5 Questions To Ask A Personal Injury Lawyer During Consultation
If you’ve been injured in an accident that was caused by the fault of another, then you may be entitled by law to sue and recover damages.
As you explore your legal options, however, there are a number of issues that you’ll want to have clarified by your attorney. Let’s explore some basic questions that you should ask a personal injury lawyer that you’re considering working with.
1) Are there any potential conflicts of interest?
In personal injury litigation, there are potential conflicts-of-interest that could prevent an attorney from being able to effectively advocate on your behalf. It’s important that you discuss this possibility with prospective attorneys.
For example, there are attorneys who represent plaintiffs and defendants in litigation. This can lead to a potential conflict-of-interest, as the attorney might have represented the defendant in your case before (or they might be interested in taking on that client later). They might not be incentivized to advocate aggressively on your behalf if they believe that there is more money to be made by “playing nice.” As such, you’ll want to assess this before you agree to be represented by the attorney.
2) What are the possible consequences and outcomes?
Perhaps the most obvious initial question you’ll have for an attorney is what you can expect to happen in your case.
Though most litigation is quite complex, and there’s no “certain” answer, an attorney will have an idea of what you can expect under ideal and non-ideal circumstances, from damages to likelihood of proving the defendant’s liability (given the case evidence that they’ve been made aware of).
Understanding what could happen in your case can help you decide whether and how to proceed.
3) What legal strategies are we considering if we move forward?
Though the initial attorney consultation is not necessarily going to lead to a set-in-stone case strategy, your attorney will likely have an idea of what potential legal strategies you can pursue (and are likely to pursue) going forward.
Ask your attorney about the strategic approach. This will give you a clearer understanding of your case and will empower you to request a different approach should you feel uncomfortable with the current one.
4) What will you need from me (i.e., documentation, behavior, etc.) as we litigate the case?
Plaintiffs are a fundamental part of personal injury litigation. As the plaintiff, you aren’t meant to take a backseat.
While your attorney will handle most communications and will take steps to gather evidence and develop your case, they may need you to provide additional information on the case. They will also want to consult you as to what your concerns are and what your goals are throughout the process.
Generally speaking, involved plaintiffs are a positive. Attorneys who more actively engage with plaintiffs are better equipped to effectively litigate the case.
5) Could you highlight next steps, and how long you expect the case to take?
Attorneys cannot necessarily predict how long a case is going to take due to complexities in the legal proceedings, including procedural disputes. But they’ll be able to give a rough estimate for how long the case “should” take. This can be valuable, as litigating a case can be demanding mentally. It’s important to know how long you can expect the fight to last.
You’ll also want to be fully aware of the next steps that your attorney is planning on taking the case. A skilled personal injury attorney should have a “plan of action” in place and should be able to highlight specific steps that they want to take to secure a positive outcome for you.
Contact An Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer In Our Network For A Free Consultation
Here at 1-800-THE-LAW2, we operate a network of experienced attorneys who are standing by ready to assist you.
Call us today to connect to a skilled personal injury lawyer in just 10 minutes or less. Consultation is free and confidential, so there’s no downside to getting in touch to schedule an initial consultation with one of our in-network attorneys!
Our staff are available 24/7, in English and Spanish. We look forward to speaking with you further.
