I just came from an arbitration hearing for a client of mine who was a passenger in a car accident. During cross examination of my client the defense brought out that she had several prior retail theft convictions from about eight years ago. We were still able to get a nice arbitration award ($$$) for the client, but it highlights an important point.
Please please please always tell us about your prior record. We are in a much better position to help you if you tell us upfront about some issues in your past. Why? Because then we can better determine ways to minimize those type of things.
The same thing applies concerning prior accidents and prior treatment that you may have had. If a person testifies under oath that they never had back problems in their life in an auto accident case, and then it turns out that they treated for their back condition a few years before the collision, the client appears to be hiding something.
What could Pittsburgh car accident injury attorney Bernie Tully do to help the situation? Well if you had prior back problems, we could file a motion to exclude those records from your case. It’s called a motion in limine. If it is granted, the defense cannot bring it up at trial.
We are here to help.
Thanks for listening.
Bernie the attorney.