Who is a Personal Injury Lawyer and Why Do I Need One?
who is a personal injury lawyer
Some of the questions that come to mind when we hear about cases with personal injury lawyers are what does a personal injury lawyer handle? In what cases will I need a personal injury attorney? And how much does a personal injury lawyer charge?
Since it is not commonplace to hear about cases with personal injury lawyers, it is not surprising that most people ask these questions.
The goal of this article will be to shed more light on:
What personal injury lawyers do
What it cost to hire a personal injury lawyer
Why it is important to hire a personal injury lawyer
Where to find the top personal injury lawyers in the United States.
Who is a personal injury lawyer
and what do they do?
A personal injury lawyer is an expert who handles legal cases related to injuries and accidents. In a situation of an accident or an occurrence of injury either physical or psychological caused by the negligence or actions of another person, business or organization, you need the legal advice and services of a personal injury attorney to get you the justice you deserve which may come in form of large amounts of compensation. Check out more here if you want to speak with a reliable personal injury lawyer in Arizona.
Unlike
insurance claims, personal injury claims are not subscribed for beforehand and
you won’t need to pay monthly premiums to get these, in fact, in most occasions,
you don’t need to pay your attorney in advance to take up a legal battle that
will yield you a claim, many times the lawyer only gets paid when the case is
won.
Related: How a Personal Injury Lawyer Can Help You Get Your Car Insurance Claim in California
Some personal
injury attorneys specialize in personal injury cases alone and as a result,
they build an arsenal of knowledge and experience in the field which leads to increased
success rates in cases that concern their field of specialty.
Some of the cases personal
injury lawyers handle include
Product
liability case
Construction
accidents
Dog
bites
Nursing
home neglect
Medical
malpractice
Slip
and fall case
Pedestrian
and cyclist accidents
Motor
vehicle accidents
Assault
Battery
Fraud
Conversion
(theft)
The cases
that personal injury lawyers handle are not limited to these but these are the
core ones that make up the bulk of cases that personal injury lawyers have to
handle every year.
What percentage does a personal injury
lawyer take in a claim?
who is a personal injury lawyer
It is important to note that the costs and fees of hiring a personal injury lawyer may affect the final payout as legal practitioners in this field deduct their fees against the payout amount. Cost of legal services like copy costs, court filing fees, cost of hiring expert witnesses, deposition expenses, travel expenses also accumulates in the course of fighting a personal injury case which will also be accounted for and setoff against the payout amount.
In most personal injury cases where negligence is involved, the party at fault may choose to settle out of court. This will greatly reduce the expenses associated with hiring a legal practitioner who specializes in personal injury cases and therefore reduces the fees on the payout sum. But in cases like medical malpractice, assault, battery and conversion which almost always end up in trials the legal expenses are always higher, the good thing is, these cases always attract larger payout sums too.
Related: 5 Times to Rethink Your Life Insurance Needs
It is advisable to know how your personal injury lawyer will like to be compensated beforehand. Most times, lawyers in this field charge a percentage of the payout sum and only stand to receive this sum if they win the case as against lawyers who handle other cases and charge an hourly fee. This is called a contingency fee agreement. With this agreement, personal injury advocates are not paid unless they win your case. This is a No Win No Pay agreement that allows clients to hire the best lawyers to fight their court cases against corporate giants, oppressive individuals or ruthless, corrupt insurance companies as the case may be.
Expenses accumulated in the course of carrying out the case
also get paid for at payout sometimes. This is one way it is done, other than
this, the lawyer may request the expenses be paid for by the client as the case
unfolds or will request a little advance fee in the beginning of the case to cover
bills while the rest will be paid later.
One of the important things you need to pay close attention
to is the payout clause. By law, the lawyer is obligated to pay off all medical
bills before payout to the client, this might either be to the hospital that
provides medical services to the client or the medical insurance cover like Medicare
or Medicaid.
After this, the attorney is to deduct the costs of the legal
services and his fees which may range between 25 – 50 percent, many lawyers
charge a 33% as fees for personal injury cases on the gross payout amount. The
net payout is then given to the client.
Is it worth it to hire a personal injury
lawyer?
Given the cost of hiring a personal injury lawyer, you may be
tempted if it is worth it. Experience shows that it is.
Getting a personal injury lawyer increases your chances of
getting the compensation you deserve, which you may not get as much of if you go
without a legal practitioner if you get anything at all.
With the advice and expertise of a personal injury lawyer
who will wholly take up your case, you will make little or no mistake in the
course of the proceedings and no stone will be unturned to ensure that you get compensated.
Related: How and When to Hire a Lawyer to Sue for Property Damage Claim
Due to the fact that the payment model ensures that the
lawyer has a skin in the game as he stands to lose if your case is not won, he
will give his all to see to it that you get something which in turn means he also
gets something.
In most cases, the party at fault are individuals or firms that viciously want to take advantage of the weakness of the victim and would rather have them go empty-handed as they walk scot-free from their wrongdoings, the only insurance the victim has is the legal expert who fights his case and it is, therefore, important that you have them on board.
Conclusion
Personal injury law firms may be your point of last resort when you seek justice for an injury which may lead to a disability either physical or psychological and insurance companies or parties involved refuse to make a settlement. When this happens an experienced personal injury lawyer will be willing to step into the trenches with you and tussle it out. Follow this list to find the top personal injury law firms in the US and their contact.
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Uzoma Aleaji is a fast-rising internet marketing professional who specializes in birthing new startups. He’s the CEO of LegendFitz, a luxury men’s footwear brand and COO of MyTopInsuranceBlogs.com
