If you are unlucky enough to have recently experienced an injury, there are a multitude of reasons to hire a personal injury lawyer. The shell shock of the innumerable doctors, law enforcement (depending on the type of injury), and insurance companies bombarding you with requests and questions is enough reason for many to obtain a lawyer. But, here are a few more.
After an injury, you will be shocked at the sheer volume of paperwork and filing fees that you could potentially be responsible for. After an injury, one would think that the world would show a bit of compassion and give a break. Unfortunately, this is not usually the case.
An experienced lawyer can handle all of the bureaucracy for you. Lawyers spend their life learning all of the technical jargon and filing processes for their particular field, and obtaining a lawyer in the case of personal injury will help to ease the problems that you may have to face.
Filing for items like an injury insurance claim can be a rather tedious and exhausting process. It normally requires quite a bit of research. Most firms will have a staff of legal professionals able to handle the technical aspects of your case—you will want a team of advocates on your side that have an in-depth and subtle understanding of local, state, and federal laws; as well as any regulations that your particular case might involve.
Unfortunately, good decisions are rarely made by a person under stress. Of course, depending on the nature of your injury, it can be quite an emotional time. This is especially true if you or someone close to you is responsible for your injury. A lawyer can assist you in making calm and rational decisions when it has become too emotionally difficult for you to do so.
For instance, you might be tempted into taking a quick payout if you agree not to take your case to court. This could leave you and your family at a significant financial loss, especially if you have to miss a lot of work. A lawyer can help you look at your situation with objective eyes, and thereby allow you to make the best decision for you and your loved ones.
Often, after hours on end of research, you will suddenly come to the realization that pursuing your injury case wasn’t worth it to begin with. You’ll likely be out several hundred dollars in filing fees with nothing to show for it. A seasoned lawyer will be able to tell you whether or not your case is worth pursuing at all. Also, a lawyer can serve as a great mediator, making fair and legitimate negotiations possible before seeking litigation.
Most lawyers work on what is called a contingency fee, which just means that if you lose your case you will not be held responsible for attorney’s fees. This works in favor of you, the client, as the lawyer’s financial interest is indubitably tied to yours. Put simply, they don’t get paid unless you get paid.
Taking a case to trial can be very burdensome and quite stressful. It is better if this process can be avoided entirely, which is why most personal injury cases are decided out of court by a settlement. These settlements usually mean that you will give up your right to sue in exchange for a payment of some kind. If you do not have a lawyer, a potential defendant (and their lawyers) is likely to try to swindle you out of a fair deal.
Unfortunately, many plaintiffs attempting to represent themselves are either unaware of the evidence required to go to court or the proper filing processes for presenting evidence once in court. Nothing is worse than spending hours researching your case, and then not being able to present it in court because you did not file the proper paperwork. Normally, all evidence has to be checked-in before trial, and the defendant has a right to observe all evidence prior to the proceeding. If you do not handle this process properly, a judge may not allow your evidence. A seasoned lawyer will be able to handle that process for you without any grief or guff.
It is the nature of the profession that lawyers will often have to work opposite the same lawyers. This familiarity can exponentially speed up the communication process and deliver you results quickly. This is especially true during the fact-finding process. Without a lawyer, the defendant’s lawyer can make it rather tedious and difficult for you in obtaining the necessary facts and documents. You will want an advocate on your side, getting you all the information that you have a right to have.
It is just the nature of litigation that lawyers who don’t play well with others don’t get very far. If your lawyer is highly experienced, it is very likely that he or she will be able to deal with the communication aspect of your case effectively, at least more so than yourself. Ideally, your lawyer will also be highly respected within their local and professional communities – look for lawyers with great reputations.
A veteran lawyer will have vast experience in communicating with insurance companies. Most insurance companies employ the same tactics in order to get out of paying large settlements. You want an advocate on your side who will not be easily confused, intimidated, or easily pressured into taking less money than you deserve. It has been reported that those who do not obtain a lawyer achieve, on average, about two-thirds less in settlement cash. As a concrete example: our firm recently closed a case where we were able to get our client 4 times what the insurance company originally offered them!
The last and most important reason that you need a personal injury lawyer is your peace of mind. Obtaining a lawyer in the case of personal injury will ease a lot of stress in what could otherwise be a very trying time. Lawyers are people, too, and many are waiting in the wings, ready to assist you as best they can in your particular circumstance.
G. Turner Howard III is one of the most experienced personal injury lawyers in Knoxville, TN. He has earned an outstanding reputation through positive results and relationships with satisfied clients. That reputation is rewarded with the most Five-Star reviews by clients of any personal injury lawyer in the region.
