What to look for before you hire a personal injury lawyer

Although there are many excellent lawyers in the Palm Springs area, unless you pick one that’s right for your kind of legal issue, you could wind up spending thousands of dollars and not get the legal defense you’re looking for.

Some of the more common types of cases that lawyers handle are those involving personal injury claims. Just like with other types of legal issues, there are several things you should look for before you hire a personal injury lawyer to represent you.

Experience. While their enthusiasm may be admirable, your issue is too important to trust to a lawyer who has just passed the State Bar exam. You’ll want someone who has several years of experience, and who has the special training beyond what they learned in law school. For example, some lawyers choose to focus on medical malpractice as a specialty of personal injury law; while others may focus on auto accidents or premises liability.

Relevancy. Even with personal injury experience on their side, you’ll want to know if an attorney you’re considering has dealt with a case specifically like yours. If your personal injury case is the result of a slip and fall, then you’ll want to find a lawyer who has experience handling slip and fall cases in the past. Attorneys with this kind of specialized knowledge tend to receive greater settlements for their clients than those without relevant experience.

Success rate. It’s not only a matter of winning the case that determines a successrate, it’s also the dollar amount of the settlement that they were able to achieve. You want to find an attorney who can get you the maximum compensation for your circumstances, instead of an attorney who is all too happy to settle at the first chance they get.

Dale Gribow, Attorney at Law proudly serves Palm Springs and surrounding California communities.