Seeking a personal injury lawyer is rarely pleasant. Luckily, it’s something we only have to do every so often. Don’t let your emotional state get in the way of a rational decision, or your inexperience might land you incompetent counsel. We hope the standards in this article might be of help. They are pretty exacting, so don’t be surprised if your lawyer doesn’t pass them all with flying colors, but following them will paint a pretty accurate portrait of who they are as a professional.
Have you met anyone else who has used their services? It’s not always easy to dig up a prior referral but it never hurts to ask around. Keep in mind, attorneys can’t hand out names of clients due to confidentiality reasons, so if your lawyer is unable to provide references, don’t be alarmed. Still, if they are reputable in their community, somebody, either in a chamber group or business association, should have heard of them.
What do their Facebook and LinkedIn connections have to say about them? Lawyers have been pretty slow in adopting the social media fad, but the ones that did have intentionally chosen to reveal their personal connections; Some of which are bound to be clients. That’s because social media marketing works, and many consumers prefer interfacing with those in their social media network. The interesting thing is that most of these clients were social media connections before they utilized the lawyer’s services, so their reports are more likely to be impartial. Send some random messages to their FB friends/fans and LinkedIn connections. It can’t hurt.
Have they passed the Bar exam? This one is definitely on the cautious side, but lawyers do get “de-barred” occasionally, and some of them might try to practice without the appropriate license. We’re not saying it’s common but it does happen. Either way, you only have to go to your local Bar website and look them up. It’s a few minutes of your time that could be well spent if your candidate turns out to be a con-man.
What is the size of their firm? Depending on the scale of your case and the type of injury sustained, the size of the firm matters. If you are dealing with a pharmaceutical injury in which a class-action lawsuit is appropriate, a small office would be unlikely to handle your case. Similarly, if you have a relatively small claim, a smaller law firm might be able to better handle your needs and remain more available.
How have they performed in the past? Oddly enough, one of the best kept secrets about jurisprudence is that past cases are almost always public. The local library or county registrar will certainly have a few cases on file where your candidate was the legal counsel. Nowadays, these facilities will be equipped with intranet search, so a five minute stop-off might yield some interesting results.
What do they charge? As with everything else, budget should impact your decision. In personal injury law, you should only go with a lawyer who charges after they win. But look at the percent they are taking. If it’s inordinately high, or if they try to throw in extra fees, they might not be worth your time.
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