Start with the event
Start with medical needs and immediate danger. Then record the time, exact place, people, conditions, reports, and available photographs without delaying care.
Build the record
Save incident numbers, discharge papers, receipts, messages, photographs, witness details, and the names of every organization notified.
Prepare the legal questions
Ask which evidence is likely to change or disappear, whether a special notice process may apply, and which jurisdiction controls.
Contact and insurance log
Keep a dated log of reports, claim numbers, requests, responses, appointments, expenses, and decisions. Distinguish what you observed from what another person said or a record states.
Use the file in a consultation
Bring the shortest accurate chronology you can prepare, the most important original records or secure copies, and three questions. A lawyer can identify gaps without requiring you to solve the legal issues first.