Does the attorney I choose really make a difference to my case?

A: Finding a qualified personal injury attorney is extremely important.  The decision should certainly NOT be based solely on advertising.  The Yellow Pages are all filled with ads - and if you look at them they are all virtually identical: "Free Consultation", "We Come To You", and "No Recovery No Fee" as if that is different than what every personal injury attorney does!  Some people shout louder than others, but all the messages are the same.  Slick TV and radio commercials (although most of them are not slick, they are just dreadfully boring) can be purchased by anyone, and again all say the same thing:  "Hire me!  I will fight for you!  I am agressive!"  YOU SHOULD NOT EVEN HIRE ME until you determine that I can do a good job for you, and advertising DOES NOT help you figure that out.

So how do you find a good local St. Petersburg attorney who is best suited for you and your case?  I believe there are certain questions to ask that will lead you to the best person for your case - no matter what type of claim you have.  It might involve a little time and effort on you part, but hey, the decision as to who your attorney will be is very important.

In my opinion, the world of personal injury is far too complicated for lawyers who do not routinely handle these claims and go to trial.  Further, PERSONAL INJURY CLAIMS, more than most areas of the law, require years of experience.  Not all lawyers have the same training.  Warren Burger, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court once warned "a lawyer is not qualified, simply by virtue of admission to the bar, to be an advocate in trial courts for matters of serious consequence."  Unfortunately, I have seen this far too often when I have been asked to review cases that other inexperienced or incompetent attorneys have attempted to handle.  Also, you must realize that the insurance companies that I routinely fight against, all keep track of which attorneys in your area actually go to court and try cases and those that do not.  If you are represented by an attorney that settles all his cases and never goes to trial, why should the insurance company give you a fair settlement.  They are not affraid of your attorney taking them to court, so they can just wait for the eventual phone call from the attorney and settle for a low amount.  Take a look at my article "How Do You Find the Right Lawyer to Represent You" or order my book "Don't Wreck Your Injury Case".