If you’re injured and are contemplating whether or not to pursue a lawsuit, you might wonder about whether or not you will be able to afford a lawyer. Fortunately, in the United States, most lawyers that help injury victims take cases on a contingent fee basis.

In a contingent fee agreement, the client pays fees to their attorney only if the lawyer handles a case successfully. In other words, there is only a fee in the event that the lawyer is able to obtain a recovery for their client.

Contingent fee arrangements are regularly used in cases where money damages are claimed. They are especially common in lawsuits for money damages from injuries.

In a contingent fee agreement, the attorney receives a fixed percentage (often one third) of the amount recovered on behalf of the client. In other words, if you win your lawsuit (by either settlement or trial), the lawyer’s fee comes out of the monetary award. On the other hand, if you lose, there is not lawyer fee.

The contingent fee arrangement allows people that believe they might have an injury lawsuit to have access to a lawyer without having to secure payment for the lawyer’s services.

Most lawyers who handle personal injury cases will provide potential clients with a free initial consultation and, assuming the client has a viable claim that the lawyer handles, take the case on a contingent basis. So, prospective clients can feel confident that they can speak to a lawyer without having the means to pay for the attorney’s advice in advance.

Generally speaking, a personal injury settlement is an agreement by which an injured person agrees to accept money in exchange for dismissing a claim for damages against the person(s) who caused the injuries.

Typically, upon entering into a settlement agreement, the injured party will sign a release. The release is a legal document that absolves the other side of any further liability arising out of the circumstances that gave rise to the claim for damages.

When someone is injured, it is not uncommon for the person(s) who may be responsible for the injuries to make an offer to settle the matter early on. These offers are typically offered by insurance companies to limit their exposure to liability for personal injury claims. This is why it is so important to consult an experienced attorney prior to accepting any offer from an insurance company or anyone else.

Lawyers who handle personal injury legal matters can help you decide whether or not to accept a settlement offer. They have experience dealing with insurance companies and know how to maximize the amount to which you may be entitled.

A lawyer can provide a more accurate opinion of the likelihood of success and value of your personal injury lawsuit.

Settlement agreements can take place a variety of stages of the civil litigation process. They can occur before or after a lawsuit is filed. They may not take place until right before trial, during trial, or even immediately following a trial before a jury has rendered a verdict.

It’s important to understand that the right to accept or reject a personal injury settlement offer rests with the client, not the lawyer. Make sure you discuss all of the potential consequences of accepting or rejecting a settlement offer.

Following a serious injury, your first priority should be to seek the best treatment you can to get better. However, in the event that you suspect that your injuries were caused by the carelessness of someone else, you should also begin the process of investigating whether or not you have a valid claim for monetary damages.

You see, each state has certain legal time limits, that provide a limited time period during which you must file a personal injury lawsuit. For example, in some states injury victims may have as little as one year to file a lawsuit from an automobile accident. If you miss the statutory deadline for filing a case, your case is thrown out of court.

The laws governing these time periods are commonly referred to as “statutes of limitations.”

Unfortunately, too many people way to investigate their possible personal injury lawsuit until after it’s too late. With few exceptions, once the applicable time period has expired, the injury victim’s right to pursue compensation is lost forever. This is yet another reason why contacting an attorney as soon as possible is so important.

Properly investigating a potential personal injury lawsuit can take time. Furthermore, important evidence can be lost over time. Finally, there are important steps that can be taken to protect an injury victim’s rights and maximize the potential recovery. These are all reasons why contacting an injury attorney early on in the injury-legal situation is so critical.

Should I File Without a Lawyer?

As the old adage goes, only a fool has himself for a lawyer. Usually, filing a lawsuit on your own, without the assistance of an experienced attorney is a recipe for disaster. Filing a lawsuit on your own is likely to result in mistakes that will reduce your ability to maximize the likelihood of a successful outcome. Non-lawyers, and even inexperienced attorneys, may not know the nuances of navigating the civil justice system. This may result in missing filing deadlines, failing to meet procedural requirements or simply agreeing to an offer of settlement that is far-below the true value of the injury lawsuit. Put simply, you should avoid trying to representative yourself on your own. Even experienced attorneys hire other attorneys to represent them. If an experienced injury attorney wouldn’t represent herself, neither should you.

Choosing the right lawyer for your situation can have a significant impact in the outcome of your case. Your lawyer will speak and act on your behalf throughout the process. Therefore, it’s important to ask a lot of questions when you’re interviewing your prospective injury attorney. Here are some questions that you should ask:

• How much experience do you and your law firm have in handling legal situations like mine?
• How much experience do you and your law firm have in handling cases involving injuries like mine?
• How much experience do you and your law firm have in handling cases involving similar factual circumstances as mine?
• How much experience do you and your law firm have in handling cases involving similar legal issues as mine?
• How many matters like mine have you handled in the past year or two?
• Who else in your firm would work on my case?
• What is your fee structure and how will I be billed?
• How long have you been practicing as a licensed attorney?
• What percentage of your practice is devoted to handling cases similar to mine?
• How many cases have you taken to trial and what were the results?
• Can you provide me with the names of past clients who are willing to discuss their experiences as clients of your firm?
• How will you keep me advised of the status of my case as it progresses?

