In the US alone, there are so many personal injury attorneys that the market is thriving at a reeling $37.6 billion. This makes finding the right one for your case a daunting task. How do you sift the wheat from the chaff and find a professional personal injury lawyer that will fight for your rights?
When facing a personal injury case, having the right personal injury lawyer can be the difference between winning your case and suffering the weight of ongoing medical bills and lost wages. Whether you were involved in a slip and fall accident, a car crash that led to a head injury, spine injury, or a traumatic brain injury, choosing a legal representative is one of the most crucial decisions you’ll need to make.
Despite being an involving process with several things to consider, choosing a personal injury lawyer can be easy with the right guidance. This post is geared towards providing you with that much-needed guidance.
We’ll help you understand what factors to consider, and what to look for when choosing the right personal injury attorney for your case.
Determine What Area You Need Expertise In
It’s understandable if you don’t know what to look for in an attorney, and given the situation you’re in, things are already confusing as they are.
However, when choosing a personal injury attorney, the very first thing you want to determine is the area of expertise you need. Tort law happens to be wide, and some lawyers deal with auto accidents, slip and fall accidents, medical malpractice, and motorcycle accidents.
Get an attorney who has extensive experience in a given area, instead of a jack of all trades. They will have better expertise and a higher capacity to get you the desired settlement. Find an attorney that specializes in your specific case and has a prior track record in the area.
Be prepared to ask the attorney a plethora of questions and look into everything from the case results, their ethics, and their honesty. Inquire how many cases they have won against how many they have lost both in and outside court. Check your affiliations, associations, and affiliations to be assured that you’re hiring a professional lawyer.
Find Legitimate and Licensed Attorneys
It’s important that you find a legitimate and licensed personal injury lawyer in your area.
When you search for a personal injury attorney in your area on Google, you might get legitimate results, but you will also get some paid results for lawyers that may not be legally qualified to represent you. Most of these lawyers have very low budgets to attract customers, and a lot of people fall into their traps.
Hiring the least expensive attorney you find is a bad move because you would risk losing the case and the compensation you deserve for your injuries. Check within the State Bar Association, and look for a lawyer on professional organizations online.
Check to affirm that they are board-certified in practice, and check whether they participated in local bar associations or contribute to campaigns as well. This will indicate they’re involved professional attorneys that care about their clients.
Review Past Client Reviews
Customer reviews will give you a glimpse of the kind of personal injury lawyer you’re dealing with even before scheduling a consultation.
Past clients can testify to how professional and trustworthy a lawyer is, and tell you whether they are recommendable. What kind of disagreements did they have with the past clients?
How many of those reviews are positive, and how often did they win the case? What about their customer services? Do clients complain about it?
Gauge the attorney-client relationship depending on the reviews you find. Narrow down two or three seemingly credible lawyers that you can interview more closely before you choose one of them to represent you.
Check Their Discipline History
It’s important that you work with a credible attorney who has a clean track record. Check the States bar and the Department of lawyer regulation to view the public record information regarding personal injury attorneys in your state.
If you come across one of the attorneys you have shortlisted with the discipline history, you might want to clear away from them. Being listed means that they have received professional discipline for violating rules, and with that kind of history, you don’t know whether they can be trusted to handle your case.
Scope Out the Size of the Attorney Firm
The size of the firm, the experience of the lawyer, and the resources they come with are all relevant to your case. This is not to say that you should not trust small legal firms. You see, larger firms are more likely to have a larger price tag, but they will also come with more resources to fight for your case.
However, a large firm may assign your case to new inexperienced lawyers in their firm, which may not be good for you.
On the other hand, smaller firms may give you their full support despite lacking as many resources as a larger company. Still, it’s still important to have a lawyer with connections and positive reviews in the area because they will help expedite your case and get you a better settlement.
Schedule a Consultation
While you may find reviews about the lawyer on the internet, a consultation is essential because you will get personal insights from them either on the phone or in person.
Call the attorneys you have shortlisted for an appointment and schedule interviews with them. A lot of attorneys nowadays offer free consultations, so you don’t have to worry about paying for multiple consultations just to find the right attorney.
Gauge their professionalism on the phone and whether their customer care representative received you well on the phone.
Be Prepared With Questions
Go to the appointment prepared with questions that can help you decide whether they are the right attorney for your case. After suffering an injury, the last thing you want is to deal with an unscrupulous lawyer.
Inquire whether they have tried similar cases before in your County. Ask whether they are the actual attorney that will handle your case and whether they feel like you should go to court.
Ask them what they think will be the most likely outcome of your case. Gauge your comfort level when you talk to them because your case could take weeks if not months. You need to be sure that you will be dealing with a person that you’re comfortable with to talk about and ask questions regarding the case.
If you’re doubtful in any way then, it’s better you move on to the next attorney on your shortlist. Keep in mind that the success of the case will highly depend on not just how skilled the lawyer is, but how well you can work together.
Review Your Options
Once you’re done interviewing the lawyers on your list, take the time to review all of them. Gauge whether you are willing to spend the next few months with them.
Do you trust any of them with your case and feel that you have a high chance of winning? If you do, then go ahead to sign the contingency fee agreement.
Most personal injury lawyers work under a contingency basis, so you don’t have to worry about paying them in advance. They will take the pay cut once they win the case or once you get a settlement for your injuries.
Finding the Best Personal Injury Lawyer
There you have it! These are some of the most important things you have to consider when searching for the best personal injury lawyer. With the guide, you’re bound to find an amazing lawyer that will represent you impeccably and get you the compensation you deserve.
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