If you need a Mendenhall soft tissue injury lawyer, the muscle, ligament, and tendon injuries you sustained in a car wreck on US-49, at the MS-540 intersection, at East Street, or anywhere else in Simpson County face the same skepticism from insurance companies and the same exploitation by volume law firms that whiplash cases do, with one additional weapon the insurance company deploys on soft tissue cases that the TV lawyer’s secretary will never know is coming: the independent medical examination. The insurance company will schedule an IME with a physician they select, pay, and regularly use to produce opinions that minimize soft tissue injuries. That physician is not independent. He is a hired expert who examines plaintiffs for carriers and produces reports that consistently find the soft tissue injuries are minor, pre-existing, or resolved. That report will arrive in the TV lawyer’s secretary’s inbox. She will read the conclusion. She will not challenge the methodology, research the examiner’s track record, or retain a counter-IME examiner. She will use the report as leverage to push you toward a lower settlement. The insurance company built this system to work exactly that way.

The TV lawyer advertising in central MS right now is on a fishing trip on the Gulf Coast billed as client development. He has never retained a counter-IME expert to challenge the insurance company’s independent medical examiner on a Simpson County soft tissue case. He has never deposed the insurance company’s IME physician about the percentage of their opinions that favor the defense carrier versus the plaintiff. He has never presented evidence of an IME physician’s financial relationship with the insurance industry to a Simpson County Circuit Court jury. His secretary received the IME report on your soft tissue file, noted that the examiner found the injuries minor and likely pre-existing, reduced the demand figure accordingly, and is calling you to accept a lower offer. She does not know the examiner is a professional defense witness. She does not know how to find out.

Mendenhall Soft Tissue Injury Lawyer: The Eggshell Plaintiff Doctrine And Your Simpson County Claim

A defendant takes his victim as he finds him. The aggravation of a pre-existing condition caused by the wreck belongs to the at-fault driver. On a soft tissue injury case in Simpson County, this doctrine applies to every prior muscle, ligament, or tendon condition the crash aggravated, accelerated, or worsened. Prior rotator cuff degeneration. Prior tendinitis. Prior muscle strain history. Prior ligament laxity that made the soft tissue structures more vulnerable to injury from the impact on US-49 in Mendenhall. The insurance company’s IME physician will document those prior conditions and argue they explain the soft tissue symptoms you are experiencing without any contribution from the crash. That is the IME pre-existing condition argument, and it is the most common strategy used to reduce soft tissue case values in MS car wreck litigation.

Countering the IME pre-existing condition argument requires two things. First, a treating physician who has documented the before-and-after picture with specific reference to pre-existing conditions and the specific ways the crash aggravated them. Second, a counter-IME examiner who will review the same physical evidence the defense examiner reviewed, apply the same type of examination, and produce an opinion that documents the eggshell plaintiff aggravation the crash caused. Two IME reports in a soft tissue case produce a battle of experts that a Simpson County jury resolves. One IME report, the insurance company’s, produces a settlement at whatever number the secretary accepts after she reads the examiner’s conclusions. The TV lawyer’s secretary does not retain the counter-IME examiner. She lets the insurance company’s hired physician define the medical narrative on your soft tissue case.

What The Insurance Company’s IME Physician Is Actually Doing When They Examine You

The IME physician the insurance company selects is not an independent evaluator. They are a professional witness with a business relationship with the insurance industry. The most frequently used IME physicians in MS car wreck cases conduct dozens of these examinations per month, earn the substantial majority of their income from carrier-requested examinations, and produce opinions that favor the defense carrier at rates that, if documented and presented to a Simpson County jury, would call the independence of the examination into serious question. Deposing the IME physician about the volume of carrier-paid examinations they conduct, the percentage of their opinions that favor defendants, and the income they derive from carrier-requested work is a standard tool in the hands of a plaintiff’s lawyer who tries soft tissue cases in MS. It is not a tool the TV lawyer’s secretary has access to. She reads the conclusion. She does not depose the physician. The insurance company’s hired expert opinion stands unchallenged. That is exactly the outcome the insurance company paid for.

