The world isn’t perfect and insurance companies and even the persons responsible for an injury accident often try to settle for much less with the injured party, or try to avoid paying anything at all. This is why people need a personal injury attorney—to protect their rights and recover the costs of what is due to them.
The word advocate can mean someone who takes up the cause of another person and strives to make sure the individual they represent is taken care and protected.
We’ve all been advocates for other individuals at one time or another. Examples of this are parents taking care of children, friends standing up for their friends or family, and protecting someone who can’t defend themselves.
In the case of your personal injury attorney, he or she represents your best interests in connection with agencies or individuals who refuse to compensate you for payment that is fair and due for injury related costs such as medical, property loss, mental anguish, and other associated fees.
Because laws regarding personal injury cases are often complicated and involved, a lack of knowledge regarding litigation can mean substantial reductions in the final settlement from the person, company, or individuals at fault in the accident. A personal injury attorney will represent and fight for your interests in a court of law to insure that a fair settlement is arrived at.
Attorney fees and TV
While law shows are entertaining and informative, they don’t always show the reality of how attorneys are paid, and if they do, they oftentimes show wealthy clients who don’t blink an eye to an expensive legal bill. It’s safe to say that the majority of people do not fall into this super-affluent category. If this is true, then how can “regular” people afford a personal injury attorney?
What is a contingency fee?
The majority of personal injury attorneys take cases based upon something called a contingency fee.
In everyday language, the client pays the lawyers only if the case is won and there is some sort of monetary or value in the settlement; a percentage of the total settlement is subtracted from the overall payment to the client to pay for legal services.
A small proportion of law firms and attorneys will still charge you for expenses if the lawsuit is unsuccessful. Be sure to find out how the law firm bills legal fees before you decide to hire the attorney.
Hiring an attorney early
If you sustained injury in an accident that was not your fault, a good rule of thumb is to be careful of what you say to the opposing party that was responsible for the accident. In some cases, insurance adjusters, and anyone on “the other side” will use any statements you make to support their view that it wasn’t entirely their fault; this reduces their liability.
Personal injury attorneys are there to help you and hiring one early in an injury case may be the difference in a successful settlement or one that isn’t satisfactory. If you have questions, they have advice and answers for you.
