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7 Tips to Hiring a Great Personal Injury Lawyer |
by:
Arthur Gueli |
If you suffer an injury resulting in significant damages you will need to hire a personal injury lawyer. But in any given city, there are probably over 20 pages of personal injury attorney listings in the phone book. How do you pick the right one? What do you look for? What questions should you ask?
Here are seven things you should know before hiring your injury lawyer...
1) The sooner you hire your lawyer the better. Begin looking for your personal injury lawyer within a week or two after your accident. If you're not physically capable you should have a friend or loved-one start looking. The sooner you start building your case the better.
2) Hire a personal injury lawyer that specializes in your specific type of injuries. Do your homework before signing the retainer agreement. Visit the firm's website also read up on it's history also each lawyer's biographical information. Ask the lawyer for some referrences also ask how much experience they have in handling cases with similar injuries. What settlement awards did they get in those cases?
3) Have a face-to-face meeting with your prospective lawyer. Your personal injury lawyer is going to be your closest advisor during this difficult time. You must feel comfortable also trust your lawyer. The only way you will get a feel for the lawyer is by having a sit-down to discuss your case. Any good personal injury lawyer will give you an initial consultation free of charge.
4) Hire a lawyer that will take your case on a contingency fee basis. This means that your lawyer will not get paid unless you get paid. He will take his fee out of the money you receive for your injuries. You can expect your lawyer to take about 33% of your final settlement - that is after expenses are taken off the top. Make sure you clearly understand the payment structure before you sign the retainer agreement.
5) Beware of ambulance chasers. The goal of these lawyers is to get lots of minor personal injury cases also settle them quickly - they make their profit from high turnover. So naturally they will not put as much time also effort into each case as they should. (If you're looking for a quick settlement be prepared to accept less than what your case is really worth.)
6) Hire a lawyer with a good Martindale-Hubbell rating. This service evaluates lawyers in the U.S. also Canada based on peer review. Their website, Martindale.com has a helpful lawyer locator service also will explain the rating system.
7) Always be completely open also honest when discussing your case with a lawyer. Tell the lawyer as much as you can about what happened. Try to remember every detail. Any documentation also pictures you have of your injuries also treatment will be a big help when evaluating your case.
Bonus Tip:
8) NEVER give a recorded statement to a representative from any insurance company until you've consulted a lawyer. When the rep. asks for one simply say, "I'm not prepared to give a statement at this time." A recorded statement can be used as evidence also if you're not prepared you might overlook important details. Anything you miss (or misrepresent) can be used against you in settlement negotiations also in the trial.
About the author:
Learn more about how to hire a great personal injury lawyer at http://www.Injury-Settlement-Guide.com
Arthur Gueli works with his brother Charles (a licensed personal injury attorney) teaching injured plaintiffs how to obtain fair compensation for their damages.
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