Hiring the right car accident lawyer can make all the difference in your case. Here’s what you need to know about what a good lawyer actually does, how to spot red flags, and why honesty with your attorney isn’t just smart.
Your lawyer is there to help you, and the more information you share, the better they can do their job. Everything you and your lawyer discuss is confidential and protected by the attorney–client privilege. It stays between you and your lawyer.
To help you in the best way possible and make sure you get the maximum recovery, your lawyer needs to know as much as possible about:
1. How the accident happened
2. Your injuries
3. Any prior injuries or prior medical treatment
If you hide things or aren’t completely open, it can hurt your case later. The more your lawyer knows, the better equipped they are to protect you and fight for the best outcome.
Some people might think that we are just passive on cases. That’s all we do is wait for you to finish with the doctor’s appointments, then tell the insurance company you’re done treating, and get an offer for you. That is not the case at all.
A good personal injury attorney will hire experts to review everything. They’ll be in contact with:
1. The police department
2. Any witnesses
3. Any medical providers
4. The hospitals
5. The ambulances
Lawyers want to understand every detail of your case possible. And that does not come without lots of phone calls, lots of hard work, lots of emails, and lots of time. We research all the case law that’s available. We research the conditions of the road. We go to the scene of the accident. We go to the scene of the slip and fall and take pictures, ask people if they saw anything—all for you. You might think that we are only talking a little bit back and forth with the insurance company, but it is so much more than that.
How much work do you think goes into your personal injury case? The results might surprise you. I asked a client one time how much they thought I worked on their case. They said, “Oh, maybe a couple of phone calls or an email, probably a couple of text messages.” In reality, that’s just the very surface of what goes into your case.
A good personal injury attorney puts in:
– Hours worth of research
– Hours worth of investigative work
– Hundreds of emails
– Hundreds of text messages
– Hundreds of phone calls. Not just to you, the client, but also to insurance companies, paralegals, legal assistants, and investigators working on your case
A lot goes into your personal injury case. You might just be seeing the surface, but I promise you, there’s a whole iceberg underneath, filled with documents, communication, and effort dedicated to getting you results.
Be wary of those attorneys who make you promises before they even know anything about your case. A lot of bad personal injury attorneys will make you guarantees, will make you promises, will say that you’ll become rich from the case without even spending five minutes with you. That is just a tactic they use to get you to sign up with them.
After you sign up, they won’t call you, you won’t get any updates on your case, and your case will drag on for much longer than necessary.
The truth about bad personal injury lawyers is that they will say anything to get you in the door. They will lie to you about their fees, their costs, and how long your case will take. They’ll tell you that your case will be over within 30 days or two weeks and that you’ll be made whole.
But in reality, nobody can really tell you how long a case is going to take, what to expect from an insurance company, or how much you’ll get paid in the end.
Still figuring out what to do after your crash? Visit our car accident lawyers page to see how we can help you get answers, support, and compensation. Or call us for your free initial consultation.