Do I Have A Case?
The attorneys and staff at Harry S. Cohen & Associates will consult with you over the phone or by e-mail to help you determine if the facts of your medical care demonstrate a preventable medical error that justifies filing a medical malpractice case.
There is no fee for the initial consultation and meetings.
What Will We Do For You?
After your initial contact with our office, we will schedule a meeting with you to discuss the details of your case necessary to begin our investigation. We understand that some clients cannot drive to our offices or are unable to travel to Pittsburgh. We will make every effort to meet with you at a place convenient to you, whether in your home, at a convenient neutral location or here at our main offices in Pittsburgh.
We have reviewed thousands of medical malpractice cases and successfully represented hundreds of clients, so we encourage you to contact us about your case. We will do our best to promptly answer your questions and address your concerns. Even in cases when no law suit is possible, we hope to provide answers and peace of mind. We take our role as Counselors at Law seriously.
How Do We Review Cases?
- After our initial interviews and meeting, our attorneys will make a joint decision with you on whether we will begin an investigation directed toward filing a medical malpractice suit.
- The patient or the patient’s next-of-kin will sign an agreement hiring Harry S. Cohen & Associates, clearly setting forth the fees and payment details.
- The contract will clearly state that Harry S. Cohen & Associates will pay the costs of the investigation, law suit, expert witnesses and the trial, if there is a trial. The contract makes this as clear as possible:
“It is further understood and agreed that the expenses of litigation, which will be advanced by Harry S. Cohen & Associates, will be deducted from the balance of any sums recovered by settlement or verdict after payment of the fee, and reimbursed to Harry S. Cohen & Associates. If no recovery is obtained, no fee or expenses shall be payable to Harry S. Cohen & Associates.”
- We will work with you to assemble a summary of medical care, a rough list of medical care providers, hospitalizations and dates of treatment. Then we will procure all of the pertinent medical records.
- We will review and summarize these records and have them reviewed by experts who will testify at trial.
- We will draft the suit papers, interview the witnesses, doctors and nurses under oath at court supervised depositions and schedule the case for trial.
- If the case does not settle, we try the case before a jury. The trial will take about one to two (1-2) weeks and, depending upon how crowded the court docket is for the county where suit is filed, the trial may take place anywhere from one to three (1-3)years after your initial consultation with us.
It is important for our clients to know that our representation does not end at a settlement or verdict. We use our experience to assist our clients in handling the compensation that they are awarded. Many of our clients require extensive medical care, constant supervision or skilled assistance throughout their remaining lifetimes. When necessary, we work closely with various experts, banking institutions and attorneys to establish strong support systems and trust accounts to meet our clients’ individualized needs after trial or settlement.