When You Need a Personal Injury Lawyer
In this time of need you are going to want to seek out an lawyer for advice who has experience with representing the plaintiff (person injured) in personal injury cases. If you find a personal injury lawyer that has more experience representing the defendant they may tend to think like the insurance companies and unconsciously not work as hard for your side of the case.
Finding a personal injury attorney is not hard, but it is work. If you know someone who has been represented in a personal injury case seek a referral from them. Try not to feel obligated to hire a lawyer only because of a friend’s great recommendation. You will need to choose the best lawyer for you and for your case. Call your state’s bar association and get some referrals for a few personal injury lawyers in good standing. If you know a lawyer call them up and ask them for a referral, if you are okay with the fact that they would most likely charge the personal injury lawyer a referral fee.
Once you’ve got some names and numbers call them and set up consultations. It should be free for the initial consultation. Wait to make your decision until you’ve met with at least a few lawyers, so that you can compare them. Bring all your information and documents to the free consultation. Bring any thing related to loss of income, all medical records and bills, any police reports, and all correspondence from the insurance companies. Go over the information with the lawyer and see what they think of your case. Ask them how much they think your case is worth, and how difficult it will be for the insurance company to pay that amount to you.
After you have gone over some case specifics, find out some things about the lawyer. How long have they been in practice, and what percentage of their caseload is in personal injury? Do they mostly represent plaintiffs or defendants? Will anyone else be working on your case? How accessible will the lawyer be to you for phone calls and email communication?
When you have met with a lawyer who answers all of those questions satisfactorily you have found your lawyer. Most often the payment for your lawyer will come as a percentage of your award money. However if you do not win, you will be responsible for some fees. Find out before signing anything about any fees involved with your personal injury case.