Ottawa lawyer: Why do I have to sign so many authorizations?
When new Ottawa personal injury clients sign up with Auger Hollingsworth, they are usually asked to sign a large number of authorizations. Many new clients wonder why we need so many authorizations that are identical or very similar.
Authorizations are the documents that give your lawyer permission to contact third parties on your behalf.
We get you to sign an OHIP authorization. This allows us to obtain your OHIP decoded summary. Your OHIP decoded summary lists all of the OHIP covered services you have received in the past 7 years.
Any doctor you have seen, or any other medical clinic, requires an authorization before they will release your records to us.
We need of the original authorizations back as no photocopies are accepted by doctors or hospitals. You would be amazed at how many medical people swipe your OHIP numbers over 7 years. We need to request the records from all of them. That is why we need so many forms.
Immediately after we open your file, we request the following records that require a general authorization:
-all tax returns
-any social services history (Ontario Works / ODSP)
-your employment records
-your CPP contributions
-the complete police file or municipal file or whatever investigation file we think might exist
If we want to engage an expert to help us do something, we need to send them an authorization.
If we want to speak to an insurer on your behalf, they sometimes require an authorization.
It does not take long for the number of general authorizations we use to add up. Those are some examples.
If you are wondering if an Ottawa personal injury lawyer can help you with your personal injury claim, call our office today at 613 233-4539.
