20 Questions to Ask a Personal Injury Lawyer Before You Sign (Miami, 2026)

A free consultation is the one moment in a personal injury case where you hold all the leverage. Nothing is signed, no fee is owed, and the lawyer is the one being evaluated. Most people spend that meeting describing the crash and never ask a single question about how the representation will actually work. This 2026 guide gives you the twenty questions that separate one Florida injury firm from another, explains what a correct answer sounds like under current Florida law and the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, and flags the answers that should end the meeting. It is general information about Florida law, not legal advice, and no outcome is ever guaranteed.

Quick Answer: What to Ask and Why

• Ask which contingency fee tier applies at signing. Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B) sets presumptively reasonable maximums: generally 33 1/3 percent of a recovery up to $1 million before the defendant files an answer or demands arbitration, and 40 percent after that.
• Ask whether case costs are deducted before or after the fee is calculated. That single sentence can move your net by thousands of dollars.
• Ask which lawyer handles the file day to day, and whether the firm intends to refer the case out under Rule 4-1.5(g).
• Ask about the two-year deadline. Negligence claims accruing on or after March 24, 2023 must generally be filed within two years under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a).
• Ask about the 14-day PIP treatment window under Fla. Stat. § 627.736(1)(a), because missing it forfeits $10,000 in benefits.
• Ask how the firm handles medical liens and letters of protection, which Fla. Stat. § 768.0427 now regulates as part of the damages evidence.
• Ask what happens if you reject a settlement the lawyer recommends. Under Rule 4-1.2, that decision belongs to you alone.
• Remember that you may cancel a Florida contingency agreement within three business days of signing under Rule 4-1.5(f)(5).

Before the Meeting: What to Bring

The quality of the answers you get depends on the quality of the file you show up with. Bring the Florida Traffic Crash Report or incident number, photographs of the scene and the vehicles, the names of any witnesses, your own auto policy declarations page, your health insurance card, any correspondence from either insurance carrier, and a short written timeline of your medical treatment. If a property or premises claim is involved, bring the incident report and any photographs of the hazard. A lawyer who can look at real documents in the first meeting can tell you real things about the case rather than generalities.

Write your questions down and take notes on the answers. A firm that is uncomfortable with a client taking notes during a consultation is telling you how the rest of the relationship will go.

Section 1: Questions About the Fee

1. Which fee tier applies to my case today, and what event moves it to the next tier? Under Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B) the presumptive maximums are 33 1/3 percent of any recovery up to $1 million if the matter resolves before the defendant files an answer or demands appointment of an arbitrator, and 40 percent of a recovery up to $1 million after that point. Amounts between $1 million and $2 million carry a 30 percent maximum, and amounts above $2 million a 20 percent maximum. A lawyer quoting a flat 40 percent on a claim that has not been filed is quoting the litigation tier before litigation exists.

2. Are costs deducted from the gross recovery before the fee is calculated, or from my share afterward? Costs are not fees. Filing fees, service of process, medical records, court reporters, expert witnesses, and mediation are case expenses. Whether the percentage is applied before or after those expenses come out changes your net, and the written agreement should say so plainly.

3. Who advances the costs, and what do I owe if the case is lost? In most Florida contingency arrangements the firm advances costs and recovers them only from a recovery. Get the answer in writing, because agreements do exist that make the client liable for costs regardless of outcome.

4. Will you give me a sample closing statement? A closing statement shows the gross recovery, the fee, itemized costs, lien payments, and the client's net. Asking to see a blank or redacted sample is a fair request, and a well-run firm has one ready.

5. Do you intend to refer or associate this case with another firm? Rule 4-1.5(g) permits division of fees between lawyers who are not in the same firm only when the client agrees in writing after disclosure and the total fee is reasonable. A referral is not inherently bad. An undisclosed one is a problem.

6. May I take the agreement home and read it? Rule 4-1.5(f)(5) gives you three business days after signing to cancel a contingency-fee contract without penalty and without owing a fee. A firm that resists an overnight read has answered a different question than the one you asked.

Section 2: Questions About Who Handles Your Case

7. Which attorney will handle my file day to day, and will I speak with that attorney or with a case manager? Volume firms often route all client contact through non-lawyer staff. That is legal and sometimes efficient, but you should know it before you sign, not six months in.

8. How many active files does that attorney carry right now? There is no magic number, but the question tells you whether the firm is willing to answer it.

9. Have you tried a case to verdict in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, and when? Miami-Dade civil cases are heard in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit at the Dade County Courthouse. Adjusters track which firms actually try cases. A firm with no trial history has a settlement ceiling, and the carrier knows where it is.

10. Who covers my case if the handling attorney is in trial or unavailable? Continuity matters most at deadlines, and deadlines do not pause.

11. How often will I get a written status update, and how do I reach you between updates? Rule 4-1.4 requires reasonable communication and prompt compliance with reasonable requests for information. Ask what the firm's own standard is.

Section 3: Questions About Your Specific Claim

12. What is my filing deadline, and what is the date? For negligence claims accruing on or after March 24, 2023, Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a) requires suit within two years. Wrongful death claims run two years from the date of death under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(d). Claims against a governmental entity require written pre-suit notice under Fla. Stat. § 768.28(6). Medical malpractice claims carry a separate pre-suit investigation and notice process under Fla. Stat. §§ 766.104 to 766.106. A lawyer should be able to give you a date, not a range.

