People are usually fond of the philosophy, “the bigger, the better.” In the case of personal injury law firms, however, this philosophy may not be ring quite true.
Just because there are some law firms that specialize in personal injury cases, advertising that they are the largest in the county, city or state and are practicing a large scope of specialties, do not really mean they can provide the best and expert legal services.
Let us take the case of McDonald’s. Undoubtedly, it is the largest fast-food chain in the country. Still, most would still opt for small and cozy gourmet or fine family restaurants in order to eat a good meal and enjoy great dining service.
Furthermore, going to those law firms who claim of being the largest among all other offices in their particular area does not necessarily mean you will receive a break on lawyer and legal services fees.
Concerning attorney’s fee systems, almost 99% of all the personal injury law firms in the country offers a system involving contingency fee. According to the law, this system is 33 1/3 percent of the compensation the client would win.
If you go to the largest law firm, then, what difference would you get? Most probably, you will encounter a law office with numerable lawyers working on a considerable pile of cases and attempting to receive attorney’s fee as quickly as possible at the expense of their clients.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in the aftermath of an accident, you need a personal injury law firm with a well-known reputation of providing professional and competent legal services.
For you to recognize who is the best lawyer from all the others, you must not only depend upon the advertising of the law firms.
• You can seek out several long-established and well-recognized legal organizations, which rank lawyers and law firms. Their ranking is quite reliable since they send out surveys to judges and other attorneys for them to rank the firms and its lawyers.
One of the most respected and oldest of these legal organizations is the Martindale Hubbell. Their website, http://www.MartindaleHubbell.com sends out questionnaires annually for judges and other lawyers to rank the ethical standards and legal ability of several law firms and its pool of attorneys. They have set ratings for legal ability, A is superior, B is very good and C is average. For those that met the applicable code of ethics, they are rated V.
For those who have earned the highest rankings, their law firm’s name is placed on the “bar registry of preeminent law firms.” Only a few personal injury law firms get to earn this recognition and high honor.
• You can also consult the Thomson legal publishing since they publishes a directory of the “Best Lawyers in America” and their websites. You can check this out in their website http://www.bestlawyers.com
• Another indicator of the expertise of a law firm is by checking out if that firm is a member of an organization with lofty standards in the selections of its member law firms. The American College of Trial Lawyers, http://www.actl.com and the American Board of Trial Advocates, http://www.abota.org are some examples of these.
Aside from checking out listings of their recommended personal injury law firms, you can also inquire about their opinion of the law firms you have short-listed.
Remember that when it concerns lawyers, legal services and law firms, size could never indicate their competence or expertise. Before trusting a law firm to work on your case, do some educated research. It is as major and life changing a decision as deciding to buy a new car or house.
By: Carla C. Ballatan
About the Author:
No need to search far and wide! If you are in need of a capable California Personal Injury Law Firm with long standing experience in handling personal injury cases, Los Angeles Lawyers-Mesriani Law Group is the one to trust.
