What Should I Look for When Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney?

Scales of Justice in court room

By the time you find yourself seriously injured due to the negligence of another and in need of an attorney, you’ve no doubt been exposed to hundreds if not thousands of advertisements for personal injury attorneys on billboards, benches, buses, radio and TV spots, and online. Pretty much anywhere you live in the United States, you’re going to have at least several options of a personal injury attorney, and if you live in a metropolis such as Southern California, you’ve got more options than you can count. And if you’ve got a provable case of negligence, you’re going to have plenty of personal injury attorneys who want to represent you. So how do you cut through the clutter to find the personal injury attorney that’s right for you? Here are several tips.

Look for Results, Not Just Promises

Anyone who has graduated law school and been admitted to the bar can represent you in pursuing your personal injury case, but you will want to work with an attorney who has had plenty of experience in successfully litigating settlements and verdicts on behalf of clients, not someone who is going to be learning on the job. Personal injury cases often involve challenging questions of proving fault after an accident has occurred as well as scientific and medical evidence relating to your past, present, and future injuries and costs.

It takes years of experience to build up the skills to consistently recover on behalf of clients, and few personal injury attorneys can attest to obtaining the large recoveries that fully compensate victims. When examining an attorney’s materials and speaking with him or her, look for past results, not just empty promises.

Will You Be Represented by an Experienced Partner or a Rookie?

In some cases, the face you might see on the attorney billboards or bus stop ads is not actually the person who will be overseeing your case, but instead your case might be given to a rookie attorney just out of law school while the face on the billboard focuses on marketing and bringing in more business to hand off to those rookies.

You want an attorney who is focused on winning maximum recovery in your case, not in bringing as many cases as possible through the door to pass off to junior attorneys who are trying to get a settlement as quickly as possible, no matter how much it shortchanges you. Get assurances that an experienced partner with the proven skills to work towards your full recovery will be personally overseeing and managing your case.

Schedule In-Person Consultations Until You Find the One That’s Right

Many injured persons are hesitant to speak with an attorney in-person because they are worried that they are going to be pressured into working with that attorney. But an in-person consultation is usually the best way to find out whether a particular attorney is right for you and has the proper experience and commitment to your personal well-being to represent your interests.

If you talk to an attorney and you feel overly pressured or that your concerns are being ignored in the pursuit of winning your business, then you should feel no hesitation in continuing to talk to other attorneys. If you feel uncomfortable or poorly treated during an initial consultation, then it is unlikely you are going to feel better once that attorney actually represents you. A personal injury attorney who is worthy of representing you should you make you feel respected and confident, and so it is worth it to keep talking to attorneys until you find one that can give you those assurances.

Experienced Personal Injury Attorneys in the Inland Empire

At McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP, our personal injury team – led by by partner Cory Weck, a Marine Corps officer with over 20 years of service to his country and 15 years of experience litigating personal injury cases – has repeatedly won verdicts and settlements on behalf of clients across the Inland Empire in the millions of dollars. Our attorneys understand that the fear, anxiety, and pain that you and your family are going through following a personal injury, and we are dedicated to doing everything we can to help our clients get the help they need. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with one of our experienced personal injury attorneys.

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