Mistakes People Make When Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer

Personal injury cases are among the most common cases taking up most of the judicial system’s time across the developed world. In 2019, for example, there were 173,040 preventable deaths in the U.S, most of them someone else was liablefor the injury. 

Americans spent $1,097.7 billion in 2019 on injuries, with about 26 deaths due to accidents each year. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that many people seek personal injury lawyers to help them with making personal injury claims or lawsuits for compensation. 

Let’s say you live in the Durham, North Carolina area and want to pursue maximum compensation for an accident or unintentional injuries, you may want to hire a Durham personal injury lawyer to handle your injury claim. 

However, while at it, you want to avoid these common mistakes people make when hiring personal injury lawyers:

1. Choosing Based on Visibility

While you may see a lawyer’s face plastered all over town, on TV, and on the internet, it does not mean they are necessarily better than the rest. It simply means that their marketing team works hard to make them famous. 

Hiring a personal injury lawyer based on their visibility alone can do more harm than good, as an expert lawyer does not always go overboard on advertising themselves. Do your own research to find out if they are really as good as they claim to be in ads.

2. Not Asking Friends and Family for References

With so many personal injury cases being filed each year, someone you know is bound to have hired an injury attorney.  

Not asking your family, friends, or acquaintances for reference can prove to be a grave mistake. Since they have used the services, they can provide valuable feedback.

3. Assuming One-Size-Fits-All

Law is like medical practice. Each specialist knows their field the best. Similarly, not all lawyers are cut out to work on personal injury claims. 

General lawyers, criminal lawyers, and bankruptcy lawyers are not qualified to work on injury cases. Therefore, find an attorney based on their specialization and qualifications in personal injury cases.

Similarly, your lawyer should also not treat your case like other cases. Each injury case is unique and requires a different set of skills. 

The lawyer you hire should take time to listen to your case and study the evidence before deciding the course of action.

4. Hiring an Inexperienced Lawyer

Hiring a lawyer fresh out of grad school can be a mistake. Lawyers hire fresh graduates to assist, but mainly for the legwork. Instead, look for an experienced lawyer. 

An experienced lawyer is adept at the strategic aspects of fighting for the justice and compensation you deserve. So, make sure an experienced attorney handles your case.

5. Paying an Upfront Fee

A personal injury lawyer should not charge you any upfront fee. They will instead take a cut from your settlement. The rate is usually between 33% and 40%. If you hire an attorney who demands an upfront fee, that should ring warning bells in your head. 

You may also see attorneys advertising a discounted price. This is someone you should probably avoid if you want to skip making a costly mistake. 

A cheap lawyer is not what you want in your hour of need. You want a trustworthy and proficient one. Ideally, you should only pay a personal injury lawyer when you get compensated.