If you’ve been injured in an accident, the Lawyer that you choose matters.
Suffering through an injury is never easy. Hiring the right attorney to help you is very important. Whether you’ve been hurt in a car accident, suffered a trip-and-fall type accident, or been bitten by a dog, the last thing you want to deal with are the legal requirements of your case. You’re probably already stressed enough trying to recover from your injuries. Here are some things that you should consider when choosing a lawyer for your injury case.
Focuses on Personal Injury Law
I’ve had a lot of clients that have come to me after hiring an attorney that didn’t focus on injury law. Think of it this way – if you have a shoulder injury, are you going to schedule an appointment with a knee doctor? Of course not – you’ll hire a doctor that focuses on the shoulder. At Justice On Demand, we only practice personal injury law.
Litigation
Contrary to what you might think, most personal injury lawyers either don’t file lawsuits, or avoid filing lawsuits. It’s true that filing a lawsuit is not always the best approach for many cases, but if you’ve had a serious injury, it’s likely that you’ll receive a fair settlement without filing a lawsuit.
Why do many lawyers avoid filing lawsuits? It’s usually because lawsuits take a significant amount of time and effort, and greatly increase the time it takes for your case to settle. Some lawyers just don’t like to file lawsuits and work involved. But if you have a lawyer that doesn’t want to litigate, it’s a good bet that the insurance companies are aware of that and will try to stick you with a low-ball offer.
What are their Fees?
Almost all personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis – meaning that the lawyer doesn’t get paid until the case settles or trial is complete. Many firms will include hidden fees in their agreements. For example, I’ve seen firms include ‘reduction’ fees, and ‘medical resource’ fees. This means that in addition to the contingency fee, the firm is also charging you to get your medical records, and then ask your medical providers for reductions. These can really add up and have a big impact on the amount that you end up receiving.
Case Costs
If money is needed to order your medical records, perform investigations, take depositions, or hire expert witnesses, your lawyer should pay for those costs. When your case settles, the lawyer would then get reimbursed for those costs. If for some reason your case doesn’t settle or you lose at arbitration or trial, the lawyer has the option to bill you for those costs. I can confidently say that no client has ever paid me after the fact for any case costs. If we don’t win, you don’t owe us anything. Period.
Questions?
If you have any questions or want to discuss further, please give us a call at 480-934-0676.