What Value Should a Personal Injury Attorney Bring?
When injured by the fault of another person or entity, the first thing that comes to mind is the claim or subsequent lawsuit. The second thing that comes to mind is the costs and fees of an attorney. Then, there’s a period where the victim wonders if an attorney is worth it? In some cases, like simple automobile accidents where the at-fault party is easily identified, the injury is straightforward, and the insurance is sufficient to cover the damages, then an attorney may arguably not be necessary. In other cases, a personal injury attorney can provide quite valuable in more ways than one. Here are the top five ways a personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles will bring value to your personal injury claim.
1. The Value of Experience
There are no guarantees that your personal injury attorney will be successful. The only way to maximize your chances of a successful outcome is by retaining a personal injury attorney in Los Angeles who has the competence and experience necessary for a successful outcome. In fact, you have a right to competence when you hire an attorney, but that competence is subjective to what your goals are. Only experience will ensure that competence is aligned with your goals, and in personal injury cases, the end-goal is typically just and fair compensation and nothing less.
The value of experience should not be under-rated. Experience brings with it:
- Strategic thinking;
- Negotiation skills;
- Insight; and
- Value.
When retaining a lawyer, you can expect to get the following:
- Cases that are like or similar to yours––like or similar caseload is the cornerstone of experience and means your attorney knows how to handle these types of cases and has obtained specific insight that can be applied to your case to benefit you. This will also mean the attorney has specific experience working with the type of defendant you are dealing with, whether that an insurance adjuster or another defendant. For example, if there is more than one defendant, an experienced attorney will be able to identify the same and determine all possible defendants.
- Ability to assess claims––experienced personal injury attorneys can save you time and worry by letting you know from the start if your case is worth pursuing and/or if you need a lawyer, among other things while an inexperienced attorney may just take your case because he or she lacks the ability to assess to determine probability based on the assessment.
- Network of investigators and expert witnesses––an experienced personal injury attorney has already been around the block a few times and has been able to sort through the muck to identify credible, helpful, skilled investigators and expert witnesses, the very people whom could make or break your case by providing ample fact-based evidence to support your claims.
- Resources––You don’t have the money or time to put into a personal injury case, but your attorney should; in fact, an experienced attorney will have developed the resources to make sure any investigation and other processes are thoroughly met and conducted.
- Objectivity––you can be emotional and opinionated but your attorney shouldn’t. An inexperienced lawyer may tend to be wishy-washy and subjective, but not an experienced one.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution experience––some cases just don’t settle quickly while other cases are not yet ready for trial, so an alternative dispute resolution may be the key to success. An attorney who has been doing this for a while will know the difference and make sure you get the right platform to negotiate and settle your case before a costly and time-consuming trial.
- Litigation experience––Though most personal injury cases will not go to litigation, a few may, and those few can provide critical experience to any personal injury attorney. On the other side of it, an attorney with no litigation experience may be uncertain or fear suing the defendant, and that can materialize in ways detrimental to your case.
The value of experience is this: you get your money’s worth. If your attorney is skilled, he or she will optimize the outcome for you. If, however, he or she lacks in experience, your case could result in a less than just and fair outcome.
2. The Value of Commitment
A committed personal injury attorney is necessary just as much as an honest attorney is. Commitment means you have a goal and you work towards that goal, even if it requires hard work. A committed personal injury attorney is dedicated to pursuing your rights and interests as a plaintiff in a personal injury case.
Using your imagination again, consider a personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles who isn’t committed but takes your case on as though it’s just another possible money-maker for him or her and not about justice for you. Now imagine what the outcome could be. That attorney is more likely to settle quickly for a payout that doesn’t do you or your injury justice. He or she will sell out, too, because they aren’t committed to you but to a fast paycheck for themselves. They’ll call it a day while you still suffer.
Plus, a committed personal injury attorney is also one that is likely to be honest with you and persistent with the insurance adjuster or defendant. Further, commitment goes hand in hand with ethics. Part of an attorney’s ethical requirements is undivided loyalty to clients. They must keep the confidence of their clients and put their clients’ interests above their own interests.
