The Law Blog

Personal injury lawyers help to seek legal settlements in matters affected by negligence. These incidents could happen virtually anywhere–a school bus, a restaurant, the sidewalk–but the key is that someone’s negligence caused the event. If you have been injured or lost a loved one to negligence, you may wish to hire an attorney to seek damages pertaining to medical bills, lost wages, long term care and/or pain and suffering.

When you decide to take legal action, your first step should be to do your homework. Researching lawyers will take time, but your effort will be worth your time invested. You could just call the first personal injury lawyer you see on a billboard, but how will you know anything of their character, attitude and professionalism? Start small by asking the people you know, they will be honest with you.

Once you’ve selected a few lawyers you are interested in, sit down with them. Your first impression of them is important. They should make you feel comfortable and at ease. Make sure they understand your case and they should also have a plan for how to handle it. Sit down with their former clients to see what they had to say.

Payment is the final step. Many lawyers receive payment in the event that your case is favorably settled. This means that they will receive a percentage of your winnings. Make sure to factor this into the initial amount you are asking for. Get everything in writing and make sure you understand it up front.

When negligence occurs, taking legal action is often times a necessity. With income stopped and medical bills piling up, people find themselves unable to live with their situation and seeking justice. Minnesota’s personal injury lawyers know the ins and outs of negligence cases and they will work with you to bring closure to this chapter of your life.

written by Earnes Malzen \\ tags: Personal Injury Lawyers

For most of us using a lawyer is an infrequent occurrence. We may occasionally talk to a legal professional about issues such as making a will, getting a divorce or even for a civil or criminal case in which we are involved. But, the chances are it’s been a good few years since you had to take legal advice.

But, if you do need a lawyer then you often need one fast and this can lead to errors of judgment. It’s not enough to stick in a pin in a phone directory and to choose the lawyer that it hits. Legal advice can be costly and you need to make sure that you get the right advice to suit your needs. The following tips could help you out here.

#1 Word of mouth: There’s no better way to choose a lawyer than to find someone on a referral basis. If someone you know has used a lawyer for a reason similar to your own in the recent past then talk to them about the services they got. Ask them if they would use the lawyer again themselves. If they say yes then this could be a good choice for you too. If they have negatives then you can work out if this could be a lawyer you want to avoid using.

#2 Qualifications/Experience: It is vital to make sure that you choose a lawyer that has the right qualifications and experience to help you out here. Remember, not all lawyers are equal (otherwise there wouldn’t be so many legal malpractice suits!). So, if you need criminal representation then look for a court experienced lawyer who has the skills to work best on your behalf. If you are filing for bankruptcy then look for a lawyer with experience of doing this for people like you. Lawyers can be either generalists or specialists but they must understand what you need before they can deliver on it.

#3 Cost: Legal fees can be expensive, especially if you have to go down a court case route. Before you retain any lawyer check out your cost options. Remember, many lawyers handling a civil case such as personal injury lawsuit will work on a contingency basis. This could see you get free legal advice and you’d only have to pay if you win and get some compensation. Some lawyers will also charge a fixed fee for some kinds of work (such as wills and real estate work) which may be cheaper than paying by the hour.

So, the key points to remember here are that you need a lawyer with the right experience at the right cost for your pocket who has ideally already got a track record that you can check because somebody you know has used them before.

If you are retaining a lawyer you will also need to think about the part that you play in the advice that they give you. Make sure to always respond to their requests for information and documentation quickly and promptly. And, make sure to always fill them in with all relevant detail about your situation or case so that they know exactly what is going on.

written by Richard Banbury \\ tags: Personal Injury Lawyers

Litigation is defined as being a legal process that takes place either inside or outside a court of law. In most cases this will involve a legal proceeding between two parties (either individuals or businesses or a mix of the two) to establish the rights and wrongs of a particular legal dispute. A litigation action is commonly simply referred to by many people as a lawsuit.

So, if you take up a lawsuit against your landlord for breaching your rights as a tenant then you will go through a specific litigation process. For this reason, in some areas and countries, the lawyers that represent you in court may often be referred to as litigators. A lawyer known as a litigator will often have specific court representation experience. The aim here is to settle the lawsuit in favor of one of the parties involved and to give compensation and/or punishment as necessary.

Not all lawsuits and litigation actions actually have to go through a court process to be resolved. In some cases, if both parties agree, the lawsuit can go through some form of mediation process where an independent third party tries to help both sides come to a mutually acceptable compromise. This could mean that your lawsuit does not have to go to court to be resolved at all. So, for example, if you are suing a past employer for unfair dismissal then you might sit down with an independent employment specialist to try and reach an agreement before the courts are involved.

Most people will retain a specialist lawyer with court experience for a litigation process that does have to go to court for a ruling. The lawyer will file a motion (often known as a complaint) outlining the reasons behind the litigation process. They will also back up their complaint with background information and any compensation requirements and so on.

