Countless Personal Injury Lawyers – How to Choose One
Accidents are part of life. Whether it is a simple fender bender or a more serious car crash, there is slight likelihood either of us will get involved in one every time we get behind the wheel. When it does happen and you suffer serious injuries, it could cost you not to have a lawyer on your side. It is not accident that car insurance companies have armies of lawyers at their disposal. You need an advocate as well to ensure fair compensation.
A quick google search for a personal injury lawyer in the Maryland area returns one million search results. Now, all of those results do not mean that there are that many lawyers, but it gives you an idea of how many choices you have. It goes beyond the first advertising you see on the page. Beyond the first couple of names and phone numbers you find on what is known as the google places/local pack. There are a hundreds if not a thousand or more choices in terms of personal injury lawyers especially if you live in or near a large metropolitan area. So how do you choose who will help you with your personal injury claim?
Differentiating between Personal Injury Lawyers and Dabblers
If you have routine personal injury case such as whiplash and soft tissues, you probably can take risk with a dabbler. BUT if you have serious injuries you want to talk to only those personal injury lawyers who spend their days handling these types of cases. Here’s a way to weed out the dabblers who handle the occasional personal injury case.
Experience with Car Insurance Companies
Personal injury lawyers deal with insurance companies every day. You don’t. Neither does someone dabbling in personal injury cases. Experienced personal injury lawyers are well known to insurance adjusters and the lawyers on the other side. That experience and knowledge can be crucial in settling cases or deciding to go to trial. An attorney also understands how to negotiate with auto insurance companies to get you the fairest settlement possible.
Knows His/Her Stuff
Experienced personal injury lawyers know the ins and outs of the law and the informal settlement process that occurs outside of court over phone calls or in conference rooms. This knowledge is brought to bear in every case and gives you an advantage.
Being Able to Talk About Injuries and their Impact
Lawyers who focus in personal injury cases review hundreds of medical reports and talk to several medical experts from physical therapists, nurse practitioners to physician specialists in any given year. Therefore, they talk legal almost as well as they talk doc. It is important because you need to break down diagnosis in ways that a judge and jury can understand. Just throwing complex medical terms before a jury may leave them confused and not able to connect with the experience of the injured plaintiff. This connection is critical to obtaining maximum compensation.
Trial Experience
This one goes without saying. If the insurance company knows the personal injury lawyer is not afraid of trial and can handle his own in the courtroom that may play a role in terms of the settlement offers presented. Your case may concluded much faster and for a higher amount than with another attorney.
Do you Feel Comfortable
Finally, how do you feel when you meet with your lawyer? There are personal injury lawyers with large practices where you may not deal with your lawyer a whole lot. You may be comfortable with that. Others like a more personal approach and may opt for a smaller law firm where there is more interaction with the lawyer especially when there is complex or unusual injuries. These are just of the things I think you ought to think about as you make your choice. Now that you have this information narrow down those million-plus results to three or more personal injury lawyers and talk to each one until you get the right one for you.
If you have a question do not hesitate to contact me at 410-849-9529 or jgithuku@410law.com