Recently I have been researching a number of questions for a personal injury attorney-client. As a per diem attorney I enjoy being a generalist and gaining experience and knowledge in many different areas of practice. In the 1990’s I wrote a number of plaintiff’s side insurance settlement letters in personal injury cases for another attorney-client. Lately I have been helping an attorney-client to evaluate potential claims by researching New Jersey law on various personal injury scenarios.

Of course I am glad to have my client’s ideas about where to start the research, but beyond that it is fun to explore the area. It takes me back to first semester research and writing class at NYU School of Law, where we were let loose with a research issue and little guidance as to where to start. It was like a scavenger hunt through the law library. Today the stakes are different (a real client’s needs versus an abstract research assignment) and I have much more knowledge about where to look and how to analyze what I find. I still get a thrill, though, teasing out the real issue and relevant law, reviewing the underlying doctrines, wandering through the maze of statutes, treatises and case law, to reach a recommendation for my client.

– Megan Oltman