13. Have I satisfied the 14-day PIP treatment requirement? Florida's no-fault statute, Fla. Stat. § 627.736(1)(a), generally makes $10,000 in personal injury protection benefits available only if initial services are received within 14 days of the crash, and limits benefits to $2,500 absent an emergency medical condition determination. This is the single most common avoidable loss in a Florida crash case.

14. How does comparative fault apply to my facts? Fla. Stat. § 768.81(6) bars recovery entirely for a claimant found more than 50 percent at fault in most negligence actions. That is not the old pure comparative system. Ask the lawyer to explain, out loud, where they expect the defense to place fault and what evidence answers it.

15. What evidence disappears if we wait, and what will you do in the next 30 days to preserve it? Storefront and parking-lot video is frequently overwritten in days or weeks. Commercial vehicle electronic control module data, driver logs, and telematics require prompt spoliation letters. A specific 30-day plan is the clearest signal of a serious firm.

16. What insurance coverage have you identified, and is there uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage? Florida requires PIP and property damage liability but does not mandate bodily injury liability coverage for most private passenger vehicles under Fla. Stat. § 324.022, so the at-fault driver may carry no bodily injury coverage at all. Your own UM coverage under Fla. Stat. § 627.727 is frequently the largest available source of recovery, and it must be requested and evaluated early.

17. How will you handle my medical liens and any letters of protection? Fla. Stat. § 768.0427 restricts evidence of past medical damages largely to amounts actually paid, with defined benchmarks for unpaid charges, and imposes disclosure obligations around letters of protection and referral relationships. Health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, hospital, and workers compensation liens each reduce your net differently. A large gross settlement with poorly negotiated liens can pay you less than a smaller one handled carefully.

18. What are the weaknesses in my case? Every case has them: a treatment gap, a prior injury to the same body part, a recorded statement already given, a social media post, a low-speed impact photograph. A lawyer who tells you the case is perfect at the first meeting is selling, not evaluating.

19. What is your assessment of value, and what would change it? Under Rule 4-7.13 a lawyer may not make deceptive or misleading statements, and predicting a specific number before discovery is neither possible nor permitted as a promise. What a careful lawyer can do is explain the variables: liability clarity, available coverage limits, the nature of the injury and treatment, permanency opinions, and venue.

20. What happens if I want to reject a settlement offer you recommend? The only acceptable answer is that the decision is yours. Rule 4-1.2(a) places the decision whether to settle with the client. If the response includes anything about the firm withdrawing over a rejected offer, ask exactly when and how.

What Good Answers Sound Like

A good answer is specific, cites a rule or a date, and admits uncertainty where uncertainty exists. Compare the two responses to the fee question. One says: we take the standard fee, everybody charges the same thing. The other says: your agreement is at 33 1/3 percent today because we have not filed suit; if the defendant answers the complaint, it moves to 40 percent under Rule 4-1.5(f)(4)(B), and here is where that appears in the contract. Only the second answer tells you anything.

The same test applies to deadlines. Roughly two years is an answer. Your incident date is on this report, so the limitations date under Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a) is this calendar date, and we calendar it three ways is a different kind of answer.

Red Flags That Should End the Consultation

• A guaranteed result or a promised dollar figure. Florida's advertising rules, including Rule 4-7.13, prohibit deceptive and misleading communications.
• Pressure to sign immediately, or refusal to let you read the agreement at home.
• No written fee agreement, or an agreement that omits the tiered percentages.
• Inability to identify the lawyer who will handle the case.
• Unsolicited contact after an accident. Florida restricts in-person, telephone, and electronic solicitation of prospective clients under Rule 4-7.18, and written targeted solicitation to accident victims and their families is subject to a 30-day waiting period.
• Any suggestion of steering you to a specific medical provider in exchange for something, or vagueness about referral relationships that § 768.0427 requires be disclosed in litigation.
• Dismissiveness about liens, costs, or how your net is calculated.

After You Sign: Your Ongoing Rights

Hiring a lawyer is not a permanent decision. A Florida client may discharge counsel at any time, with or without cause. In a contingency matter, the discharged lawyer's claim is generally limited to the reasonable value of services rendered, capped by the contract fee and payable from any eventual recovery, under Rosenberg v. Levin, 409 So. 2d 1016 (Fla. 1982). Under Rule 4-1.16(d), a lawyer who is discharged must surrender papers and property to which the client is entitled and refund any unearned fee. You are also entitled to know about every settlement offer, because Rule 4-1.4(a)(1) requires prompt communication of any decision requiring the client's informed consent.

Official Sources

• Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, Chapter 4 (Rules of Professional Conduct) — fee rules, communication duties, advertising and solicitation limits.
• Fla. Stat. § 95.11 (limitations periods)
• Fla. Stat. § 768.81 (comparative fault)
• Fla. Stat. § 768.0427 (evidence of medical damages)
• Fla. Stat. § 627.736 (personal injury protection)
• Fla. Stat. § 627.727 (uninsured motorist coverage)
• Fla. Stat. § 768.28 (waiver of sovereign immunity, notice)
• The Florida Bar, Attorney Consumer Assistance Program
• Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida

Talk to The Farber Law Firm

The Farber Law Firm handles personal injury, insurance recovery, business, and consumer protection matters from its office at 2199 Ponce de Leon Blvd #301, Coral Gables, FL 33134, serving Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. Consultations are free and confidential, and injury matters are handled on a contingency basis, which means no attorney fee unless there is a recovery. Bring this list of questions. Call 8888-FARBER, or (888) 832-7237.

This article is general information about Florida law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Consult a licensed Florida attorney about your specific situation.