All lawyers in both Illinois and Indiana have successfully completed many years of education, including obtaining a law degree at an accredited law school. They will have also achieved licensure in order to practice law in the state, and some have gone on to attain approval to practice before certain federal courts. For details on these various accomplishments and hurdles, read our earlier discussion in What To Look For in a Personal Injury Lawyer in Indiana or Illinois.
However, not all lawyers do the same thing. Some attorneys work within corporate structures, for instance, as “in-house counsel.” It is advantageous for all sorts of companies and corporations to have their own internal fleet of lawyers at the ready, working on all sorts of things from contract negotiations to employment issues, taxation matters, and more. Most insurance carriers, for instance, have their own corporate division of in-house attorneys who review and oversee legal liability claims involving their policyholders.
It is important for anyone suffering bodily harm in Illinois and Indiana to know the different types of lawyers here, so they can decide the attorney or law firm that is best to represent them in pursuing claims for justice against those who have responsibility under the law for personal injuries.
1. Practice of Personal Injury Law
The initial thing to watch for, as accident victims and their loved ones consider their options, is the focus of the law practice itself. It may be tempting to hire someone who is a friend or relative, or someone you know from your kid’s soccer team. You may hear great things about this lawyer, and they may seem understanding, smart, and professionally successful. These are good things.
However, personal injury claims are unique under the law. So much so, that there are attorneys who dedicate the entirety of their professional lives to the pursuit of justice for those who have suffered injury at the hands of others.
It is wise for injured victims to align their interests with an attorney who practices personal injury law.
Why? First, personal injury law changes with great regularity, and can be quite complex. Legal research and arguments must involve not only (1) agency regulations and (2) industrial standards, but (3) state statutes and (4) court case precedent to define legal duties of care (and how they have been breached).
Second, the facts surrounding the particular situation are also complicated in many cases. Remember, it is the burden of the victim to prove up their right to recompense – not those that caused the harm.
Lawyers dedicated to a personal injury law practice are likely to build extensive knowledge how accidents happen, and why. For instance, a personal injury attorney with years of experience representing people who have been hurt in commercial truck crashes will know all sorts of ways that brake failures on a semi-truck or tractor-tractor can result in a horrific crash. See, e.g., Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (“FMCSA”) Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics (December 2023); and Trial Tactics for Plaintiff Semi-Truck Accident Claims: a Practical Guide from Investigation to Trial
Also read: How To Choose the Right Personal Injury Lawyer for You and Your Family.
2. Courtroom Litigator is Not a Trial Lawyer
Another important thing for an injured person and their loved ones to learn about any potential lawyer they are contemplating hiring as counsel is their experience in a courtroom. There are some lawyers who are more than capable of going to the courthouse to argue things before a judge, of course.
All sorts of things in the course of any personal injury civil case may end up before a judge. There may be motions arguing about compelling a deposition witness to testify, for instance. Motions may be filed to move the venue of the case to another location. There can even be case-limiting motions like motions for summary judgment based upon an argument that there are no material facts in dispute regarding an element of the case, or motions to dismiss the lawsuit based upon a missed filing deadline under the statute of limitations. For more, read: Deadlines for Injury Victims to File Lawsuits: Statutes of Limitations.
These motions may involve arguments to a judge (legal advocacy) alone, or they may include the admission of documentary evidence and the examination of witnesses on the stand. However, the key here is these are all litigation matters.
Litigation is important. It is a skill honed over time. However, litigation before a judge is not the same as taking a case to trial before a jury. That is a different battleground, where a trial lawyer is involved.
3. The Importance of a Personal Injury Trial Lawyer
It is true that a great many personal injury cases are resolved before a lawsuit is ever filed. It is also true that a significant number of these matters are negotiated into a settlement between the parties in “alternative dispute resolution,” which may include an informal negotiation, mediation, or arbitration.
However, there are some serious personal injury cases that will need to go before a jury for justice. In these cases, the defense table will be helmed by experienced trial lawyers as well as likely support counsel from the insurance carrier (those in-house lawyers mentioned earlier).
Accident victims deserve to have attorneys at their table that are not just personal injury attorneys or capable litigators, but solid and experienced advocates who are trial lawyers.
What is a trial lawyer, exactly?
These are lawyers who start from day one of the representation preparing their case for a jury trial, and if the matter settles beforehand then so be it. It is best to be ready for the battlefield of a courtroom, and it is good for the other side to understand that the victim’s lawyer is working with that goal in mind.
