The top 4 qualities you should look for when determining how to find a lawyer for a car accident are: (1) the attorney’s experience; (2) whether the attorney specializes in cases like yours; (3) the attorney’s track record of winning cases; and (4) whether the attorney has outstanding review from previous clients.
When trying to find a lawyer for a car accident, what should I look for ?
There are several factors you should consider when trying to find out who would be the best lawyer for your car accident case.
First and foremost, you should try to find a lawyer who has real experience in handling car accident cases.
Second, you want to find a lawyer who specializes in handling car accident cases. People would never go see a doctor who claims to handle 10 or 12 completely different areas of medicine. Why would they ever do the same with an attorney who advertises for 10 or 12 completely different areas of personal injury law? Finding and choosing a lawyer who specializes in car accident cases can provide you several distinct advantages. Attorneys who specialize in automobile crash cases already have a deep understanding of the many complex issues that can arise from a case, whether that be complicated ERISA and medical liens to navigating a client through the intricacies of health insurance and auto No-Fault insurance law. They are also already familiar with the tactics often used by insurance companies and defense attorneys to minimize motor vehicle wreck settlements. By finding and choosing a lawyer who specializes in car accident cases, you significantly increase your chances of winning and getting the best possible settlement. There’s a very good reason why, for example, our law firm can usually settle cases faster and for significantly more money than, say, a general practitioner attorney who only sees the occasional automobile crash case.
Third, always understand that insurance companies evaluate both the case and the attorney. An attorney’s track record in recovering top automobile crash settlements and jury verdicts is a crucial factor that insurance companies use to determine how much they will pay and how timely they will pay. If your attorney doesn’t try cases, and always settles “short” to avoid going to trial, this tells the insurance company they can delay and they will get a substantial discount on what they should be paying. Finding and choosing the right lawyer is a critical element to getting you full value for all of the compensation and money damages you’re entitled to as a result of your car accident. An attorney’s proven history of success in obtaining record-setting settlements and verdicts is the single most important variable you have actual control over in determining how quickly a case can settle for and how much it will settle for.
Fourth, when trying to find the right lawyer for your car accident case, in order to get an idea of what it might be like to work with the attorney you’re considering, make sure to read his or her online reviews and testimonials from previous clients. Both the star-ratings and the comments in the reviews will give you an accurate picture of how the attorney treats and communicates with clients and how effective the attorney is at getting favorable outcomes for his or clients.
One important caveat: There are some awful attorneys and law firms in Michigan that have paid for hundreds of fake reviews because they have awful ratings and poor client reviews. When trying to find the right lawyer for your car accident case, don’t just look at the total number of reviews, but actually read the reviews to see if they sound real and authentic. You can often tell from the syntax and grammar when a law firm has hired someone – often from another country – to write dozens or hundreds of fake reviews to help their online presence. Sadly, “buyer beware” applies to many prominent Michigan personal injury attorneys, especially many who advertise on television – just like it does to everything else in life.
Other crucial factors when trying to find and choose the right lawyer for your car accident case include:
- Communication: Choose an attorney who communicates well and makes you feel comfortable – and who always calls you back and returns your phone calls.
- Availability and Financial Resources: Ensure your attorney has the time and the financial resources to handle your case.
How much experience should an auto accident attorney have?
When finding the right lawyer for a car accident, the amount of experience an attorney has handling these types of cases is one of the most important factors in having a successful outcome for your case. An experienced attorney will have seen it all – and likely have the work product on defense motions, know the top specialists and experts, know how the auto accident claim process works and will have already had cases with many of the claims adjusters and defense attorneys in the area, as well as how best to deal and negotiate with the various insurance companies and claims representatives so you don’t get stuck and shortchanged by a low settlement.
Our attorneys have more than 50 years of experience helping people throughout Michigan who have been injured in car, truck, and motorcycle crashes.
When trying to find a lawyer for a car accident, how important is it that your attorney specializes in motor vehicle crash cases?
When trying to find a lawyer for a car accident, it is critically important to have an attorney who specializes in motor vehicle crash cases. Unlike a general practitioner who dabbles in the occasional automobile crash case while also doing divorces and drawing up wills, or even a personal injury attorney who advertises for completely unrelated areas of law, from medical malpractice to products liability to mass torts, class actions, dog bites and everything else, an attorney who specializes exclusively in motor vehicle crash law will almost always be able to get a bigger and faster settlement for your case that dabblers won’t.
