3 Important Questions To Ask Before Hiring A Personal Injury Attorney
Posted on: 17 May 2017
Have you recently been injured in an accident of some kind? Do you need to file a lawsuit in order to be compensated for your time and medical expenses? Lawsuits are not always the easiest choice, but they can sometimes turn out to be the only choice. In order to make sure that your lawsuit goes as quickly and as easily as possible, it's a good idea for you to have the help of an experienced lawyer. Since finding the right lawyer for your case isn't always easy, here are a few questions you should ask in order to ensure that you've chosen the best one for your situation:
Have you handled many cases like this before?
As with doctors, lawyers also specialize in various areas of the law. One lawyer might focus mainly on motorcycle accidents while another personal injury attorney may choose to handle mainly dog bite cases. The more familiar your attorney is with the area of law surrounding your case, the more quickly your case may be resolved. While experience will have no bearing on the speed of the outcome if your case goes to court, a good attorney may be able to draft court documents that will have a settlement being offered almost as soon as they are filed.
What fees do you charge?
Unlike many types of lawyers, a personal injury attorney will often only charge you a percentage of the settlement money that they win for you. If you get no settlement for some reason, they will get no money. However, you could also be responsible for court fees no matter what the outcome of your case. Since some attorneys will absorb this cost and not charge you anything regardless, it's a good idea to find out which situation applies to you before you agree to hire an attorney.
How long do cases like this typically take?
Each case is unique, and there is no way to tell exactly how long a specific case will take. That said, your personal injury attorney should be able to make a rough guess based on his or her past experience with similar cases and how much evidence he or she thinks there is in favor of your case. If you have a very strong case, you could have a settlement offer within a matter of a few days of your attorney taking over the case. On the other hand, if the other party thinks that they have a stronger case for whatever reason, it could be weeks or even months before you and your case sees the inside of a courtroom.
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