More Information: Hiring a Lawyer
You don’t have a legal department or lawyers on retainer handling all your affairs? That’s not surprising. The good news, though, is we’re not legal department lawyers.
There are a few things that you should keep in mind when talking to a lawyer about your potential case.
• What will it cost—In most cases, we work on a contingent fee. We get paid for our time by taking a percentage of what we recover for you. The contingent fee covers a lawyer’s time but does not include out-of-pocket expenses, also known as costs.
• How long will it take—There is no set answer because some cases move quicker than others. Cases always seem slow but a lot of what seems like delay is the case moving through various steps like getting medical records, completing an investigation, drafting and filing a pleading, completing discovery, and scheduling a trial date.
• What to look for in a lawyer—You want someone who has experience and who knows how to try cases. You also want someone who can commit to your case. But more important than all of that is this. You want someone you trust, who communicates well with you, and who makes you feel comfortable.
• What’s a case worth—Unless your case is purely limited to out-of-pocket expenses, putting a value on a case in the early stages is a little bit like bidding on a remodel job without reviewing the blueprints and talking to the other professionals involved with the job. A lawyer might have some idea, but it’s impossible to know enough at the beginning to put a value on cases.
• Another lawyer turned down my case—There are many reasons why lawyers reject cases. Sometimes it’s as simple as a schedule issue, and sometimes it’s as complicated as last week’s ruling from the Supreme Court. But often lawyers reject cases because they can’t see past certain problems that they identify early on. It’s always wise to get a second opinion for that reason because different lawyers see things differently.
• I don’t want to go to court—You’re not alone. Most people don’t want to go trial, and the great majority of cases settle. But not all cases settle, so you want someone who can try your case. Some lawyers simply won’t try cases or don’t know how to do so. They and their clients are at the mercy of the defendant because they have no alternative to accepting whatever is offered. Insurance companies make it their business to keep score. They know who will go to trial and offer less on cases if the lawyer does not try cases.