How To Find Reputable Personal Injury Lawyers
If you suffered injuries in an accident that wasn’t your fault, you might have the right to recover compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. An accidental injury lawyer might help to settle your case and recover damages for you. However, when you are trying to find a personal injury lawyer to handle your case, it’s important to do your research to find an attorney you can trust. Here is how to find a personal injury lawyer from the law firm of Raynes & Lawn.
1. Ask for Referrals From Friends and Acquaintances
If you know someone who has hired a personal injury attorney in the past, ask them about their experience with the lawyer. If they had a good experience, write the attorney’s name down on your list of candidates to speak with. However, don’t decide to hire an attorney simply because a friend had a good experience. You might respond differently to the attorney’s personality and style. Wait until you have a chance to meet with a few lawyers before you settle on one.
2. Talk to a Lawyer You Know
You might be friends with an attorney or have been represented by one in the past. If the attorney you know practices in a different area of the law, you can ask them to refer you to an attorney who might be a good choice. Attorneys commonly refer potential cases to other lawyers in their networks.
3. Review Websites
You can also check online review websites, including Martindale-Hubbell, Avvo.com, and others to get an idea about other people’s experiences with an attorney you are considering. These types of websites can help you learn how an attorney has been rated, which might indicate their competence and legal ethics.
Once you have a small list of potential attorneys, you should schedule consultations with several of them. Personal injury lawyers typically offer free consultations, so interviewing a few attorneys won’t cost you anything.
4. Ask About Experience and How Cases Are Handled
When you interview a lawyer, ask about their experience with handling personal injury cases and how long they have been licensed in Pennsylvania. Ask the attorney the percentage of cases they handle that are devoted to personal injury law, whether they represent plaintiffs or defendants, whether the attorney has dealt with the insurance company involved in your case, and whether they will be the person working on your case.
Many law firms have multiple attorneys working on cases together. Paralegals and less experienced attorneys might handle routine tasks, which can be beneficial because the work might get done faster. However, you’ll also want to make sure that less experienced attorneys will handle the most important work on your case. Ask who will be primarily responsible for your case and the name of the attorney with whom you will deal directly. If several attorneys will be working together on your case, ask the attorney which parts they will primarily handle and which will be handled by a paralegal or less experienced attorney.
5. Pay Attention to the Firm’s Communication Style
You want to find an attorney and a law firm that has a good communication style. When you hire a personal injury attorney, you will need to work with them for several months. Choosing an attorney who has a good communication style and who explains legal concepts in language you understand is important. Your attorney should also listen to you and answer the questions you have.
When you arrive for a consultation, see how the staff communicate with each other and with you. Ask the attorney how they handle communication while a case is pending and who you will speak with when you call. An attorney’s ability to listen to you and understand what you are saying can affect your ability to help them and make good decisions.
6. Find Out the Attorney’s Trial Experience
While it’s true that most personal injury lawsuits are resolved short of trial through the settlement process, you still want to find a lawyer who has substantial trial experience. This is because a small percentage of claims do go to trial, and you don’t want to have an attorney with no trial experience who will have to learn on the job while representing you. Ask any attorney you are considering how many cases they have litigated at trial and what the outcomes of those cases were. While an attorney’s past trial experience and record won’t guarantee that you’ll receive a similar outcome, they can show whether the attorney has the litigation skills necessary to help you secure a better outcome in your case. If the insurance company doesn’t offer a fair settlement in your case, having an attorney who is unafraid to litigate for you at trial is important.
When an insurance company is dealing with a lawyer who has significant trial experience and a winning record, the company might also be much likelier to offer a fair settlement. This is because of the risks the company would face by refusing to settle and going to trial.
7. Trust Your Instincts
At the end of the day, you should choose a lawyer with whom you feel comfortable and trust to handle your case. After you have consulted a few attorneys, think about your impressions of each one, their experience, record, communication style, and whether they have litigated cases at trial in the past. After comparing the lawyers on your shortlist based on their styles and the above-listed factors, you should have a good idea of which lawyer you trust the most to handle your case. At that point, you can then speak to the lawyer about retaining them to represent you.
Talk to the Reputable Personal Injury Lawyers at Raynes & Lawn
Our attorneys understand that choosing the right personal injury lawyer for your case is a major decision. We have more than five decades of experience representing negligence victims in Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania and have recovered billions of dollars for our clients. Call us for a free consultation today at 1-800-535-1797.
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