Welcome to Part 3 of “How Do I Find the Right Personal Injury Attorney?” Hopefully you’ve had a chance to read Part 1 (Introduction) and Part 2 (Seek Referrals) of this 6-part blog.

To continue your quest for the best personal injury attorney in your area after your car accident or other personal injury, review the web sites of the personal injury attorneys who have been recommended to you.

Here are four important points to look for on each web site.

  1. The attorney’s practice must focus on personal injury law and trial law:#1.  Personal Injury Law. As explained in previous blogs, a personal injury lawyer represents clients who have been involved in a personal injury.  A personal injury is a physical, mental, or emotional injury commonly caused by the negligence, wrong-doing, or mistake of another party. Examples: motor vehicle accidents, malpractice, dog bites, slips and falls, wrongful death, product defect injury, assault, and construction site injuries.
    #2. Trial Law. It’s critical to you and your case that the personal injury lawyer has an ongoing successful track record in trial law. After all, your personal injury case could go before a jury in a court of law—if the at-fault insurance company won’t be fair and reasonable during negotiations.Your personal injury attorney must be willing and capable to go the distance with you from beginning to end. If that means going to the courtroom to get justice and your rightful compensation, then that’s what your attorney must be positioned and ready to do.

    Furthermore, a personal injury lawyer with a consistent track record of successful jury trials is more likely to be highly experienced and skilled in negotiating with insurance companies.

  2. The attorney’s three top priorities must be you, your recovery, and your rightful compensation (in that order):
    #1 Priority: You.Does the web site give you the sense you are the personal injury attorney’s top priority? Do you get the feeling that you may be able to depend upon that attorney to lead you through the aftermath of your personal injury and minimize for you the compounded stresses while successfully resolving your case? Will the attorney treat you like you’re his number one priority and protect you and fight hard for you from your first conversation to the successful closing of your claim?#2 Priority: Your recovery.

    Often times the victim’s recovery becomes the sole responsibility of the victim, who may know little or nothing about his injury, doctors, appropriate treatment, healthcare bills, and insurance companies. How stressful and frustrating for you, the victim, especially when you’re recovering from a car accident and your health, future, and case are at stake.

    From the moment you hire a personal injury attorney to the resolution of your claim, the personal injury attorney is responsible for coordinating, managing, and overseeing your recovery.

    Your attorney should prove invaluable for helping you find the right doctors and healthcare professionals, monitoring the effectiveness of treatment protocols, changing doctors if necessary for a quicker, more complete recovery, making sure the bills get paid, and keeping close tabs on your maximum insurance coverage.

    It’s your responsibility to hold your personal injury attorney accountable for his or her major part in your recovery and to follow his or her recommendations.

    Your attorney following through with his responsibility in your recovery is absolutely critical to the success of your case.

    Does the web site emphasize the importance of that personal injury attorney’s role in your recovery?

    #3 Priority: Your rightful compensation for all damages, injuries, and losses.

    The personal injury attorney you choose must protect you and be willing to fight hard and smart for you and your rightful compensation. He must competently and confidently negotiate with the at-fault insurance company all the way to the courtroom if that’s what it takes for you to get your rightful compensation for all injuries, damages, and losses caused by the recklessness of someone else.

    Does that come across loud and clear on the web site you’re looking at?

  3. The personal injury attorney must serve personal injury victims in your state and county. We, at Urquia Law, protect and fight for the injured in these counties in Washington State: Clallam, Jefferson, Kitsap, King, Snohomish, Pierce, Thurston, Skagit, Mason, and Island.
  4. How well does the attorney communicate with you?
    • Is it easy to get in touch with the attorney?
    • Does the attorney you called or emailed from his or her web site get back to you within 24 hours?
    • What kind of feeling do you get from the attorney when he or she first contacts you? If you feel comfortable, so far so good.
    • Later on, after you hire an attorney, does he or she keep you well informed at all times? Does he or she return all phone calls and emails within 24 hours or leave you wondering, frustrated, and/or in the dark?

After you peruse the web sites of recommended attorneys and make your final list of personal injury attorneys to contact, the next step (Part 4) is to call each attorney for an initial meeting or consultation. This meeting is your opportunity to find out as much as you can about the attorney by asking a list of prepared questions (Part 5 of this blog).

Onward to Part 4 of 6 Parts: Make the First Phone Calls and Schedule Initial Consultations/Interviews with Prospective Personal Injury Attorneys.

In case you’ve missed any part of this 6-part blog, here’s an overview:

“How Do I Find the Right Personal Attorney after My Personal Injury?”