Choosing where to place your trust in the advocates seeking justice for you and your family after a serious or fatal accident or injury may be one of the most important decisions in your lifetime.
Of course, it is important to do your investigation into the various personal injury lawyers or law firms that are available to represent victims who have suffered catastrophic bodily harm. To learn more about the various characteristics of personal injury attorneys in Illinois and Indiana, read our earlier discussion in What To Look For in a Personal Injury Lawyer in Indiana or Illinois.
However, just making a list of names may not be enough for you to make a confident decision. Who should you choose?
Hiring the right advocate to act on your behalf against powerful adversaries like big companies (employers; motor carriers; etc.) alongside their various insurance carriers, adjusters, and in-house attorneys, as well as any hired insurance defense counsel cannot be underestimated in a serious personal injury case. Several considerations come into play here.
Reviews: Other Attorneys and Past Clients
Before making a choice between personal injury attorneys or law firms, check out their ratings and reviews online. This should not be the only criteria in a choice of representation, but it is a factor to consider when making the choice of the right personal injury attorney for you.
There are reviews that a personal injury lawyer or law firm will have received from past or present clients. They can appear on places like Avvo.com. There will often be testimonials or client reviews on their website, as well.
There is also an organization that gathers reviews from other attorneys and then ranks the personal injury lawyers accordingly. How do their fellow lawyers rate them? The highest Martindale ranking is “AV Preeminent.”
For more than 130 years, Martindale-Hubbell has been evaluating attorneys for their strong legal ability and high ethical standards through a Peer Review Rating system. Prior to the 1887 edition of Martindale’s American Law Directory, which was the first publication to provide such ratings to attorneys, there was no way of truly knowing if the lawyer you were considering to do business with was trustworthy, ethical, or skilled in the legal field….
While the criteria and format of the Peer Review Rating system has evolved since the 1800’s – the goal of Martindale-Hubbell ratings remains the same: to help keep the public informed when making the decision to do business with an attorney or law firm.
Schedule Meeting with Potential Personal Injury Attorneys or Law Firms
This is a very major decision for you and your family. It’s not something that should be made over the phone or on a video conference call. The attorney-client relationship is special. It is one of trust, mutual respect, and a shared vision of justice.
There should be no charge to schedule a meeting with a prospective personal injury attorney or law firm to discuss possible representation.
This gives you both the chance to get a feel for each other, for one thing. It also offers the opportunity to check out the lawyer’s home field – what are the offices like? Do you feel confident and comfortable there? Are you feeling pressure to sign a representation agreement? (That’s a red flag for many.)
And be aware that personal injury lawyers are busy trial lawyers. They have clients to whom they are already dedicated at the same time you are considering hiring them. So, if your initial meeting is scheduled with support staff, please do not let this feel like disrespect.
The staff member will be a very trusted individual who can answer lots of questions. This may clear up a lot of your concerns before your actual meeting face-to-face with the lawyer, who may be in a courtroom fighting for someone’s rights while you are in the office, discussing possibilities in the initial meeting.
It is acceptable and understood if you want to meet with more than one potential personal injury lawyer or law firm before making a decision on representation. However, it is advantageous to cull out most possibilities and leave the actual meeting schedule to the one or two top choices for your personal injury lawyer. This respects your time as well as the attorney’s time. And it avoids being seen as someone who is lawyer-shopping without serious intent.
Good Communication Fit: Does It Feel Right?
Remember that the avenue for justice after a serious personal injury can be a long one. It can take weeks, months, or even years before the matter is successfully concluded.
This is especially true when there are big dollars at stake with multiple defendants having exposure, contested liability, and several insurance carriers watching their bottom line. A common defense strategy is to drag things out to exhaust and frustrate the plaintiff.
Accordingly, it is vital to understand the communication characteristics of both you and your family as well as the personal injury attorneys or law firms you are considering. Do you jive with each other, or do you clash?
Some personal injury lawyers and their staff will be calm, quiet, and methodical. They may be tenacious and terrific, but maybe not as passionate and fervent as you would like. Will this frustrate you? Will you begin to lose confidence just because of a difference in communication styles?
Communication is paramount between client and lawyer. It’s the key to a successful relationship. You have a right to consider how well you feel you connect with your advocate (and the advocate’s staff). Are you a good fit for each other?
Understand the Plan and Your Place on the Team
The personal injury lawyer has dedicated an entire career to practicing law. There will be an established approach and plan of action proven to be effective and efficient over time. It’s how victory is achieved. And no two firms or lawyers do things in the exact same way.
You have a right to understand how this works. You should understand their approach to the practice of personal injury law as a whole as well as to your case, in particular.
- How are they going to investigate the facts of your case to find the needed evidence?
- What support system will be available?
- Which experts are likely to be needed?
- What technology will be used?
And, especially important, you need to know how you are a part of the team. And that the attorney considers you to be a vital part of the team! Ask about things like:
- How will the lawyer communicate with you? (Text? Email? Phone call?)
- How will you communicate with the lawyer?
- Will you receive status updates? How often? (Weekly? Every other Friday?)
- What will be needed from you?
- How can you contribute to the success of your case?
- How can your family members help? Or can they?
Documents and Things
Also find out what documents you can expect to be forwarded to you during the representation. Will you be copied with everything filed of record in the case?
And will you be asked to forward documents to the law firm? What about updates on medical treatments, invoices, etc. – how will that work? (These will be important in the calculation of damages to be claimed for care and treatment; lost earning capacity; etc.).
Have Your Questions Ready: Do Your Homework
Your personal injury lawyer should be open and willing to explain the intricacies of your case and to answer any questions you may have. This is true during the selection process. It is also true for the duration of the representation.
However, you need to do your part. Think about things. Research stuff. Have a list of questions ready to ask each of your possible choices to be your advocate.
And during the selection process, make sure you feel comfortable with this question-and-answer process.
Do you feel that the personal injury attorney explains things to you in a way that you understand them clearly? If you are puzzled, will the lawyer clarify things in a considerate matter? (Lawyers know they fall into “lawyer-speak” all too often….)
To learn more on personal injury claims and damages, read:
- Wrongful Death Damages After Fatal Work Accidents in Illinois or Indiana
- What are Catastrophic Injuries? Severe Bodily Harm Suffered by Accident Survivors in Indiana and Illinois
- Pain Awareness: Claims to Cover an Accident Victim’s Pain Damages
- Loss of Earning Capacity Damages After Accident in Illinois or Indiana
- Work Accident in Illinois or Indiana: Workers Compensation Claim vs. Personal Injury Damages
- The Importance of Accident Site Location for Personal Injury Claims in Indiana and Illinois
- High Number of Fatal Car Accidents in Indiana and Illinois: Protecting Yourself and Your Loved Ones
- Hospitals Hurt People: Hospital Negligence Causing Harm and Serious Injury to Patients: Are You or Your Loved One Safe in The Illinois or Indiana Hospital?
- Semi-Truck Crashes: Who Can Be Held Legally Responsible for Commercial Trucking Accidents in Indiana and Illinois?
- The Reality of Widespread Industrial Work Accident Deaths in Illinois and Indiana: Warning to Our Workers.
Choosing the right fit in a personal injury lawyer or law firm is a very important decision. This may be a legal battle undertaken by the two of you that takes months or even years to finalize. You will know each other well, and often lifetime bonds are created. Sadly, these friendships are created after horrific injuries have been suffered in preventable accidents. Please be careful out there!
