Nearly every good family law attorney will ask a client to come in for an initial consultation before agreeing to representation. This meeting will help you decide if the lawyer is the right fit for your case.

Pay attention to the first call: What was your experience like when you first called the law firm? Were they accommodating in setting up your meeting? Were you treated like a wanted customer? Often, this experience is a snapshot of how you will be treated later on down the road.

Consider your goals: Before showing up to the initial consultation, decide what is most important to you and what your "best case" outcome would be. Do you want to keep the family home? Retain custody of your children? Do you have assets that need protecting? Will you need spousal support? You won't be able to know if the attorney is the right fit until you know what you want to get out of your divorce.

Come prepared: If you have been served with divorce papers, bring those with you. Also bring copies of any documents that may be relevant to your divorce, such as prenuptial agreements or restraining orders. Don't worry about bring extensive financial documents - you can wait to provide those until after you have retained an attorney.

Be honest: Attorneys can't do their jobs well if clients hide relevant information from them. Answer questions honestly, and speak up if the attorney doesn't ask about something important. It is especially important to mention information that could be used against you later on, like an affair, substance abuse or secret spending habits. You might feel embarrassed, but, in all likelihood, your attorney has seen the problem before and will know how to handle it effectively.

Ask a lot of questions: Sometimes it is helpful to prepare a list of questions in advance. Ask about the divorce process, how your claim will be handled, how the law firm bills its clients, what role support staff will play and anything else that comes to your mind. Don't be afraid of asking "stupid" questions - most people don't know much about the process when they walk through the door. A good lawyer will answer your questions patiently and thoroughly.

Trust your gut: While an attorney will likely be able to explain the factors that weigh for and against you, no attorney should ever guarantee an outcome. Watch out for a sales pitch. Ultimately, you will need to decide if you think you are meeting with a lawyer you can trust.

A new study shows that traumatic brain injuries may actually increase the likelihood that a person will spend time behind bars. Overall, about 8.5 percent of American adults have a history of TBI. However, in the prison population, approximately 60 percent of adults have suffered at least one traumatic brain injury.

The high number of imprisoned TBI sufferers may also be due to the fact that so many traumatic brain injuries go unreported and untreated. Many people are unaware of the fact that they've suffered a TBI - they know that they've been "knocked out" or hit in the head, but they don't draw the connection to a more severe, lasting injury.

This can be especially true for individuals who are injured in car accidents. Motor vehicle deceleration injuries can cause TBI, even if the victim's heads don't actually come into contact with the interior of the car.

TBIs Have Lasting Consequences

Traumatic brain injuries can cause significant problems in a person's life, even for those who don't end up in prison.

For example, people with TBI may have difficulty remembering rules or procedures and are often slow to respond to instructions. This can lead to problems in the workplace and cause supervisors to think an employee is being lazy or intentionally disrespectful.

In addition, traumatic brain injuries increase the likelihood that a person will suffer from mental illness or cognitive disabilities.

Researchers are looking into the reasons behind the high TBI rate in the U.S. prison population and are taking steps to help mitigate the problem. Hopefully, they will be able to develop strategies to help TBI victims lead healthier and safer lives.

•Treat other motorists with courtesy and respect

•Drive defensively

•Avoid tailgating

•Be especially alert at intersections

•Avoid riding between lanes of slow moving or stopped traffic

•Pay attention to the road surface

•Maintain a safe speed

•Know and obey traffic laws, including ordinances in your community

•Avoid excessive noise by leaving the stock muffler in place or using a muffler of equivalent noise reduction

•Use signals when appropriate

Following these simple tips should aid in reducing the number of motorcycle accidents in Virginia. This reduction will hopefully correspond to a reduction in the number of preventable deaths, despite an increased number of motorcyclists on the road.

Unfortunately, accidents often happen, even when riders take all necessary safety precautions. If you or a loved one has been involved in a motorcycle accident, please contact an experienced personal injury attorney in order to explore your options.

It appeared as if major automakers would follow his lead. Through its "Driving Skills for Life" program, Ford Motors sponsored clinics in a number of high schools to educate teenage drivers on the importance of following traffic laws and avoiding distractions. BMW introduced a series of ads highlighting the risks of distracted driving under its "Don't Txt & Drive" campaign. The Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers also worked with the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons to promote safe driving practices.

But just as they are promoting safe driving habits, automakers are working diligently to include new interactive media systems to attract younger drivers for vehicles such as the Chevorlet Cruze and Ford Focus. GM's new OnStar system would allow drivers to use voice commands to update Facebook pages while behind the wheel, and Ford's SYNC system would allow social networking and web browsing capabilities. BMW's Connected Drive system would display emails, call logs and text read-backs on a dashboard screen.

Automakers report that they are developing safety guidelines for interactive devices, and the NHTSA is creating its own rules for managing cognitive distractions in new vehicles. In the meantime, the best way to limit (or avoid) distracted driving is to put the cell phone down until you reach your destination.