Injury Lawyer Montgomery County - 7 Critical Questions to Ask When Hiring an Attorney

The unimaginable has happened. You've suffered a serious personal injury. You're confused and don't know where to turn to next. Hiring an injury lawyer in Montgomery County is the most logical next step after you've sought medical attention and care for your injuries.

Knowing what questions to ask when hiring a personal injury attorney in Montgomery County can help you better gauge whether the attorney you are consulting with is the right lawyer for you. Listed below are seven critical questions to ask when meeting with an attorney:

1. Will he/she meet with you personally during the initial consultation? This is important to you because in the case of large law firms, most will have you meet with an experienced partner only to turn around and pass your case on to a young associate. You're looking to establish rapport with the person who will be handling your case, so it's good to know this ahead of time.

2. Will he/she remain involved in every aspect of your case? Typically, an attorney or law firm will accept a personal injury case, but not all of them are willing to handle the case from begining to end. Furthermore, there are those that will only handle your case "pre-suit" and farm it off to a litigation firm without your knowledge.

3. Will he/she explore all avenues to find insurance policies to collect from? For example, in the case of a car accident, it shouldn't just stop at the standard procedure of collecting from the offending driver's insurance policy, but yours as well, and any home insurance policies the other driver may have also.

4. Will he/she do everything he or she can if your case does not settle to properly present it to the courts? Although statistically most personal injury cases settle before going to trial, you want to know in advance that in the event that your case does go to trial, your lawyer will do everything possible to get you the settlement you deserve.

5. What costs, if any, can I expect to incur? Aside from attorney fees, there may be other expenses associated with your case such as filing a lawsuit, charges for medical records, reports, investigators and expert witnesses.

6. Are there any upfront fees involved? If utilizing the typical Contingency Fee Agreement, payment for legal expenses are required to be clearly detailed as to whether those expenses are to be deducted before or after the fee is calculated.

7. Will you be kept informed as to the status of your case? Hold your attorney accountable. You don't want to be forced into a position where you have to constantly chase down your attorney to know what's going on with your case. Check to make sure this is a policy of the lawyer or firm representing you.

And lastly, is he/she board-certified? Being board-certified doesn't necessarily separate the chaff from the wheat, but what it does demonstrate is that this person has taken extra steps in their chosen profession by successfully completing a rigorous evaluation and exam, and has earned the respect from their peers, specifically those who have been opposing counsel at trial.

By no means is this an exhaustive list of questions. These particular questions are foundational in that they will better equip you in your process of hiring an injury lawyer in Montgomery County.