An Updated Analysis Of Plans For personal injury law firm
{In Over Your Head? How A Lawyer Can Help
Of course you want the best lawyer to represent you, especially in a big case. Many people think that a great lawyer means having to spend a lot of money. It might be true in the most egregious cases, but the reality is that it is possible to find a good lawyer even if you are not made of money. These tips offer insight into the various considerations involved in the selection process.
Make sure to find out who all will be involved with helping to work on your case. What sort of experience do they have? Some may have years of experience, whereas others may be fresh out of law school. How much time is your lawyer anticipating on devoting to your case?
Ask for a free consultation. Many lawyers will offer a free consultation, so you can have your questions answered. During the consultation, you can also see if you are comfortable with that lawyer. Always go to more than one free consultation so you have a good mix of lawyers to choose from.
Look for a lawyer that is an expert in your type of case. Many lawyers can handle a wide range of cases, but if you want the best outcome possible, you want a lawyer that deals solely with cases of the same nature as yours. The best lawyer for you will have many cases like yours and knows the law the best.
When looking for a lawyer, time is significant. However, it is not so important that you hire the first lawyer you meet. Always consider more than one lawyer. You need to make sure they have the skills you need, that you can afford them, and they will fight for your best interests.
When you are searching for a business attorney, make sure you get some business recommendations. They may have used a great lawyer in the past. If you need a lawyer for your small business, talk to other small business owners who have run into the same issues. These people constantly interact with lawyers and may give you informed judgements.
If you need legal help, don't necessarily use the lawyer you have worked with in the past. You may need a particular type of attorney, someone who specializes in the type of case you are involved in. Don't worry, though. A specialist isn't necessarily expensive, so you should be able to afford what you need.
Make sure you know how much you are going to spend before you hire a lawyer. Lawyers can be very expensive. Their hourly rates can break your budget before they even begin to help you. Make sure you know the costs upfront and if you cannot afford a particular lawyer, search for one that you can afford.
Make sure agreements about the fees are signed before you start working together. This will prevent any unexpected expenses popping up during your case. You will also be able to get the money you need together.
You should never hire a lawyer from an advertisement that you have seen on television, seen in the phone book or heard on the radio. This is really no indication of how good of lawyer they are. Research the lawyer's legal background and read reviews from their peers to determine if they are right for you.
Prepare a few questions for your first meeting with the lawyers you are considering hiring. Plan on asking questions about their experience and results and ask plenty of questions on what they think about your situation. Do not trust a lawyer who seems overly confident in their ability to win your case before you even give them all the details.
A good lawyer should give you specific advice. If your lawyer remains very vague or tells you they will take care of everything without sharing any details with you, hire someone else. Your lawyer should give you details about the laws that apply to your case and advise you on the best approach to adopt in your situation.
Sometimes, the best professionals are found through familiar sources. When looking for a lawyer, ask friends and family for recommendations. A word-of-mouth recommendation from a trusted individual is worth more than words on an advertising page. It is highly likely that you can find the best lawyer just by asking around.
Do not bring any children with you when you go for a consultation with a lawyer. This is a business meeting, and you should take it very seriously. The only time you should bring them along is if there is no way you can get someone to stay with them while you go to your appointment.
Always double-check with the bar association in your state to make sure anyone you are considering hiring is actually licensed. In rare instances, someone may have been disbarred or suspended and is still trying to work. Obviously, getting involved in this type of situation will do nothing for your case, so it is best to avoid problems at any cost.
You really need to understand what you are paying for when you hire a lawyer. These fees can be complicated. You need to make sure you have all these fees in writing up front and that you understand how they are calculated. If you do not, they are required to explain them to you until you do.
You should definitely consider how you feel concerning a lawyer's competence overall. Can you trust the lawyer you want to hire? If you don't, you don't here have the right lawyer, regardless of how cheap they are or how much they know. If you can build a relationship with them, then they are better suited to work for you.
If you cannot afford a lawyer, consider representing yourself. Find a lawyer who is willing to help you prepare a good defense and give use some useful advice. Some lawyers will help you build a solid defense and bill you for a the few hours they spent working with you.
Even if you've already hired a lawyer, if you don't like them, it's time to fire them. If you feel this way, you're obviously not getting the treatment and service you desire, so there is no point in paying them any further. You want someone you can trust and be comfortable with, so move on.
Surely you feel much better now about finding the right lawyer for your needs. It's important that you use these tips you've learned so that you don't have to worry about making a bad decision. Keep what you've read in mind, and find the lawyer that is going to bring you back home with a "win."
Auto insurers play hardball in minor-crash claims
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- If you are injured in a minor car crash, chances are good that you will be in the fight of your life to get the insurance company to pay all the medical costs you incur -- even if the accident was no fault of your own.
That's what CNN discovered in an 18-month investigation into minor-impact soft-tissue injury crashes around the country. Those are accidents in which there is little damage to the vehicle and the injuries to people are not easy to see by the naked eye or conventional medical tools like X-rays.
Since the mid-1990s, most of the major insurance companies -- led by the two largest, Allstate and State Farm -- have adopted a tough take-it-or-leave-it strategy when dealing with such cases.
The result has been billions in profits for insurance companies and little, if anything, for the public, according to University of Nevada insurance law professor Jeff Stempel.
"We can see that policyholders individually are getting hurt by being dragged through the court on fender-bender claims, and yet we don't see any collateral benefit in the form of reduced premiums even for the other policyholders," Stempel said.
"So I think now we can say to continue this kind of program is in my view institutionalized bad faith."
If you have never heard of the strategy, it's because insurance companies don't want you to know that they are paying out less and less for minor crashes even while their profits soar and your premiums continue to rise.
But after a review of more than 6,000 company documents and court records, interviews with a dozen people nationwide, including former company insiders, and conversations with accident victims, the picture is clear: If you challenge the offer by some insurance companies you will be left with no option but to go to court, where you will be dragged through the wringer.
Expensive, time-consuming
In an affidavit in a New Mexico case where Allstate is being sued, one of the company's former attorneys said the strategy is to make fighting the company "so expensive and so time-consuming that lawyers would start refusing to help clients."
Shannon Kmatz, a police officer and former Allstate claims agent, said company employees were encouraged to get rid of claims quickly and cheaply and even offered accident victims as little as $50, telling them to take it or leave it.
Both Roxanne Martinez of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Ann Taylor of West Lafayette, Indiana, saw the practice firsthand.
Martinez suffered neck and back injuries when she was sideswiped by a driver insured by Allstate.
After three years, the company finally offered her $15,000 -- a little more than half of what she needed for lost wages and medical bills.
She went to court, and four years after the accident a jury awarded her $167,000 plus interest.
"It's kind of hard when you are thinking they are going to leave you broke. ... That was very stressful," she said.
Taylor was not as fortunate when her case went to trial.
The Indiana nurse was rear-ended by a State Farm employee driving a State Farm car. Damage to her car was minimal but she suffered herniated disc and muscle tears.
Taylor racked up medical bills and lost wages amounting to about $15,000. The company offered her $2,000.
"I was just very insulted," she said.
She sued, but three years later a jury came back with a judgment for her of only $1,500.
The jury didn't believe she could be hurt in an accident in which the vehicle had barely a dent.
Three jurors told CNN photos of the two cars involved in the accident -- enlarged and prominently displayed by the defense -- played a huge role in their decision.
And one said they assumed Taylor had already been compensated by the insurance company and was just trying to get more money.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1tK7Cq0WYE_Jbut9wKINYSEnPSaXFndpmovl-Sg3Focw/edit?usp=sharing