorney who can handle it well. We are big on referrals, both giving and receiving.

Unless a car accident is very minor and involves no injuries or very minimal damage, you should always err on the side of caution and call the police. A police report is one of the most important pieces of evidence in any subsequent claim.

It is true that in rear-end collisions, the driver in the back is most often found at fault. However, it is a common misconception that this is automatic.

In some cases, the front driver's actions, sudden lane changes, brake-checking, malfunctioning brake lights, unsafe stopping, can shift partial or full liability. Missouri's pure comparative fault system means even if you were partially at fault, you may still recover damages reduced by your percentage of fault.

After a serious accident, you may suffer from more than just the immediate injuries. There are lasting effects that can stem from a personal injury, chronic pain, cognitive symptoms, emotional trauma, sleep disruption, that negatively alter your life in ways that don't show up on the day of the crash.

Many of our clients initially thought their injuries were minor and only realized later how serious they were. The right time to get a medical evaluation and talk to an attorney is sooner rather than later.

Commercial truck cases involve federal regulations, multiple potentially liable parties (driver, trucking company, cargo loader, parts manufacturer), corporate defense teams, and specialized evidence like Electronic Logging Device data and driver qualification files.

Most plaintiff firms do not have the depth of experience needed to identify and exploit Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration violations effectively.

Several types of evidence are time-sensitive: Electronic Logging Device (ELD) data, dashcam footage, driver qualification files, dispatch records, drug and alcohol testing results, and surveillance footage from nearby cameras.

Most commercial surveillance systems overwrite recordings every 30-60 days. Trucking companies may begin destroying records under standard retention schedules. The first 48 hours often determine what evidence will exist by the time the case is tried.

A spoliation letter is formal legal notice to a trucking company and other potentially responsible parties requiring them to preserve all evidence relevant to the case. Once they receive the letter, deliberately destroying that evidence becomes legally actionable.

We send spoliation letters as one of the first steps in any serious truck accident case. The earlier they go out, the more evidence we can preserve.

Traumatic brain injuries occur through direct impact (hitting your head in a car accident) or violent shaking that causes the brain to collide with the inside of the skull. Some injuries are immediate (primary). Others develop gradually over hours, days, or weeks (secondary).

Even mild TBIs can result in cognitive impairment, communication difficulties, physical symptoms, and emotional or behavioral changes that require considerable rehabilitation and long-term care.

Strong expert testimony is what turns a serious injury claim into a fully valued one. We collaborate with neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuropsychologists, life care planners, and economic experts to document the full extent of injuries, project future treatment requirements, and quantify economic damages.

Without proper expert work, insurance companies will undervalue brain injury claims. With proper expert work, the full impact becomes undeniable.

While discipline itself is not illegal, certain types absolutely are. A daycare facility should never physically harm a child for any reason, no grabbing, pinching, spanking, or other physical contact except in genuine emergencies (such as a child choking) or when the child initiates physical engagement (such as a hug).

Even non-physical discipline can become excessive and harmful, for example, isolating timeouts that affect a child's mental wellbeing.

Absolutely. Waivers for discipline and injury are tactics daycare facilities use to dissuade parents from taking legal action. They create them to make parents think they have no ground to stand on.

If such waivers were enforceable in court, it would essentially give facilities the leeway to create unsafe environments and harm children freely. Courts typically do not enforce waivers covering negligence or intentional harm.

You always have the power to pull your child out of that daycare facility. You have no obligation to keep your child somewhere you do not feel they are safe, regardless of contracts signed or fees paid.

Watch for warning signs: fear or anxiety about going to daycare, sudden behavioral changes, recurring unexplained injuries, inconsistent staff explanations, other parents reporting similar concerns, high staff turnover, or restricted facility access during normal hours.

Document your observations. Communicate concerns in writing. Then talk to a personal injury attorney if you believe negligence is involved.

For a successful premises liability claim, we must establish six elements: the property owner owed you a duty of care based on your visitor status, a dangerous condition existed, the property owner knew or should have known about it, they failed to fix or warn about it, you were injured as a direct result, and you suffered damages that can be compensated.

Different standards of care apply depending on visitor status. Invitees (business visitors like grocery store customers) get the highest duty of care. Licensees (social guests at someone's home) are owed a moderate duty. Trespassers are owed the least duty, though property owners cannot intentionally harm them.

The distinction affects how the case is built and what damages are recoverable.

Insurance companies often contact victims quickly after an accident, hoping to settle claims before the full extent of injuries and damages becomes clear. Anything you say can be used to minimize your claim.

The right answer is usually: get medical attention first, then talk to an attorney before giving any recorded statements or signing anything. We deal with adjusters on your behalf so you do not have to.

Insurance adjusters use software to assign initial values, look for facts that justify lower offers, and apply pressure to settle quickly before you have full medical information or counsel.

The starting offer on a serious case is rarely the best offer. The full value depends on what the case looks like with proper documentation, expert testimony, and trial-grade preparation, not on what the adjuster suggests in the first phone call.

Most personal injury cases settle before trial. The reason ours often settle at higher numbers is because we're trial-tested and proven, and the insurance company knows it.

When the insurance company refuses to pay full value, we try the case. The trial record is what makes the firm's settlement leverage credible on every other case.

It means we take depositions, work with experts, conduct full discovery, analyze the defense's likely arguments, and develop the case theory. We build the case file the case will need at trial, not the file the insurance company expects to see.

It also means being willing to walk away from a settlement that does not reflect full case value, because we have done the work to know what the case is actually worth.

It varies considerably. Simple cases with clear liability and modest damages may resolve within a year. Complex cases involving disputed liability, multiple defendants, catastrophic injuries, or trial may take two to three years or more.

Trial preparation takes time. Eighteen months of preparation is common in serious cases. The trade-off is that thorough preparation produces meaningfully higher settlements and verdicts.