You may be aware that this society is increasingly becoming litigious nowadays. There are always legal cases being filed in courtrooms, and personal injury cases happen to be the common lawsuits filed by people. But it can be tricky for many people to understand the complexities of the legal process.
This is especially true when it comes to types of cases that require to be filed. You see, because there are various types of lawsuits, it means each one has a set of rules, regulations, and laws associated with how you can bring it to trial. This is why you need a Huntsville personal injury lawyer to handle your case. This article discusses what you need to know before choosing a personal injury lawyer:
You Don’t Have to Pay the Costs Upfront
You can find many reliable and experienced personal injury attorneys who usually work based on a contingency fee. It means that there are no costs applicable to you unless they win the case. Therefore, if there is a recovery, it means a legal fee can be charged which is a percentage of the gross amount paid.
These legal fees depend on the attorney you decide to hire, but they can be between 33% and 45% of the gross amount recovered. Remember that the complexity of the case and litigation risks can sometimes affect this fee.
When they deduct this fee, you can pay back the law firm all the costs needed to bring the case from the remaining amount. The attorney takes all the financial risks, so the legal fees can be a significant percentage of the recovered amount. If your case is not successful, they cannot be paid and will also bear the case’s costs.
Cases involving serious injuries can cost tons of money to finance. This is especially true for traumatic brain injuries. According to this link, www.hm-attorneys.com/st-louis/brain-injury/, you are liable to file an insurance claim to pay for costly therapies needed to kickstart the recovery and rehabilitation process. This huge risk needs a significant return for the personal injury attorneys. On the brighter side, this contingency fee structure is good if you have limited financial means to have the best legal representation. Also, finding an attorney willing to be paid on successful cases allows you to hire a highly motivated attorney.
But it’s important to discuss the cost and fee arrangement with your attorney. Likewise, it’s crucial to have a good understanding of the calculation of the fees and the way all the costs will be incurred.
Experience Matters
Ideally, you can only get better at doing something with more practice. The same thing applies to personal injury attorneys. With workplace injuries, you need to find an attorney with lots of experience and knowledge of workman’s compensation law. If a product or drug causes you harm, then the attorney should have experience handling product liability cases. If a doctor causes harm, the attorney should have experience handling medical malpractice cases.
You may also find that within these broad subjects there are also differences. With a medical malpractice attorney, some cases involve an anesthesia error, a wrong cancer diagnosis, an infant with brain damage due to perinatal asphyxia, and many people. Simply put, the attorney you decide to hire should have experience handling similar cases like yours. If you need a lawyer due to a brain injury due to a car accident, a Seattle brain injury lawyer can help you vs. a lawyer that specializes in workers comp.
Before choosing a personal injury attorney, you must ask them if they have handled a specific type of case like yours. Ask them to explain their experiences and how your case is different or similar. If you ask the right questions and pay close attention to their answers, you can quickly tell if the attorney is the right one to represent you.
The Person Handling Your Case
There are various reasons an attorney can decide to refer your case to another lawyer, instead of keeping the personal injury case and working on it. There are good chances that the attorney you initially consulted may not have the right resources or experience to handle your case.
The attorney you contacted can be in the business of offering cases to other attorneys. It’s worth noting that some legal firms specialize in referring clients to other attorneys. For this service, there is a law that allows these legal firms to get a referral fee. You can pay this referral fee to the initial legal firm you contacted. However, the legal firm that takes your case is not supposed to charge a higher fee.
Many law firms that have fine prints placed at the bottom of their ads are usually doing this practice. The key thing for you as a client is to know the attorney who will represent you. You should also know their fee structures, qualifications, and how the case will be handled.
Therefore, if you are not happy with your personal injury attorney, you can always get rid of the lawyer and find a new one. But your original lawyer can still be eligible for recouping the case expenses and even a part of the legal fee when the case concludes in favor of you. The important thing is to avoid being in a position where you feel stuck with an attorney you don’t like or don’t want.
Above all, if you or your loved one get injured, you can have a single chance to get justice. This is the only chance you can receive the compensation you require for medical care and to get funds for the lost wages from a job.
Therefore, you need to have confidence that the personal injury attorney you intend to hire can understand your story and presents it properly so that it inspires other people to give you justice. If there is no good relationship between you and your attorney, and you don’t trust their ability, motive, and sincerity, it can affect your chances of success.
This is also why it’s necessary to know if the attorney you’re considering hiring has enough financial resources to handle your type of case. If your lawyer can’t afford to fund the case, then you can experience another set of challenges that are hard to address.
*Photos by Ono Kosuki
