Many questions arise when a catastrophic injury occurs in a family, whether that injury is a burn, paralysis, or death (or other). Often, questions are also accompanied by several emotion, the least of which is anger or frustrations or sometimes guilt. There are also often concerns that must be addressed almost immediately such as witness statements or preserving evidence and also indemnifying the injured and his or her family. Ninety percent of the time, one does not know where to begin to find a good reputable attorney whom they trust.
We live in an age of specialization. For example, your doctors specialize in specific areas of medical care. The same holds true with attorneys. When an injury or death occurs due to negligence, one of the best ways to find a reputable attorney is to look for an attorney who is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law. Another consideration will be the geographic location of the attorney in relationship to where the injury occurred or to where the client lives. Most often the client may need to visit the attorneys office several times over the course of the period of representation. The client should take this into consideration when making the decision to hire an attorney.
The fee structure is another consideration. Here it is important to do your research. Most frequently, attorneys that work in this are will propose a Contingency Fee Contract. Under such an agreement, the client generally only pays a fee if there is a recovery, whether by way of an out-of court settlement or as the result of a trial. Fees usually range from 33 1/3% to 40% of the recovery, but can vary from attorney to attorney and case to case. The case expenses such as copy charges, postage, investigators, expert witness fees, medical records costs are kept separately for each client and to the extent that a recovery is obtained are reimbursed to the attorney out of the client's share of the recovery. Most attorneys will offer a free initial consultation.
So once you have a list of possible qualified reputable attorneys, how do you determine the right attorney to represent you. Once the qualifications and experience issues are resolved, you will need to meet fact-to face with your potential attorney. At these initial meetings, the attorney will be collecting information from you regarding your case. But you will also be collecting information from the attorney. More importantly though you will need to decide if you like this person.
However, you need to make sure that you collect as much info as you can from the attorney as well. That way, you can decide with one you feel most comfortable with.
We live in an age of specialization. For example, your doctors specialize in specific areas of medical care. The same holds true with attorneys. When an injury or death occurs due to negligence, one of the best ways to find a reputable attorney is to look for an attorney who is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law. Another consideration will be the geographic location of the attorney in relationship to where the injury occurred or to where the client lives. Most often the client may need to visit the attorneys office several times over the course of the period of representation. The client should take this into consideration when making the decision to hire an attorney.
The fee structure is another consideration. Here it is important to do your research. Most frequently, attorneys that work in this are will propose a Contingency Fee Contract. Under such an agreement, the client generally only pays a fee if there is a recovery, whether by way of an out-of court settlement or as the result of a trial. Fees usually range from 33 1/3% to 40% of the recovery, but can vary from attorney to attorney and case to case. The case expenses such as copy charges, postage, investigators, expert witness fees, medical records costs are kept separately for each client and to the extent that a recovery is obtained are reimbursed to the attorney out of the client's share of the recovery. Most attorneys will offer a free initial consultation.
So once you have a list of possible qualified reputable attorneys, how do you determine the right attorney to represent you. Once the qualifications and experience issues are resolved, you will need to meet fact-to face with your potential attorney. At these initial meetings, the attorney will be collecting information from you regarding your case. But you will also be collecting information from the attorney. More importantly though you will need to decide if you like this person.
However, you need to make sure that you collect as much info as you can from the attorney as well. That way, you can decide with one you feel most comfortable with.