The bottom line on the value of commitment is this: you should be committed to your recovery while your attorney is committed to your personal injury case, anything less is unjust and unethical.
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3. The Value of Transparency
Transparency is an integral piece of personal injury cases. A personal injury attorney must be upfront and honest about your case. This value alone can make a world of a difference. You should know exactly what has been done or needs to be done on your case, and what it will take to expect fair and just compensation.
Imagine a personal injury attorney who fills your head with false hopes, makes you believe that you have a case worth millions, and because of it, influences your decision to continue pursuing something that isn’t going to materialize. Imagine not only getting what you were told you would receive; imagine having to put in all that hope, time, and effort for something that didn’t turn out the way you were led to believe it would; imagine the loss of time spent on your recovery because you were too busy with your personal injury case; and now imagine the sinking feeling and total loss of not winning or settling your case. This can be more harmful to your mental state than the personal injury you sustained.
You need to be able to trust your personal injury attorney. Through trust, the attorney releases you of certain burdens so that you can focus on your health. But to be trustworthy, your attorney must be transparent and honest about:
- What your case can be worth;
- How effort and costs will go into a successful case;
- What you could actually receive if successful (including attorney fees); and, among other things,
- What the probability of winning or settling is.
When it comes down to it, the value of transparency is this: your case information and possible expectations, your mental state, and your overall health. There’s not much more that could be worthier than transparency and honesty between an attorney and a client in a personal injury case.
4. The Value of Compensation
You want the most in compensation to make sure you can cover all the costs stemming from the injury. A personal injury attorney can help you win more than if you represented yourself. Research confirms it, too. In fact, the Insurance Research Council found that the value of settlements for the same injury was far more with attorney representation than without representation by a whopping three and a half times more.
Another study estimated that settlement and court awards in one segment of personal injury cases typically range somewhere between $10,000 and $80,000 with the average being $52,900. Keeping the latter in mind, the average compensation:
- With a lawyer is $77,600; and
- Without a lawyer $17,600.
That is a $60,000 difference, which goes without saying can make all the difference in terms of medical bills and pain and suffering, among other things. Keep in mind that your case may have more value than an average personal injure case, and the difference between hiring or not hiring an attorney may result in tens or even hundreds of times more compensation than the above mentioned figure.
But monetary compensation isn’t the only benefit. The likelihood of a payout also matters. Your odds to obtain compensation are dramatically increased if you have an attorney. Consider:
With Attorney Representation | Without Attorney Representation |
91% received a payout | 51% received a payout |
9% received nothing | 49% receiving nothing |
So, your odds of obtaining compensation (and more in terms of the dollar amount) are doubled with an attorney as opposed to without one.
The bottom line here is this: the overarching value of an attorney is the optimization of getting just and fair compensation. In addition, the same study identified that more than 37% of personal injury victims represented by an attorney were fully satisfied while 55% not represented by an attorney was very unsatisfied with the outcome of their respective personal injury cases.
5. The Value of Recovery
Recovery comes in two forms: (1) you as the victim recovering from your injuries; and (2) the compensation you recover from a successful personal injury claim or lawsuit. As to the first, you only get to focus fully on your recovery if you aren’t having to worry about or follow-up with your attorney about your personal injury case. As to the second, you are in a better position to recover if you have the financial security to do so. An experienced, committed personal injury attorney in Los Angeles is in the best position to help you.
The value of recovery is this: making you whole again, physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially. Only an honest, committed personal injury lawyer with experience can help make sure you fully recover.
Retain a Skilled, Committed Personal Injury Attorney in Los Angeles
A personal injury attorney brings value to your personal injury case in Los Angeles. But as you can see, not all personal injury lawyers are valued the same. You need honesty, experience, and commitment to ensure that you receive maximum compensation and are able to recover fully or to the extent possible.
We know personal injury attorneys in and around the Los Angeles metro area. We know their value. And we know what value they can bring to your personal injury case. We are strategic in the way we align your interests and specific situation with an attorney qualified to represent your rights and interests. Contact us today to get starting on retaining the right attorney for