A lawyer who specializes in helping people like you who have been injured in an auto accident will know this area of law. They know the cases and the statutes. They know about deadlines and notice issues and how to plead unique legal requirements, such as governmental immunity, that can otherwise blow-up a case and cause tremendous problems for attorneys not intimately familiar with this area of law. These are the things that can make or break your case.
With what’s at stake for you and your family, you cannot risk entrusting your case, your health and your financial well being to an attorney who is trying to “learn on the job.”
Finding and hiring a lawyer who specializes in car accident lawsuits can also protect you against the insurance companies’ dirty tricks.
Is it important for an attorney to have a track record of recovering winning automobile crash settlements and verdicts for their clients?
Of course, it is. It is the single most important variable that you can actually control in the process of how an insurance company evaluates your case for settlement – or decides to push your case to trial. This gives you the best chance of recovering a full and fair settlement or verdict for your case.
The attorneys at Michigan Auto Law have more million-dollar automobile crash settlement results than any law firm in Michigan. The insurance companies know this, and our settlement offers reflect this. Our attorneys also have 9 separate trial verdicts of between $1 million and $14.3 million on insurance company and defense offers between $0 and $30,000, which may be better than any law firm in America today.
Are client reviews and testimonials important when finding a lawyer for a car accident?
Client reviews and testimonials are an invaluable tool for finding the right lawyer for your car accident. Attorney reviews serve the same purpose as reviews for other services and products: it gives you a real insight into the kind of experience you may expect to have based on experiences that others have had.
When you are trying to decide whether a particular attorney is right for your case, read his or her reviews and look for what past clients have said about: (1) the outcome of their cases; (2) how they were treated by the attorney and his or her team; (3) the attorney’s communication style; and (4) whether the attorney was easy to reach, i.e., did the attorney return phone calls and answer questions when the clients needed the information, not when it was convenient for the attorney.
We have more than 1,900 real 5-Star Google Reviews from people we have helped.
What questions should I ask a potential attorney?
When trying to find the right lawyer for your car accident, during the free consultation, it’s important to come prepared with a list of questions to ask. These questions will help you gather the information you need to make an informed decision about you’re going to trust with your case:
- How long have you been practicing law, and how many motor vehicle crash cases have you handled?
- Do you specialize in automobile crash cases, or do you handle a variety of legal matters?
- What is your track record in recovering settlements and verdicts for your clients?
- How do you approach negotiations with insurance companies?
- What is your fee structure, and how do you handle payment for your services?
- Can you provide references from past clients or testimonials?
- How will you communicate with me throughout the process, and how available will you be to answer my questions and address my concerns?
- Are you willing to take my case to trial if necessary?
- How long do you think it will take to resolve my case?
How are attorney fees typically determined in a motor vehicle crash case?
Attorneys typically work on a contingency fee basis, meaning they only get paid if they win your case. In Michigan, the maximum fee that a personal injury attorney can charge is one-third, or 33%, of whatever they recover for you. There should be no upfront fees. You will not have to pay until your case is resolved and a recovery has been made on your behalf.
Need help finding the best lawyer for a car accident? Call the attorneys at Michigan Auto Law
If you were injured in a car accident and need help finding the right lawyer, call now (248) 353-7575 for a free consultation with one of our experienced attorneys. There is no cost or obligation. You can also visit our contact page or use the chat feature on our website.
Michigan Auto Law is Michigan’s largest and most successful law firm that specializes exclusively in helping people who have been injured in auto accidents.
Our secret? Our auto accident attorneys deliberately handle fewer cases than other personal injury law firms. This allows us to focus more time and attention on our cases. More time and more attention leads to better results for our clients, including more million dollar settlements and verdicts for automobile crash cases in Michigan than any other attorney or law firm in the state.
It’s a formula that works for the people we are entrusted with helping and who put their trust in us.
Unlike other law firms, our auto accident attorneys are never too busy to promptly return phone calls and answer questions.
We have more than 1,900 5-Star Reviews that reflect this care and attention to detail.
More importantly, this client-focused approach leads to better and faster settlements for our clients. Michigan Auto Law has recovered more million-dollar settlements and trial verdicts for motor vehicle crashes than any other attorney or law firm in Michigan. We’ve also recovered the highest ever reported truck crash and car crash settlement in the state.
Call now so we can start making a real difference for you.
