You probably know that you have the right to seek fair compensation after being injured due to someone else’s negligence. You have also probably known someone who was in a bad accident like a car accident or truck accident and who relied on a personal injury attorney to manage their claim. If you get into an accident, do you have to do the same thing they did and hire a legal professional to file and manage your case? Or can you decide to work on your personal injury claim all on your own?
For the most part, hiring a personal injury lawyer to work on your claim will make things easier and less stressful for you, so you will probably want their help as soon as possible after an accident. To be confident in your decision, though, we have outlined below a few benefits of hiring an attorney that apply to most cases.
Reasons to Hire a Personal Injury Attorney
Every personal injury claim is a serious matter that needs to be given the time and attention it requires. When a claim ends out of favor for the claimant, they can be stuck with a stack of unpaid bills and even more stress than before. If there is a significant sum of money on the line or the claimant’s injuries are catastrophic, then the outcome of their case can literally be life-changing.
With so much depending on the outcome of your personal injury claim, you might want to view the situation similarly to if you were going to trek into the jungle. You have every right to start your adventure alone, but no one would tell you that is a good idea. Instead, you will want to hire a professional guide who has been through the reeds before, knows the dangers that await, and can find the best route through. A lawyer in a personal injury claim is akin to your jungle guide. Hiring them to represent you provides several benefits you otherwise would never have been able to enjoy or utilize.
Your lawyer can help you by sharing or providing their knowledge about:
- Liability laws: At the base of all personal injury claims are liability laws that can be highly specific depending on who was hurt, who hurt them, why the accident happened, and where it happened. To build your personal injury claim effectively, you will need a strong knowledge of all liability laws that apply to your case, which could include local, state, and federal laws. Hiring an attorney saves you the uphill challenge of becoming a liability law pro by letting them act on your behalf.
- Local courts and processes: Familiarity with local courts and the procedures they expect to be followed when filing a claim or litigating can go a long way. If a case is going to come down to a judge’s or jury’s discretion, then you will want to make certain they are on your side or at least see things from your perspective. Working with a local personal injury attorney can help ensure that your case meets the court’s expectations and that your argument connects with the jurors.
- Evidence use: After an accident, insurance adjusters and accident investigators will be tasked to determine who is liable and in what part. Liability will be split among all involved parties, even if that split is 100% and 0%. In most states, the less liable you are, the more damages you can recover. Reducing your liability often depends on collecting and using evidence correctly, which is something an attorney can do for you. Experienced lawyers can look far and wide for different sources of evidence, such as medical records, police reports, eyewitness statements, etc.
- Settlement discussions: Many personal injury claims never need to go to court. Instead, they will be concluded through careful negotiations between the claimant and the defending insurance company. Using settlement negotiations to your benefit and reaching a fair settlement amount is a task that is usually best left to a professional attorney who knows insurance company tactics, such as lowballing initial offers.
- Courtroom representation: When settlement negotiations fall flat, the last remaining option is filing a lawsuit that goes to court. You have the option to represent yourself in civil court, as you do in criminal court. In both situations, though, you probably should not. The opposition will have a trained litigator there to attack your case. If you want to meet them at their level, then you will need a professional attorney representing you.
Of course, you should also not overlook the key benefit of taking all of the work related to managing a personal injury case off your own plate. You should be focusing on your health, happiness, and overall wellbeing after being in an accident. Digging into the details of an injury claim and continuing the legwork to progress it can be exhausting. When a personal injury lawyer is hired to work on your behalf, you can effectively set all of that aside and take care of yourself and your family in other ways.
Hiring a Lawyer for Legal Guidance Only
In some situations, you might need a lawyer for counsel but not for representation. When talking to personal injury lawyers in your area, ask if you can hire them for legal guidance without necessarily hiring them to work directly on your case or representing you in court. For example, if no one was seriously injured in your accident and the damage totals remain relatively low, then a lawyer might recommend that using their guidance should be enough to walk you through the case or at least get you pointed in the right direction.
When in Doubt, Talk It Out
Are you still not sure if you should be hiring a personal injury attorney for your case? You are not alone! It is a big decision that stumps people every single day. What is important is that you do not sit on the question for too long and risk total inaction, which could mean losing your chance to file a claim at all.
When in doubt, talk things out with a local attorney. Look for a law firm that offers free initial consultations, so you can discuss the key details of your case without worrying about upfront attorney fees. You should also ask any lawyer you chat with if they offer contingency fees, which means they will only get paid if they close your case with a positive settlement or verdict amount secured for you. Combining free case evaluations with contingency fee agreements creates an extremely low-risk situation for clients.
Want to talk with an attorney in Monroe, Louisiana about your pending personal injury claim? Dial (318) 625-6262 to connect with Parker Alexander, a law firm backed by decades of legal experience and a history of high-digit case results.