The same information can also be handed to the court by the other party involved in the lawsuit. In this case their information will give their perspective on the situation that led to the litigation in the first place. If you are the party making the litigation claim then you will usually be known as the plaintiff in this instance. The other party (i.e. the one that you are accusing of wrongdoing) will be known as the defendant. The onus is on you to prove your claim here and on the other party to defend their position and to potentially disprove your claim.

When you make a claim here the other involved party will be given a set period of time in which to ‘respond’ with their own version of events. If they do respond (and they often do not have to) then the case may go to a full court. If they have not responded then the court will consider your claim and may make a ruling without any input from the other party. In some cases the court could even set and award compensation in the absence of the defendant.

written by Richard Banbury \\ tags: Personal Injury Lawyers

Retaining a lawyer can be a costly exercise, especially if you are not quite sure what kind of help you need or, indeed, if you need any legal help at all. For this reason it makes sense to try and get some free legal advice before you commit to paying a lawyer’s fees so that you can see where you stand.

So, in many cases, following these tips could see you get free legal advice that could well save you a significant sum of money:

#1 Research — there are all kinds of online legal websites that you can use to get some basic introductory advice before you opt to retain a lawyer. These range from online law books through to specific legal advisory sites, chat rooms and blogs. This route could see you find out what you need to know at no cost.

#2 Consumer Groups — in some cases you may well find that talking to a consumer group will give you access to free advice that could be useful to you here. This won’t necessarily work for every legal issue but could be helpful in some cases.

#3 Free Consultation — some lawyers will give you a free consultation at the beginning of a legal process so that you can assess where you need to go. Here you could outline your legal issue to a lawyer who can give you advice on how to proceed and how much it will cost you to do so.

#4 Pro Bono Services — some lawyers will offer pro bono (i.e. free) legal services for certain cases. To find out if you will qualify for these services you’ll need to find a participating lawyer/firm in your area.

#5 Contingency/Success Only Fees — in certain legal areas (such as in personal injury cases) some lawyers will offer their services to you on a contingency basis. Here you will only pay a fee if your claim results in a successful settlement or payment. If you lose your case then you don’t have to pay lawyer’s fees.

#6 Public Defenders — if you cannot afford to retain a lawyer to defend you, for example in a criminal case, then the state will appoint a lawyer to work on your behalf free of charge. You may have to prove financial hardship here.

In some cases you may only look for free legal advice to assess whether you need a lawyer to act on your behalf or to assess whether a legal case is worth progressing. In others you may find and/or qualify for a full range of legal services.

If you can it is worth while trying to get legal advice at no cost before you think about retaining a lawyer. There is no point taking a legal route if your case has no hope of success. This will simply be a waste of money for you. It is also worthwhile knowing what the overall costs of getting legal representation will be so that you can work out what you can and can’t afford.

In some cases you may also find that the legal advice that you are given shows you that you could take on your legal needs yourself. This shouldn’t be entered into lightly and you should always make sure that you understand what the ramifications are of taking the initiative yourself.

written by Richard Banbury \\ tags: Personal Injury Lawyers

Hiring and using a lawyer can be a simple process — sometimes you can just walk into your local law firm, see a lawyer and then let them sort out your legal needs. But, if you have more complicated needs or decide to deal with a large law firm, then things may seem a little more complex.

In many cases, especially if you decide to work with a larger law firm, you may well be working with a variety of different people at different times during your case. So, how do you know who is in your team here and what do they do? Let’s take a look at some of the legal professionals who can work on cases.

Partners — partners are the most senior lawyers in any law firm. They may be the people who actually ‘own’ the firm as they helped set it up or they may have simply worked their way up to partnership level. In general terms a partner will charge you more for their time than a junior lawyer but may well be more experienced. Associates — associates are more junior lawyers who will be gaining experience and working their way up (hopefully!) to partnership level in most cases. Working with an associate does not mean you’ll be short-changed from an experience perspective. Most experienced associates will have been practicing law for a good few years and more inexperienced associates will be usually be mentored by a senior associate or partner. Paralegals — paralegals are specialists with some legal training but they are not qualified lawyers. A paralegal can complete various legal tasks but not all and they will often be employed to work with a lawyer to provide support and back-up on certain cases. Law clerks — law clerks are often law students looking to gain some work experience or young people looking to see if the legal world will suit them. A law clerk will help your lawyer/paralegal with research and will offer them a range of other support services. Specialists — in some cases it may be necessary for your lawyer to bring in an outside specialist such as an investigator or a legal specialist. Some law firms will contract this kind of work out to other firms and some will retain their own qualified personnel for these purposes.

If you choose to work with a small law firm or an individual practitioner on a straightforward matter then you may well find that you only deal with one person during your case. If, however, you have a more complicated case or choose to deal with a larger firm then you may well be given a team to work on your behalf.

Many law firms will make sure that you are given access to a sole point of contact if you are dealing with a team to make things easier. So, for example, your lawyer may manage a team of paralegals, clerks and investigators but you will not need to talk to any of them as all your contact will go through your lawyer. This can make the whole process easier for you so it’s worth looking out for.

written by Rachel Greene \\ tags: Personal Injury Lawyers