When hiring an injury lawyer, you have to be very careful. If you do not make a good choice of the attorney you hire, it can cost you. Below are five mistakes that are common, expensive, and easily avoidable when hiring a personal injury lawyer.
Hiring a Lawyer in Your Neighborhood
Many people feel the need to hire a lawyer who works in their neighborhood. However, this can cost you. Many great lawyers in New York practice personal injury law throughout the city.
Often people hire a lawyer from their vicinity because they want convenience. In a personal injury case, clients do not have to visit a personal injury lawyer all the time, and the visits are minimal. You do not even have to come to the lawyer. Many lawyers now offer video meetings, which make it easier and more convenient for their clients. Also, The Eskesen Law Firm can come to your home or hospital if your injuries make it difficult for you to travel to us.
Hiring a Lawyer Who Does Not Focus on Personal Injury
Another mistake people make is to hire a lawyer who does not limit their practice to personal injury law. Often lawyers have different fields of expertise, focusing on a specific type of law. If the lawyer you hire has minimal experience in personal injury cases, they may not stand up well against an insurance company attorney who spends all their time defending personal injury cases.
Hiring Lawyers Based On Commercials
Many lawyers spend countless dollars to run commercials. Clients are also bombarded with such commercials by lawyers. You cannot determine whether the lawyer is qualified to handle your case simply by looking at their commercial. Worse, occasionally the company that is running the ad is not the company that will be handling your case. They are often just advertising companies that will hand you off to one firm or another. While you might find excellent lawyers from advertisements, simply put, an advertisement should not make your decision for you. Therefore, relying solely on commercials can cost you a great deal.
Thinking You Cannot Afford It
Typically, personal injury attorneys in New York are paid on a contingency fee basis. This means that you only have to pay the attorney if they help you get a recovery for your damages. Also, New York’s ethics rules allow a lawyer to advance the “disbursements” (case expenses, like court fees, expert fees, and medical records fees) involved in litigating your case. How those costs are handled is set out in your retainer agreement.
Hiring a Lawyer Who Does Not Go to Trial
Preparing a personal injury case as if it is going to trial is important because sometimes you only recover fair compensation for your injuries if the defendants and their insurers worry you may win a favorable verdict at trial. Often insurance company adjusters or defense attorneys will not offer fair compensation early in settlement. Sometimes, only the threat of a higher verdict persuades them to give you fair compensation. That is why The Eskesen Law Firm prepares its clients’ cases as if they are going to trial.
Choose a Lawyer Who Focuses on Personal Injury
Your best bet in a personal injury case is to hire an experienced attorney whose practice focuses on personal injury cases. At The Eskesen Law Firm, personal injury cases are all we do.
Questions about your own accident?
Call us for a free consultation. Calls answered live 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.