Finding The Right Attorney for Medical Malpractice

After suffering a serious injury due to medical malpractice, the last thing you want to do is spend time searching for an attorney. Medical malpractice or negligence often results in terrible injuries, sometimes which can never be undone or even death. Medical bills can skyrocket and you could be left to foot the bill. This is why it’s important to make sure you find a medical malpractice attorney who can help you in your specific case.

Finding Local Attorneys

If you don’t even know where to begin, the first thing you should do is find names of lawyers near you. Gather a list of the names of the lawyers you come across so that you can do some research on them later. There are plenty of places you can begin.

Commercials on TV and the radio are sure to have beaten the names of local attorneys into your head. Many people often assume that attorneys who advertise in this manner are dime-a-dozen, and in some cases this might be true, but it’s not always a fact. Make note of them anyway. Also, take note of attorneys advertising on billboards and bench ads.

Next, try searching online. Choose your favorite search engine, for example Google.com or Bing.com, and type in a few related searches. Since you are searching for a local medical malpractice lawyer, try searching for terms such as “New Jersey Medical Malpractice Attorney.” You’ll obviously be switching the state and city names to where you are located and you can also replace “attorney” with “lawyer” for various results.

Other places to look online include “Review” sites, for example Google Maps, Angie’s List, Yelp and attorney specific sites such as Avvo.com. These are great places to find lawyers nearby and read customer reviews as well. Keep in mind that customer reviews can vary greatly and aren’t usually a good indicator of the experience of an attorney or how skilled they may be.

Lastly, ask your friends and relatives. Someone you know may have used a medical malpractice attorney before and can provide you with their experiences working with them. Referrals can be a great place to find an attorney for your case.

Background Research

By this point, you should have done quite a bit of research already. You may have even narrowed down your choices to a few attorneys you have a good feeling about and if not, go ahead and do that. Now is the time to start doing some background research. You want to make sure you can trust your attorney and that they have experience working on specific types of cases such as yours.

One of the first places you can check is their rating on Avvo.com. You may have already reviewed their ratings during your previous research, but if not, the Avvo rating is a mathematical model used to evaluate lawyers based on background, years in practice, disciplinary history, professional achievements and recognition in the industry. While not perfect, it can help you break your list down further. You can also check Lawyers.com, which is a highly trusted source for finding legal counsel. Here you’ll be able to find information such as the law schools they have attended, the date they graduated, date of birth, specific areas of expertise, articles or books they’ve written and much more.

Lastly, you’ll want to try calling your state or local bar association. They can usually provide plenty of information about the lawyers you are interested in. Some state bar websites even have information directly on their site so you can review it online.

Interviewing Your Lawyer

Your list should be quite small by this point and you’re going to have to start meeting and interviewing the attorneys you are interested in to make sure they can help you. Prepare a list of things you would like to talk about before talking to them so you are sure to cover all bases. Leave room on your notepad to make notes of their answers for review and comparison later.

Some questions you can ask:

What is their record of medical malpractice cases won/loss in court?

How many cases have been won vs. settled?

How long have they been practicing in the medical malpractice field?

What is their role in the firm?

Will portions of your case be assigned to others in the firm?

Do they have any conflicts of interest related to your case?

What is the estimate amount of monetary damages you may receive?

How much do they charge and will they accept payment in increments?

Approximately how long will the case take to resolve?

How much support is offered to you by the firm during the case?

Will you have to make court appearances?

How often will they be available to answer your questions?

How does your attorney use their time (court, vacation, conferences, etc.)?

Talk to them about your specific case and how they think they can help you. What does the attorney think can be done? What is their history with cases like yours? You may even want to ask them what their process is like.

After your interview is complete, go home and review your notes. Compare the notes with any other attorney interviews you may have done and carefully consider the attorney you would like to represent your case. Last but not least, be certain you are comfortable with your choice, because you’ll be working very closely with them from here on out and you don’t want any doubts weighing on your mind.

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