Finding an injury lawyer that is right for you, and your case is critical to a good outcome. How do you that? There are so many injury lawyers to choose from. Hopefully, this list will help you find your injury lawyer in Birmingham Metro, Shelby County, Alabama and the Panama City, Florida area today.
Fortunately, personal injury lawyers in Birmingham, Alabaster, Pelham, Montevallo, Calera, Alabama and Panama City, Panama City Beach, Destin, Fort Walton, and Port Saint Joe, Florida, are in abundance. You can’t sling a cat without hitting one. They can all provide legal guidance if you have been injured by someone else’s actions.
- Search Specifically for a Personal Injury Lawyer
Not all lawyers are injury lawyers. Some lawyers only handle criminal cases or divorce cases. You should search for a lawyer that has experience and specializes in injury cases. Smaller firms, like Davidson Law, often do handle other types of cases but our focus for the past twenty-five years is personal injury law.
Focus your online search for the kind of incident that caused your injury as well, such as:
- Motor vehicle crashes
- Medical malpractice
- Dog bites
- Slip and falls
- Motorcycle crashes
- Pedestrian and bicycles
- Product defects
You can also go “old school” by asking for recommendations from family, friends, or others you know. Considering how common the above incidents are, it’s highly likely you know someone who also had to seek a lawyer for Birmingham, Alabaster, Pelham, Montevallo, Calera, Alabama and Panama City, Panama City Beach, Destin, Fort Walton, and Port Saint Joe, Florida, legal advice regarding their injury case.
- Confirm the Lawyer’s Experience in Handling Cases Like Yours
Once you have a list of some personal injury attorneys, visit their website and review information about the specific cases they handle. For instance, suppose you experienced injuries in a tractor-trailer crash. You want to make sure the personal injury lawyer you choose has experience in tractor-trailer crashes, not just car accidents. You also want to check their courtroom and trial experience. Insurance companies know which lawyers are good in court and which ones are not.
- Verify the Lawyer’s Good Bar Standing
All active lawyers in Florida and Alabama must be members of their State’s Bar Association. It may go without saying, but you want your lawyer to be in good standing with their State Bar, which indicates they adhere to stringent legal codes and have no history of misconduct. So, once you have a list of prospects, search for their name on the Florida Bar or Alabama Bar website by searching the Find a Lawyer or the Member Directory. Their disciplinary history is located in their profile. You probably want to avoid anyone with a disciplinary history. Brian Davidson is licensed to practice and is a member in good standing with both the Florida and Alabama Bar Associations with no disciplinary history in either State.
- Look for a Lawyer Offering Free Case Evaluations or Consultations
You need to interview lawyers for your case. Not all injury lawyers are a good fit for all clients. The best way to do this is to schedule an evaluation or consultation, so you can see for yourself their:
- Personality
- Professionalism
- Credibility
I don’t know any injury lawyer that does not offer a free consultation or evaluation of your case. Davidson Law has been doing free consultations and evaluations of injury cases since 1999. If I can’t help you, or if we aren’t a good fit for each other, I’ll try and get you with someone in my network who is.
During the consultation, the attorney, not a paralegal, secretary, or intake person should:
- Listen carefully and attentively to you and ask questions.
- Explain things in plain language that you understand.
- Tell you what you need to hear with no beating around the bush.
- You should feel comfortable and not like it’s a sales pitch.
- Never make claims promising your case will be 100% successful or big promises.
- Provide relevant information and guidance regarding the details of your case.
- Inform you of the law, how a case typically goes, what to expect, and how they’ll prove the case.
This list goes for during the case as well. If you are ever not comfortable with your injury lawyer, you have the right in Alabama and Florida to seek a new lawyer. Some red flags would be that you can’t ever talk to or meet with your lawyer, they are rude or demeaning, emails go unanswered, or they delay your case unreasonably.
- Hire a Lawyer Offering a Contingency Fee
A contingency fee is a “no-win, no-fee” payment structure. The TV/billboard lawyers brag about this incessantly but it is the standard for all injury lawyers and in some cases like Social Security Disability and Workers’ Compensation it is the law.
Contingency fees vary and are a percentage of the money recovered. For example, if the rate is 30%, and your lawyer successfully recovers $100,000 on your behalf, you’ll pay them $30,000. Depending on your lawyer, the amount you pay your lawyer may include or exclude other necessary charges, such as court costs and filing fees. These case costs are fairly standard in contingency fee contracts.
Florida’s contingency fees are set by law and start at one-third and go to forty percent depending on what happens with the case. There are also rules reducing the percentage in recoveries over a million dollars. Alabama’s contingency fees are not regulated. They usually range from one-third to fifty percent of the recovery plus the case costs.
- Hire Davidson Law for Your Personal Injury Case
Searching specifically for a personal injury lawyer, confirming they specialize in cases like yours, and verifying they have a good standing with the Florida or Alabama Bar are crucial steps to finding the best attorney for your injury case in Birmingham, Alabaster, Pelham, Montevallo, Calera, Alabama and Panama City, Panama City Beach, Destin, Fort Walton, and Port Saint Joe, Florida.
Fortunately, you no longer have to search far and wide for a personal injury attorney who meets all the qualifications in this guide. At Davidson Law, Brian Davidson has over 25 years of experience handling personal injury, Social Security Disability, and workers’ compensation cases. Brian Davidson has recovered millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for his clients. Additionally, as a solo practitioner your case receives the personal attention it needs, and I am always available if you need to speak or meet with me. My network of injury lawyers across Alabama, Florida, and the United States means I have access to some of the best injury lawyers anywhere to team up with to handle any size case.
Give us a call or schedule an appointment online today!
