Lara Fitzgerald-Husek

My practice is dedicated to representing people who have suffered serious injuries, as well as families who have lost loved ones due to someone else's negligence. Most of my work involves motor vehicle collisions, medical malpractice claims, and other complex injury cases, including occupiers' liability and product liability matters.

What makes this area of law unique is the human element. Every case involves a life-changing event, but no two clients experience those events in the same way. People respond differently to trauma, recover differently from injuries, and face different challenges in rebuilding their lives.

Because these cases often remain with us for several years, I have the privilege of getting to know my clients and their families well. While the legal issues are important, the most meaningful part of my practice is helping people navigate one of the most difficult periods of their lives and working to secure the resources they need for the future.

Two of the most common questions I am asked are: "How long will my case take?" and "What is my case worth?"

The honest answer to both is that it takes time before we can know.

In terms of timing, serious injury cases often take several years to resolve. It can take up to two years for medical experts to assess a person's long-term prognosis, future care needs, ability to return to work, and whether their impairments are permanent. After that, we are still working within the timelines of the court system. While every case is different, three to five years is often a reasonable expectation.

As for the value of a claim, that depends on how a person recovers. One thing I often tell clients is that it is better to have a better quality of life than a better lawsuit. If someone makes a strong recovery and returns to much of the life they enjoyed before the injury, that is the best outcome, even if it reduces the value of the claim.

The reality is that we cannot accurately value a serious injury case at the outset. We need time to understand the person's future care needs, income loss, and long-term prognosis before we can properly assess its value.

One of the most memorable cases I have worked on involves a child who suffered a hypoxic brain injury during birth. It is a medical malpractice case that has been with our firm for well over a decade.

Birth trauma cases are unique because they require us to understand not only how the injury occurred, but also how it will affect a child's development over time. That means working with numerous medical experts and often following a child's progress through childhood and into adolescence before the full impact of the injury can be understood.

What makes this case particularly memorable is the length of the journey. In many personal injury cases, we may work with a client for several years. In a birth trauma case, you have the privilege of watching a child grow up and getting to know the family over a much longer period of time.

The legal issues are complex, but it is the human connection and the opportunity to help a family navigate such a life-changing event that makes this work especially meaningful.

One of the most challenging aspects of my practice is helping clients navigate the gap between what they hope the legal system will provide and what the civil justice system is actually designed to do.

We often meet people during the darkest period of their lives. Their injuries were caused by someone else's carelessness, and many understandably want accountability, an apology, or a sense of justice. What can be difficult is explaining that civil litigation is not designed to punish the wrongdoer. Its purpose is to provide financial compensation for the losses caused by the injury.

For many clients, that is a difficult reality to accept. They are left dealing with life-changing consequences while the person responsible may face few meaningful repercussions.

At the same time, one of the most rewarding parts of my work is helping clients move forward. While we cannot change what happened, we can help secure the financial resources and support they need to rebuild their lives and plan for the future.

My interest in this area of law grew out of the values I was raised with. In my family, and among the people around us, there was always a strong emphasis on helping others, giving back, and being involved in the community. Volunteering was a meaningful part of my upbringing, so I always knew I wanted work that allowed me to support people in a practical way.

I did not grow up around lawyers, and there were no lawyers in my family. Law was something I found because it matched both my skills and my desire to help others. Personal injury law, in particular, allows me to work closely with people during some of the most difficult periods of their lives and help them move forward.

Outside of work, I've become surprisingly interested in gardening over the past few years. I've fully embraced what I like to call my middle-aged-grandma hobbies, and I spend more time in the garden than I ever expected I would.

I also have a hilariously high-maintenance dog named Finnegan, who is equal parts companion and part-time job. A significant amount of my free time is spent making sure his quality of life meets his very exacting standards.

Between gardening and keeping up with Finnegan, life outside the office stays pretty busy.