Anytime that you must pay for something, you like to think that you have spent your money wisely. You will be paying your lawyer a percentage of what you get awarded. Make sure that your lawyer’s efforts, training and experience equal the amount of money that he or she will get, after agreeing to have you as a client.
Ask about the nature of the lawyer’s typical cases
Most lawyers specialize in a particular area. You do not want to hire an injury lawyer in Sherwood Park that specializes in tax or corporation law. You want to find one that has gained expertise in the specialty that deals with personal injuries. If your consult with someone that is part of a law firm, find out what sorts of cases are normally handled by the lawyers in that same firm. A firm has added resources, ones that it could use on going after expert witnesses. Still, if a firm does not normally handle personal injury cases, it might feel reluctant to set aside funds for the hiring of a witness at a personal injury trial.
Find out how many years of experience the consulted injury lawyer can claim.
Remember, you will not have to pay extra for a lawyer’s extensive experience. Maybe you have a case that would offer a challenge to a lawyer that has already handled scores of cases. A good injury lawyer will welcome the opportunity to learn more about some topic that relates to his or her specialty.
Seek specifics, regarding the sorts of verdicts that the lawyer’s past clients have received.
Remember, too, that only some of those clients saw their cases go to trial. Others received the money awarded in a settlement. Try to find out the typical size of an award granted in a settlement, one agreed to by the member of the legal profession that you have chosen to consult.
Do not assume that the person with whom you are consulting will be your injury lawyer.
Find out who will be handling your specific case. The answers that you got earlier may not apply to the person that will be handling your case. In that instance, you need to ask lots more questions.
Learn the amount of resources that can be made available to the consulting injury lawyer.
The term “resources” applies to people as well as money. Does the group associated with this particular lawyer have the ability to locate and contact some useful medical experts? Can such an expert be provided with a payment, so that he or she would agree to become a witness at a trial?
Be careful about hiring a lawyer that does not have the resources needed, if your case did not get settled easily. Some lawyers agree to an inadequate settlement, because their training and resources would prove insufficient, if the client’s case were to be heard by a judge in a courtroom.