How to Select a Personal Injury Lawyer

Posted by guestcontributor on Oct 19, 2011 in Uncategorized | Comments Off

When you are injured in an accident, the last thing you want to think about is hiring an attorney to ensure that you are compensated for your losses and medical bills, but unfortunately, this might be the first course of business once you are in recovery.  The reason is that these cases can take a long time to settle, sometimes months or even years.  And during that time, your medical bills will pile up.  They may even go into collections and create black marks on your credit.  So it behooves you to get the ball rolling as soon as possible.  However, you first have to find a personal injury lawyer to take your case, and you might not have the first idea where to start.  You certainly don’t want to go by the biggest ad in the Yellow Pages!  So here are a few tips to help you find an attorney to take (and win) your case.

  1. Referral.  One of the best ways to obtain the services of a qualified attorney is through the referral of a trusted family member, friend, colleague, or acquaintance.  If you can’t get a good referral from someone you know, consider calling your local bar association for referrals or visit a law library – they should have information on local law offices that will help you to make an informed decision about which ones will suit your needs.
  2. Experience.  It’s important to hire a lawyer that is not only experienced, but one that has practiced personal injury law exclusively.  Although an experienced attorney will almost certainly have higher rates (or ask for a higher percentage of the recovery), it may be well worth the additional expense if you win your case and get the money you need to pay off your medical bills and other costs related to your injury (including ongoing medical needs).
  3. Track record.  No matter how much experience an attorney has, it means nothing if he doesn’t have a good record of winning cases.  You want to ensure the best possible chance of recovery so that you can pay your bills and get on with your life, free of debt.  So a lawyer that only wins half of his cases does not necessarily inspire confidence.
  4. Comparison shop.  You should never settle for the first lawyer you contact.  Instead, shop around to find an attorney that can offer you everything you want, from experience and past wins to a price you can live with.
  5. Price.  Many personal injury attorneys are willing to work on a pro bono basis for several reasons.  The first is that people who suffer personal injury are often short on cash because of their situation.  They may be temporarily unable to work and they could be facing ongoing medical expenses.  So they probably don’t have the extra cash to retain a lawyer.  Further, most firms will take a percentage of the recovery as their fee, so if they don’t think they can win, they probably won’t take your case.  If they lose, you won’t be compensated, but neither will they, which makes them motivated to win.

Jenna Davis is a contributing writer for the Maryland Injury Lawyer Group at Price Benowitz LLP. The firm has offices in Washington, DC, Maryland, Virginia, and New York and handles DUI, criminal, immigration, personal injury, and disability cases.

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