Trial lawyers don’t deal in volume. They are selective about their representations, because they understand the commitment involved. This is unlike the “mill firms,” with a shockingly high number of cases being handled each year.
Trial lawyers study things like jury selection, for instance. They are orators who know how to speak to a group of jurors. Successful trial lawyers are very talented at taking complex laws and regulations and complicated facts and explaining them in an easy manner.
Accident victims should be able to discuss past jury verdicts with the trial lawyers they are considering as their advocates. They need to be ready for a few long stories, though! Trial lawyers are known for their joy of recounting past trial victories.
And, some trial lawyers will have achieved levels of success that allow them entry into organizations where only the crème of the crop are invited. These include the American Association for Justice; the Litigation Council of America; the Million Dollar Advocates Forum; Best Lawyers in America – Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs Division; the National Board of Trial Advocacy; and the National Trial Lawyers Top 100.
It is entirely reasonable for an injury victim to ask questions about prestigious, invitation-only trial lawyer professional memberships before agreeing to an attorney-client relationship. These are clear confirmations that the attorney is an experienced personal injury trial lawyer.
For more, read: Questions To Ask When Choosing A Personal Injury Lawyer In Illinois Or Indiana.
True trial lawyers are not just unafraid to go to trial before a jury, they are excited and ready to do so. They truly believe it is their life’s purpose, this battlefield where they can take their education, life history, and legal expertise and make a real difference.
Importantly, trial lawyers will build a representation within the defense bar that increases the likelihood that any settlements that do occur will be reflective of the insurance carriers and their policyholders recognizing their risk. Trial lawyers, ready and willing to take the case to a jury, increase the potential financial exposure for those that are legally liable.
Those arguments against “nuclear verdicts” are confirmation that a personal injury trial attorney with a proven track record is likely to “hit” those defendants and their insurance carriers. Established trial lawyers are powerful advocates for their clients in many ways. For more, read: Nuclear Verdicts in Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes; and Truck Safety Coalition Releases 50-Page Report Denouncing Trucking Industry’s Position on Nuclear Verdicts.
Concerns for Personal Injury Victims Seeking Legal Representation in Illinois and Indiana
After many years in practice here in our part of the country, it is sad but true that there are too many war stories told among the plaintiff’s bar about seriously injured victims and their loved ones who fell prey to zealous defense lawyers.
It is a travesty that there are often imbalances in accident cases. Defense teams are infamous in being more than capable of overpowering plaintiff’s attorneys who are either inexperienced in personal injury law, or who are afraid of going before a jury in a jury trial. There are also plaintiffs’ attorneys whose expertise leans more to smooth settlements than fierce fights for right. They are more than ready to hurry up and make a deal with the defense lawyers so they can get their fees fast.
In all these situations, the sad truth is that the injured victims will get less than they deserve – and need – after a catastrophic accident or injury. Juries are often very savvy about what full justice entails, in dollars and cents.
Accident victims and their loved ones deserve warriors who will go into a trial and fight for justice on their behalf. These are attorneys whose true passion in life is seeking justice from a jury.
They see their lifework as fighting to right wrongs that the defendants have compounded by now refusing to take responsibility, after initially refusing to take the steps needed to prevent the harm in the first place.
True trial lawyers are not just unafraid to go to trial before a jury, they are excited and ready to do so. They truly believe it is their life’s purpose, this battlefield where they can take their education, life history, and legal expertise and make a real difference.
For more about personal injury claims and damages, read:
- Damages are Different: Workers Compensation vs. Third Party Personal Injury Claims
- The Reality of Widespread Industrial Work Accident Deaths in Illinois and Indiana: Warning to Our Workers
- High Hazard Industrial Workplaces: 2024 Online Exposure of Accident Injury and Illness Realities
- Fatal Accidents and Wrongful Death Lawsuits in Indiana and Illinois
- Worker’s Compensation vs. Personal Injury Claims: Who Has to Pay?
- Semi-Truck Crashes: Who Can Be Held Legally Responsible for Commercial Trucking Accidents in Indiana and Illinois?
- Who Can Be Held Liable for Construction Worker Accidents?
- When Tools Are to Blame for Serious Work Accidents: Who’s Responsible? Product Liability
Considering which lawyer is best to represent the interests of someone injured through the fault of another (or several parties) as well as their loved ones is so important. It may be one of life’s biggest decisions. Laws exist to protect victims, but defendants oftentimes must be forced to do the right thing. Please be careful out there!
