How to find a lawyer

A person who has suffered brain damage (or the survivors of a relative who has succumbed to a brain injury) very often does not have sufficient awareness of:

• • What compensation they are eligible for

• • Who to reach out to

• • How to proceed in the matter

• • What documents/materials to provide and when

 

At the same time, it does not matter how the acquired brain damage occurred – it could have been:

• • During a motor accident

• • During a workplace accident

• • Due to a doctor’s mistake when providing care

• • During regular daily life (e.g., exercise, animal attack…)

In any of the above cases, it is appropriate to contact a professional (lawyer) to help you understand your claims and obtain compensation from whoever is responsible – that is, whoever caused the damage. This also applies to survivors if your family member has died as a result of brain damage.

Your chosen legal representative will first evaluate the situation, then decide who is responsible for it and start taking legal steps to ensure that you can receive compensation in full and as soon as possible.

 

And how to choose the “right” legal representative?If you don’t have recommendations from friends or any other experience, you need to research on your own. Below are some tips that might help you:

1. 1. A database of all lawyers operating in the Czech Republic can be found on the website of the Czech Bar Association – www.cak.cz – after clicking on the page, you will be offered a search form – unfortunately, you will not find the specialization in compensation for health damage in the form, so you need to go through the specialization in civil law and, if applicable, if there is brain damage associated with an occupational accident, thus specializing in labor law.

2. 2. In the Czech Republic are a number of lawyers who specialize in cases of compensation for damage to health – however, it is always best to get a recommendation from someone who has already used the service rather than just searching on the Internet. A lawyer specialized in compensation for damage to health must actively know how to approach these cases – it is not enough that he is an acquaintance of yours who will read the paragraphs for you.
      Think about it the same way you would think about choosing a doctor. When we have something to do with the brain, we go to a specialist neurologist, and not, for example, to an ophthalmologist who would read something about the brain in specialist books.

3. 3. It is important to pay attention to the form of remuneration that the lawyer will ask in return for their work.

• • In the case of personal injury compensation, remuneration is typically a certain percentage (usually 10-25%) depending on the amount recovered. If the lawyer does not succeed in getting you compensation, you will not pay him anything for his services. Attention, always look into whether the lawyer is also a VAT payer, as that may significantly increase the remuneration amount.
    It is a good idea to agree whether the lawyer will charge you the same percentage if they win compensation for your expenses – e.g., for the purchase of a device that is not covered by the health insurance company. Here it is recommended to agree on a lower percentage.

• • You can also agree on a contractual fee either according to the hours the lawyer spends on the case, or a per-service rate, where individual services are paid (e.g. filing a lawsuit in court, a letter to an insurance company, etc.). Here it can be recommended that before the service is provided, you ask about the pricing – i.e., how much the individual services will cost, or what is the maximum amount you will be required to pay the lawyer.

4. 4. Pay close attention to the cooperation agreement that you conclude with the lawyer. It is important to ensure that the agreement includes not only the scope of services, but also how the remuneration will be billed. After concluding the contract, the lawyer will ask you to sign a power of attorney. Do not sign the power of attorney before you have agreed on everything with the lawyer. If you don’t like the lawyer, you can terminate the power of attorney – but be aware that you will have to pay them for the actions they have already taken. The contract should also specify the attorney’s fee upon termination of the contract.

5. 5. Assistance in the matter of compensation for injury to health is also provided by various specialized counseling centers, which guide through the entire compensation process and cooperate externally with lawyers and experts from the field of healthcare.

6. 6. Cerebrum does not want to recommend any legal representative, but if you are (or were) satisfied with someone who helped you, please let us know by email: info@cerebrum2007.cz so we can share the contact with those who are looking for a lawyer (of course, without mentioning the contact came from you).