According to NHTSA occupant protection data, soft tissue injuries represent a significant proportion of all injury outcomes in non-fatal motor vehicle crashes, and the severity of soft tissue injuries is frequently underestimated in initial clinical assessments, particularly when pre-existing conditions complicate the clinical picture. Under Miss. Code Ann. Section 11-7-15, MS pure comparative fault applies to your soft tissue case. The insurance company will assign fault to you and use the IME report to simultaneously minimize the injury severity. Under Miss. Code Ann. Section 15-1-49, you have three years to file in Simpson County Circuit Court at 100 Court Avenue in Mendenhall. A counter-IME examiner can be retained within that window. The TV lawyer’s secretary will not retain one.

What The TV Lawyer’s Secretary Does With Your Soft Tissue File Versus What Needs To Happen

She submits your medical bills from Simpson General Hospital and your treating physicians. She receives the IME report from the insurance company’s examiner. She reads the conclusion: injuries are minor, likely pre-existing, likely resolved. She does not research the examiner’s track record. She does not retain a counter-IME examiner. She does not request the examiner’s prior opinions to identify the pattern of pro-defense conclusions. She uses the IME report as a reason to tell you the offer is reasonable given what their doctor found. Their doctor’s findings go unchallenged. The eggshell plaintiff argument that would have established the aggravation of pre-existing soft tissue conditions goes unbuilt. The settlement is a fraction of what the case was worth before the IME physician wrote his conclusion and the TV lawyer’s secretary read it without pushing back.

What needs to happen on a Mendenhall soft tissue case from day one: the treating physician gets instructed to document the before-and-after picture with specific reference to any pre-existing conditions and the specific aggravation the crash caused. When the insurance company schedules the IME, a request goes out for the physician’s prior opinions and financial relationship with the carrier. A counter-IME examiner gets retained to conduct an independent examination and produce a competing medical opinion. The eggshell plaintiff case gets built before the defense IME physician’s report becomes the only expert opinion on file. None of that happens at the TV lawyer’s office while his secretary is fishing for a reason to accept the offer their doctor justified.

The Fee Betrayal Math On Your Mendenhall Soft Tissue Case

His fee is 40 percent. His itemized costs come off the top before the fee calculation. On a Simpson County soft tissue case his secretary settled fast after the IME report arrived because she never retained a counter-IME examiner, never challenged the defense physician’s track record, never built the eggshell plaintiff case, and accepted the reduced offer the IME report was designed to justify, his 40 percent of that IME-discounted, eggshell-ignored, counter-expert-absent settlement plus his itemized costs stack: medical records fees, filing fees, fee fi fo fum fees, fees for fees, fees on top of fees, fees for the fishing trip billed as client development, fees for the Lamborghini, fees for the Destin condo, fees for the downtown office suite, fees for the secretary who read the IME conclusion and called it reasonable, fees for the paralegal who accepted the discounted offer by email, fees to rob you blind, IME-unchallenged fees, counter-examiner-never-retained fees, defense-physician-never-deposed fees, eggshell-case-never-built fees, fees to make absolutely certain he walks away with more money than you do from a soft tissue case where the insurance company’s hired physician defined the medical narrative and nobody pushed back. That math leaves the soft tissue victim in Simpson County with a settlement that reflects one physician’s opinion paid for by the insurance company and zero opinions on your side of the record. The lawyer ends up with more than the person who still has pain the IME examiner said should have resolved by now.

Every Mendenhall soft tissue case I take is covered by the Foster Fair Fee Guarantee. Written in your contract before I do a single thing on your case. You walk away with more money than I receive in fees. Every case. No exceptions. The TV lawyer will not put that in writing because his soft tissue math does not survive the guarantee.

The full Mendenhall car wreck framework is on the Mendenhall MS car wreck lawyer page. The statewide resource is at Mississippi Car Wreck Lawyer. The Resources page has background before you talk to anyone. If you want a settlement priced on the IME physician’s conclusions that nobody challenged and an eggshell plaintiff argument that nobody built, the TV lawyer is perfect for you. Get the book first.

