forgery
Using fictitious and forged document in personal injury case
<p>After a slip and fall that required surgery, I retained an attorney and filed a personal injury suit against the corporation.  At the time of the injury I filled out an Onsight Incident report.  I wrote on the form that I was hurt bad and in a lot of pain.  During discovery, we were sent a copy of this Incident Report.  The verbiage had been changed to read, "Subject said he had fallen but was okay".  My signature on the form was also forged.  I brought this to the attention of my attorneys but they said it was not relevant to my case.  It seems to me that this is a clear case of Spoliation of Evidence.  My attorneys did not want me to bring this up during my deposition and I didn't.  I did retain a well respected forgery expert to give me his opinion and he said there is no doubt that my signature was forged and would be happy to testify as to such.</p>

<p>Does anyone have any suggestions or feedback on this situation?  If so, it would be appreciated.  I believe I might want to change attorneys.</p>

<p>Thank You</p>

<p>If you employ a professional, it is precisely beacuse he knows more about the area than you do; in this case not how to show the other side are untrustworthy, but specifically how to win this suit. You can (and probably should, assuming you are happy to pay for the time) ask your attorney how and whether he is going to use the evidence of fraud, but that is all. Nobody who is not a specialist in this area and also has read the papers can tell you the reasons for this decision, but every lawyer has encountered clients who disagree with the advice given, usually for insufficient reason.  If you lose the case when the evidence of fraud would have meant that you won, you can sue your attorney; but it is not negligent to decide not to use certain facts, much less not to use them in a particular deposition.</p>

<p>Changing attorneys is your privilege at any time, but you need to decide why you are doing so. If it is because you disagree with this decision, you are putting your knowledge of the law above your attorney's; is it likely that another lawyer will take the oppsite view? If so, will that attorney be trying his best to win the case, or just to take your fee and do whatever you say?</p>

<p>When you sign up for a contingency case (like a personal injury or accident case you mentioned) it's important to understand it's not that easy to switch attorneys. Your present lawyer invests into your case in the form of billable hours and fees with the expectation of a future reward. So, you basically let him or her down.</p>
