In short, yes there is a situation where you could end up owing, but it is extremely rare and with appropriate advice from your attorney, it is an outcome that is usually avoidable as your case progresses.. This is a topic I simultaneously love to discuss with clients because it shows they c...

Partner Brad Thayer and other Willamette University College of Law alumni gathered with the law school's Dean, Curtis Bridgeman, earlier this month for Willamette Law's third annual Global Day of Service. The school's Global Day of Service is a day when alumni give back to the community and ...

Often times people who have been injured in the collision call us to tell us that an insurance company has offered them a few hundred dollars to resolve their personal injury claim. They relate to us that the insurance company adjuster has been “really nice” to them and was helping them to “pro...

When a client is hurt badly enough that their medical providers say they cannot work, one of the major stressors in their lives can be whether they are going to have a job to go back to if and when they recover. It's a huge burden and worry for a client and their loved ones. And in many truly...

Sometimes in the course of discussion about the pros and cons of proceeding into litigation a client will ask me, “Will the discovery process invade my right to privacy?” The short answer is – “Yes”. If “right to privacy” means an expectation on your part that you would be able to avoid having...

Federal, state, and local governments, as well as their various agencies and subparts, generate records for countless reasons. The public has a great interest in transparent government. As a result, there are laws on the books for the safekeeping and release of public records. Under federal law...

The short answer is: “Yes, maybe”.  As long as the initial lowball isn't so low it is offensive and would leave you—the injured person—“in the hole” financially speaking, there is a chance that productive back and forth negotiation could occur.  To see an overview of the typical personal injur...

So you've heard that your personal injury case might drag out a long while. You also know it's likely that someday a bunch of insurance adjusters, lawyers, and doctors are going to be asking you a lot of questions about what happened, what hurt, how long it hurt for, and how it impacted your ev...

In pushing for safety through the formation of a volunteer fire department in the city of Philadelphia in 1736, Benjamin Franklin wrote: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” In the case of bike helmets, and protection of the brain, nothing could be more true. In bicycle falls an...

I started my career working for the largest insurance defense law firm on the West Coast. I spent three years working directly with insurance adjusters as they evaluated cases, and determined whether to cover an insurance claim submitted by one of their insureds. After this experience I was off...

There's a short answer to that question, but it gives no context. Of course, there's a better answer which explains why a policy limit matters, but it's a little long-winded. Short Answer It's the most money an insurance company is contracted to pay out for its insured for a specific purpos...

It is important to understand, generally, how to determine what compensation for damages actually ends up in your pocket when a personal injury claim resolves. As we've said before on this blog: “Sometimes, when a case is at its end — whether that is a settlement or a jury verdict – clients th...

 You're trying to navigate the maze of issues after a car crash: medical payments, property damage, rental cars, bodily injury settlements. You may find yourself asking, “should I trust my own insurance company?”, in terms of what they tell you, what they want you to do or sign, and regarding...

On June 17, 2014, one of the firm's founding members, Craig Schauermann (now of counsel to the firm) published a blog entitled WHY WE ARE: “Washington Oregon Lawyers”. In it, Craig addressed our firm's ability to handle personal injury and wrongful death cases on either side of the Columbia Riv...

We are honored to again be sponsoring the Vancouver Family Magazine Children's Festival this year. The event will be held on Saturday, March 16 from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the Vancouver Mall. This is the 13th year that the magazine has put this fun event on for local families and the 3rd year tha...

What should I do if I am hurt in a store, restaurant, or other business? I often get calls from people who were hurt when they were a customer in a retail store, restaurant, public building, or other business. The injuries occur in various ways: tripping on a hazardous obstacle, slipping on impr...

Time Limitation Concerns in Washington-Oregon Dual-State Cases Because we represent injured persons in both Washington State and Oregon, we often see circumstances that involve both states.  For example, if a Washingtonian is driving in Oregon when a car crash occurs.  In that scenario, the ...

Common sense dictates that when a child is killed due to the negligence of another, the parents of that child may bring a claim against the at-fault party. Except, it doesn't. Not always. That's because Washington State has a law that precludes two classes of people from being able to bring claim...

What If the Person Who Hit Me Was Drinking at a Bar? Often when people are involved in car crashes, everything in the immediate aftermath turns into a blur. Getting to a place of safety and securing medical help for those who need it is the primary concern. But in the chaos of a crash scene,...

To be technical, the word "litigation" is based on the intransitive verb "to litigate". According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, to litigate means "to carry on a legal contest by judicial process", or "to decide and settle in a court of law". But that doesn't tell you much about the l...

On January 9, 2019, against the backdrop of the Columbia River in the Warehouse '23 event space, a group of interested local attorneys turned out to hear Scott Staples of Schauermann Thayer Jacobs Staples & Edwards PS and local attorney Bruce Colven explore how to handle a mandatory civil arbit...

If My Car Crash Happened On a Bridge, Is it a Washington or an Oregon Case? When collisions occur on the span of the bridges over the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon the rule is that the two states share jurisdiction.  Oregon has a statute, ORS 507.020, entitled “Waters deemed Or...

A Brief History of Schauermann Thayer Would you believe our office used to be a gas station? It's true. Years before Craig Schauermann and Bill Thayer purchased the building in 1986 however, it had already been converted into office space. That was a lifetime ago—at least for the younger att...

My PIP Insurer Has Stopped Paying My Medical Bills—Now What? As we've detailed here, Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits are essentially health and wage loss insurance attached to your auto policy. In Washington, your auto insurer has to provide you PIP coverage unless you specifically sig...

If One's Immigration Status is Generally Not Admissible in Washington, Must a Party Answer Questions About His or Her Undocumented Status at Deposition? Short answer: Typically, not.  Given the fact that one's immigration status is generally not admissible in Washington courts, it follows t...