Accidents happen all the time, but not all personal injury lawyers you reach out to are capable of bringing you the justice you deserve, let alone handling your case with competence. With the number of practitioners being active in a single area, it’s easy to think that the first name you find is the best fit for your litigation needs. The truth is, finding the right lawyer is a process that shouldn’t take overnight.
You wouldn’t want to recruit an inexperienced lawyer, especially if there’s a lot at stake in your case. There’s also a good chance that you might work with a lawyer who has a poor track record in terms of winning high-value settlement amounts that surpass the initial compensation estimates. To make the most out of your personal injury lawyer, the tips below should help you narrow down your options, ensuring that you will have the brightest mind on your legal team.
1. Know what area of tort law
It’s important to bear in mind that not all personal injury lawyers have had experience handling a unique case like yours. To begin with, tort law is a broad field, comprising not just cases of battery and car collisions, but it also touches on other areas such as medical malpractice and asbestos exposure.
It’s important to avoid assuming that, just because they specialize in “personal injury” cases, an attorney has the skills and experience needed to deal with the facts of your unique case. The best results are only possible when you lean on the expertise of an attorney who specializes in the type of personal injury you have suffered. That way, you spare yourself having to spend time and money getting someone with hardly any experience to represent your side.
2. Rely on online directories
Once you have a good idea of the type of personal injury lawyer you need to build your case, you will have to come up with a short list of possible practitioners and law firms that fit the bill. You might think that a quick Google search is enough, but you could save more time if you start your search using online directories.
There are sites that feature profiles and detailed information about the lawyers active in your city or neighborhood, so you will know who to contact first. You might also want to check out directories that feature reviews from clients. Use these as a reference before sending an email or scheduling an initial consultation.
3. Learn more about their online presence
The fact that a lawyer is listed in an online directory doesn’t entirely mean that they are credible and competent enough. Always take the results with a pinch of salt because not everything you see in the directories will give you a good idea if they’re worth your time and money.
As you build a shortlist of possible practitioners and firms to check out, dig deeper by looking up their social media presence on platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. It also helps if you could browse through their websites and check for new information. If you’re a resident of Georgia, it would help if you could visit the website of an Atlanta or Cumming personal injury law firm and find out what makes them different from other practitioners in town.
4. Cross-check with your social circle
If you still need more evidence about a personal injury lawyer’s competence and experience, look beyond the marketing messages and ads and reach out to people you know who have worked with them before. The people in your professional circle, as well as certain family members, may vouch for the lawyer you’ve picked, so ask them what the experience was like.
Take note of the high points and low points of their relationship and see if they were satisfied with the outcomes in the end. You know a firm’s a keeper when all you can hear are positive comments about their services and the results they delivered.
Endnote
When it comes to winning a personal injury case, it’s not enough to get any lawyer you find in the first online search results. You deserve the best possible outcomes so you can recover, so water down your list and make sure you’ve hired one who will not let you down or hand over an unfavorable settlement deal.
