How to Hire a Quality Personal Injury Lawyer

If you suffer an injury due to someone else’s negligent actions, you deserve compensation. Getting the compensation you deserve, however, isn’t always easy. Sometimes you can recover the damages you suffer relatively easily, but not always. Most of the time, you will need to hire a personal injury lawyer to help you.

It is critical that you hire the right attorney for your specific needs. Different attorneys have different strengths, so you always want to find one whose strengths complement your case. As the Seattle Times wrote in 2018, “the right personal injury attorney can make or break your case.” However, with that said, finding the right lawyer for your case isn’t always easy. To find the right personal injury lawyer for your case, you need to know how to look for them. Below are some tips to find a quality personal injury lawyer for your case.

Consult with Multiple Personal Injury Attorneys

According to Denver Trial Lawyers, to properly compare attorneys, it is critical to speak with more than one or two. Otherwise, it is impossible to compare them and ensure you have the right one for your case. Different personal injury attorneys have varying expertise in specific areas, so figure out what your case’s needs are, and ask the different attorneys you consult with about those needs specifically. Even if you end up hiring the first attorney you consult with, meeting with other attorneys will boost your confidence and help you trust in the one you choose to hire.

Ask the Right Questions When You Meet with Prospective Attorneys

Before you consult with different attorneys, prepare a list of relevant questions that you will ask all of them. By doing so, you will end up with a standardized way of comparing the different lawyers you speak to. Some of the questions you might consider include:

• How long have you practiced personal injury law?
• Why did you choose to practice personal injury law?
• What areas of personal injury law do you have the most experience with?
• Have you won cases similar to mine?
• How do you bill your clients?
• What awards or recognition have you received recently?

These are just a few potential questions you can ask prospective attorneys. Make a list that accounts for what is most important to you and your case, and ask all the attorneys those questions, so you can compare their answers.

Crowdsource a List of Potential Attorneys

Consider crowdsourcing a list of prospective attorneys who can help you with your case. In 2016, The New York Times profiled a crowdsourcing service that helps connect clients looking for attorneys with attorneys who have experience with similar cases. The website is called Legal Services Link. To use the website, submit a brief summary of your case and your location. Once you post your case summary, other website users, including both clients and attorneys, can provide recommendations on who might be the right attorney for your specific case.

Check Attorney Websites for Client Testimonials

Whenever you plan to meet with an attorney, check for client testimonials to see what past clients have to say about them. Attorney web pages often have client testimonials that detail how the lawyer helped them in the past. Aside from attorney web pages, you can find testimonials and reviews on general search engines and lawyer-specific search engines. A review from a previous client can provide valuable insight into how that attorney works in practice.

Check with the Local Bar Association

Your local bar association’s website can be a great help in finding the right attorney for your case. State and local bar association web pages often have referral services that will help you find lawyers that practice in a specific legal and geographical area.

Aside from referral services, bar association websites can provide you with other valuable information, in particular, whether a given lawyer has faced disciplinary action from their bar association. This may be a red flag, particularly if the attorney has faced repeated disciplinary actions. However, lawyers make mistakes sometimes and learn from them like everyone else. So if you see that a lawyer you are going to speak with has faced disciplinary action before, ask them what happened, what they learned from it, and how they plan to avoid such situations in the future.

Go with Your Gut

Above all else, go with your gut when hiring a personal injury lawyer. The right lawyer can make or break your case, so it’s important to hire the best one for your specific needs. After all, the attorney-client relationship is the foundation of legal practice. Trust is essential. If you have a bad feeling about a lawyer after consulting with them, don’t hire them. Keep looking until you find a personal injury attorney whom you are comfortable with and who meets your needs. For further reading on hiring a quality personal injury lawyer, check out this piece by the American Bar Association.