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What Is An IME And How Does It Affect My Mendenhall Soft Tissue Case?

An independent medical examination, or IME, is a physical examination conducted by a physician selected and paid by the insurance company. Despite the word “independent,” IME physicians in MS car wreck cases frequently have financial relationships with defense carriers and produce opinions that minimize injury severity at rates that reflect those relationships. On a soft tissue case from a US-49 crash in Mendenhall, the IME report will typically find the injuries minor, pre-existing, or resolved. Challenging the report requires retaining a counter-IME examiner who conducts an independent examination and produces a competing medical opinion, and deposing the defense physician about their track record of pro-defense opinions. The TV lawyer’s secretary accepts the IME report at face value. A Mendenhall soft tissue injury lawyer challenges it.

Does The Eggshell Plaintiff Doctrine Apply To My Mendenhall Soft Tissue Case If I Had Prior Muscle Or Tendon Problems?

Yes. Under the eggshell plaintiff doctrine as applied in MS courts, a defendant takes his victim as he finds him. If the crash on US-49 or at the MS-540 intersection in Mendenhall aggravated prior rotator cuff degeneration, prior tendinitis, prior ligament laxity, or any other pre-existing soft tissue condition, the at-fault driver is responsible for the full extent of that aggravation. The insurance company’s IME physician will document those prior conditions and argue they explain your symptoms without any contribution from the crash. A Mendenhall soft tissue injury lawyer builds the counter-case with your treating physician’s before-and-after documentation and a counter-IME examiner who applies the eggshell plaintiff doctrine to establish every dollar of aggravation the crash caused.

What Damages Can I Recover For A Soft Tissue Injury From A Car Wreck In Simpson County?

Soft tissue injury damages in Simpson County include past and future medical expenses at Simpson General Hospital and treating specialists, lost wages, loss of earning capacity if the injury produces chronic pain or functional limitations, physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and full aggravation of pre-existing soft tissue conditions under the eggshell plaintiff doctrine. Under Miss. Code Ann. Section 11-7-15, the insurance company will attempt to assign comparative fault and use the IME report and pre-existing condition argument to reduce every category. A Mendenhall soft tissue injury lawyer builds the full damages picture with the counter-IME support to defend it.

Do I Have To Submit To The Insurance Company’s IME On My Mendenhall Soft Tissue Case?

Whether you are required to submit to an IME depends on the specific circumstances of your claim and your insurance policy terms. If the IME is required, the appropriate response is not to refuse it but to prepare for it and counter it. A Mendenhall soft tissue injury lawyer requests information about the examining physician’s background and prior opinions before the examination, instructs you on how to provide accurate and complete symptom history during the examination, and retains a counter-IME examiner to conduct an independent evaluation and produce a competing medical opinion that counters whatever the defense physician concludes. The TV lawyer’s secretary does not prepare for the IME and does not retain a counter-examiner. She reads the conclusion and uses it to push you toward a lower number.

Does Jay Foster Handle Soft Tissue Injury Cases From Car Wrecks On US-49 And The MS-540 Corridor In Mendenhall?

Yes. I handle soft tissue injury cases from car wrecks on US-49 through Mendenhall, at the MS-540 intersection, at East Street, and throughout Simpson County. I retain counter-IME examiners, challenge defense physician track records in depositions, build the eggshell plaintiff case with treating physician documentation, and do not allow the insurance company’s hired examiner to be the only medical voice in the settlement negotiation. Cases file in Simpson County Circuit Court at 100 Court Avenue in Mendenhall. Get the free book using the form on this page before you talk to any adjuster about your soft tissue injury claim.

P.S. The IME report the insurance company’s physician wrote on your Mendenhall soft tissue case is not the last word. It is the only word if nobody retains a counter-examiner. The TV lawyer on a fishing trip billed as client development is not retaining one. His secretary is reading the conclusion and planning to use it to push you lower. Get the FREE book right now and find out what a soft tissue case in Simpson County is actually worth when the IME gets the fight it deserves and the eggshell plaintiff doctrine gets applied to every dollar of aggravation the crash caused.

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