- Get a referral from a friend or co-worker who has had experience with attorneys in the past. Most times, you don’t have to look far to find a family member, friend, or co-worker who has had experience (good or bad) with an injury lawyer. If you come up empty with that effort, or if you don’t feel comfortable discussing your case with your “inner circle”, perhaps you have had contact with a divorce attorney, real estate, business, or some other type of attorney and can ask them for a referral to someone who devotes 100% of their practice to personal injury and cases.
- The yellow pages can be a good starting point to find potential attorneys but it doesn’t hold a candle to Google. You may see an ad with a lawyer’s picture on the Yellowpages, but you can’t research their BBB ratings, industry ratings, or look over their website to check their case results in the Yellow Pages. So search them out on the internet!
- With that in mind, look for someone who focuses on injury cases in your area. Keep in mind that while criminal and divorce attorneys frequently only take cases in their counties, or the counties immediately surrounding them, a good PI attorney will travel to you and they will be admitted to practice in all the courts across the entire state of Tennessee. Again, beware of the “Call Me Now” type ads or websites that scream at you for business. These lawyers are usually the ones that will take any case that comes through the door and who settle their client’s claims for pennies on the dollar. Don’t get caught in the volume trap!
- Pick your top 3 attorneys and then research them. Check their website (is it professional?), check their biography (do they have extensive experience in your type of accident?), check their case results (do they win for their clients?) and then search for them online. Do they have an A+ Better Business Bureau rating? Do they have high ratings by industry watchdog groups like AVVO or Martindale Hubbell (sites where an attorney cannot BUY a good rating). Then rate them from 1 to 3 and call them for a phone consultation or appointment
- Check to make sure they are Board Certified Trial Specialist. On our website, we have our certification badge there for you to click through and confirm our status, but you may have to call and check with an attorney if it’s not listed on their site. Remember, if an attorney isn’t a trial lawyer, the insurance company will KNOW you have a settlement attorney when they see your case and will negotiate with you accordingly!
- Make sure the attorney you choose is well respected by his or her peers. Check Martindale Hubbell and AVVO for peer ratings. Also, does the attorney do speaking engagements to other attorneys? The fact that they do is always a good sign that attorney is respected in his/her area of law by other attorneys. Keith always enjoys traveling to different states and industry groups to talk to other attorneys about the latest laws affecting injury cases, or how to find the best expert witnesses, or how to maximize damages for their clients, etc. Also, has the attorney written a book on the topic of injury law?
- Beware of any lawyer that solicits you. Be very cautious of lawyers who contact you either by phone or by mail after you have experienced an injury. You don’t want a lawyer who needs to do this to survive. I have no respect for these lawyers who give legitimate attorneys a bad name. If a lawyer engages in this unethical behavior, it might give some indication how he or she would perform in your case.
- Most Important! Choose an attorney you are comfortable with. Does the attorney seem credible and trustworthy? Is this the type of person you want to trust your case with? Does the staff seem friendly and knowledgeable (because you will probably be dealing with the attorney’s paragelal quite a bit during the process of preparing your case!). You hopefully will only have this one case in your lifetime—so making the right decision on an attorney to help you on this one case is extremely important. Therefore, take the time to find the right attorney for you!