Too often, people who are hiring a lawyer simply don’t ask enough questions until it’s too late. This often results in a breakdown in the attorney-client relationship. Which can have serious consequences in the outcome of the case.

Don’t hesitate to ask your prospective attorney any questions you have about your case.

The length of time it can take to recover compensation from an injury lawsuit varies greatly. There are numerous factors that impact how long a personal injury case can take. Some of these include:

• The nature and extent of the victims injuries.
• The complexity of the issues involved in the case.
• The amount of evidence to be analyzed in the case.
• The defendant’s assessment of their liability in the case.
• The relative knowledge, skill and experience of the attorneys involved.

There really isn’t a “standard time-frame” that injury legal matters last. Some situations can be resolved in a matter of days. Many more will take weeks or months. And other, more complicated matters, can easily take years to be resolved.

While it is difficult to anticipate how long a case will take until resolution, your lawyer should could in constant communication with you at every stage of your case. This is the best way for you to stay informed about the status of your injury lawsuit.

This is something to keep in mind when you are making a decision about hiring a lawyer. Ask the lawyer about how, and how frequently, you will be able to communicate with them. Your access to your lawyer will play a large role in your peace of mind throughout the process.

Remember that navigating a personal injury case can be quite complicated. In fact, in certain situations, timing becomes a very important factor in an injured person’s ability to maximize the compensation to which they are entitled. The best thing you can do is to hire a lawyer that you trust and have patience through a process that can sometimes seem very frustrating.

Understanding whether or not you have a viable case arising from your injuries can be quite complicated. There are a number of factors that must be carefully considered.

While in some situations, when a person is harmed by someone else’s negligence, the injured person may be entitled to financial compensation, there are also many times when, despite being injured, there are a variety of reasons why the injured person would not be able to recover damages.

That is why it is so important to have your situation reviewed by an experienced injury attorney.

Attorneys that focus their practices on assisting victims of injuries are familiar with many of the obstacles that stand between an injured person and their ability to recover financial compensation.

Unfortunately, many people have the misconception that hiring a lawyer to assist them with their injury case would be too expensive.

What many people don’t realize is that most lawyers that handle injury lawsuits work on a contingency fee basis. Under a contingency, or contingent fee agreement, the lawyer’s fee is paid as a percentage of the recovery from the lawsuit. In other words, if there is no recovery, there is no lawyer fee.

This is why there is truly no legitimate reason not to have the circumstances of your situation reviewed by an experienced injury attorney.

It’s also worth noting that most personal injury cases fall under the jurisdiction of state courts and state laws. Therefore, generally speaking, you should have your situation reviewed by an attorney who has experience dealing with personal injury legal matters in the state in which the lawsuit is likely to be filed. This may be the state in which the injury took place, but there are many exceptions to this general rule.

As the saying goes:

Practice makes perfect.

And this is no truer than in the context of hiring a lawyer.

You see, even the very smartest, best educated, and most well-read lawyers can only get better through practice. And that’s what makes the lawyers in the Taos Group so special.

These lawyers have had the benefit of years of practice. Many of them having tried hundreds of cases. And because of the special cooperation among Taos lawyers, they have all benefited from the sharing of this collection of legal experience.

Yes, the Taos lawyers are among some of the most educated in they country. Yes, they have received recognition for excellence by their peers. Yes, they are highly talented and skilled. But perhaps most importantly, they have benefited from the sharing of their collective experiences through the Taos Group.

These lawyers serve as a resource for one another in sharing strategies and tips from their collective experiences serving clients.

That’s what makes these lawyers so special and so effective.

Searching for a lawyer who is right for your specific injury legal situation can be a challenge. There’s certainly no shortage of attorneys. However, as you might suspect, not all attorneys are the same.

The advantage of choosing a Taos injury lawyer is that you know that your lawyer is recognized among some of the most highly-regarded attorneys in the country. Taos lawyers are consistently recognized by both state and national trial lawyer associations. Most of them have served in leadership positions. Many of them have served as Presidents.

Another advantage of choosing a Taos injury lawyer is that you know that your lawyer is committed to sharpening his/her skills. These lawyers meet to small group settings to share the things they’ve learned serving clients.

This collaboration among attorneys with vast experience, benefits all of their clients.

If you believe that you might benefit from discussing your situation with a local Taos injury lawyer, select your state to connect with a Taos injury lawyer near you.