Tips for Choosing the Right Personal Injury Attorney
It may seem obvious, but you should choose the best personal injury lawyer you can find. What does this mean, exactly? Well, the “best” entails many of the qualities that will be mentioned below. They will usually have a great deal of experience and specialization in the field. You’ll want go with this attorney, even if their fee percentage is greater than the average. Since this attorney has a high success rate, they will have a track record of achieving bigger compensation rewards for their clients. So, even consider the higher fee, you have a better chance to receive a bigger compensation with the best in the business.
Choose the Most Experienced Attorney
No matter how intelligent and skilled an attorney may be at building a good case for you, if they’ve only been in practice for a short while, they probably don’t yet know all of the tricks of the trade to bring home the amount you rightfully deserve. It’s in your best interest to choose an attorney with a solid success rate, and at least 15 years in the field.
Look for Specialization Pertaining to Your Case
If you have been involved in a motorcycle accident, you’re going to need a lawyer who has dealt with their share of motorcycle accident cases. Personal injury is a vast area of law, and having a personal injury attorney who has not handled a significant amount of cases just like yours, would be a serious mistake.
Are They an AAJ Member?
Check out whether the attorney you are researching is registered with the American Association of Justice (AAJ). This should be seen as a minimum critical requirement, as any decent personal injury attorney in the U.S. will usually have an AAJ membership.
Use Discretion With Advertisements
Treat the personal injury law firm advertisements on TV, Internet and newspapers with a great deal of discretion. Often times, these ads are sponsored by professional referral agencies that collect a large pool of inquiries through ads, and then spread them between their members firms. Also, remember that the very best personal injury firms will rarely advertise through phone books, etc, because they already have sufficient business due to their quality reputation.
Website Referrals
Try not to look for personal injury attorney referrals from websites on the Internet that appear to be neutral and informational in nature, because many times these are actually owned by fellow law firms. Before taking the site at face value, ask the website owners to declare their identity and any vested interest in the lawyers the recommend.
Consultation
Free Initial Consultation
Always choose to meet with lawyers that do not charge any consultation fee for the introductory meeting. You have absolutely no obligation to hire an attorney just because you have taken an appointment to meet with them. You may want to meet with 3 or 4 that pique your interest, before deciding on the one that is most suited to handle your case.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Questions
Ask frank questions, in order to clear any doubts when you meet the attorney. Ask about:
- their qualifications
- the exact number of years of experience
- the number of cases handled in your area of need
- the average compensation awards achieved in the past
Handling Your Case
Request a Signed Retainer Agreement
A Retainer Agreement will spell out all the items of your agreement clearly. Check the copy of the agreement before signing, and seek clarifications wherever required.
You Have the Right to Terminate the Relationship With Your Attorney
It’s important to remember that you retain the right to end your relationship with your personal injury attorney at any stage, if you are dissatisfied with their skills or services. Any dispute resolution between you and your personal injury attorney can be undertaken by seeking the assistance of the state bar to intervene in the situation.
Are you in need of a personal injury attorney in Atlanta? Don’t hesitate to contact the law offices of Bruce A. Hagen. Personal injury is all we do!