Originally Posted by
indyfabz
Unless he can get one for free or very low cost, such as through a legal aid society, that $15K + the value of the bike is going to disappear pretty quickly. A better approach might be to see what the "small claims court" jurisdictional limit is. If damages are below that limit, it might be worth pursing the claim on his own after giving the insurance company an ultimatum.....
I agree that hiring a lawyer can quickly eat in to a possible award, sometimes to the extent that one is thrown for a loss. OTOH very few states have small claims limits high enough for that to be a better option.
But, there are plenty of lawyers who specialize in these kinds of cases and most, if not all, will give an initial consult for free. So, whatever may turn out to be the smartest strategy, consulting a lawyer to get a sense of what's what is a good place to start.
Also, if the OP is facing $15,000 in medical expenses, after his medical insurance, then it's a sizable claim, and his medical insurer is an ally in wanting to move this from a medical claim to a liability claim against the driver, so it's a decent sized case and warrants being pursued as hard as possible.