What You Need To Know About A Free Lawyer Consultation
If you are injured in an accident or due to negligence, one of the first suggestions you may get is to get a free legal consultation to determine what, if any damages you are entitled to. As you approach different attorneys to consult with, there are some things you should know ahead of your meetings:
Pay Attention to Personality
As you meet with different attorneys, your goal is to find someone who you can easily speak with and feel comfortable with his or her representation. This will be an important relationship and you are placing a lot of importance in his or her abilities to communicate with you. If you have the impression that he or she is not taking you seriously or seems too busy to speak with you personally, you may do better moving on to your next choice.
What You Need to Bring
Since you will be discussing the facts of your case, you need to have some crucial information for the potential attorney to review. You will need all your evidence, including photos, the police report, any information you have on the negligent party, medical documentation, and the like.
You also need to provide a comprehensive list of your damages. This includes costs of your medical expenses both currently and any treatment you will need eventually. You should also include whether or not you have health insurance. In addition to medical damages, you should also provide information on any other damages you have, such as damage to your physical property, emotional and mental anguish, loss of work or decreased ability to make a living, and so on.
Prepare a List of Questions to Ask
Although the attorney will have questions for you, you also need to have some questions ready to ask. After all, this is a person who will potentially represent you in an important legal matter. Some questions you might consider whether or not a lawyer is necessary for your case, how to deal with an adjuster, how long you can expect the case to take, how you will be in contact with the attorney, how the attorney is paid and whether or not he or she works on contingency, and the like.
Know the Next Steps
If you speak to a personal injury attorney, he or she will likely have an idea if your case has merit or not. Not every legal opinion will be the same. You may have one attorney agree that you should move forward in a legal case while others may not think an attorney is necessary to be compensated. After that, the decision is up to you as to if you want to file a lawsuit. Do your research and determine if you can handle your issue out of court or if you would rather have legal representation.
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