Signs You May be About to Hire the Wrong Truck Accident Lawyer
No two cases are the same, and any lawyer who has been in the business for even a modest amount of time can tell you that sometimes cases are more unbelievable than fiction. That being said, it is wise to be careful if a truck accident lawyer is telling you the following things that rarely if ever occur in truck accident cases.
I am the Best Truck Accident Lawyer in the World
Claiming to be the “best lawyer” is about like claiming to sell the best green chile cheeseburger in the world. In all likelihood, the claim is complete nonsense and in reality there is no way to compare all lawyers and pick the single best one. Rather, each lawyer may bring a specific skill set to a truck accident case that may or may not be what the client is looking for.
For example, a lawyer who is magnificent in trial, but awful with writing and research may be a great lawyer for some cases, but a poor lawyer for others. By the same token, a lawyer who is an exceptional writer, but a poor trial lawyer may have the same limitations.
So what type of lawyer should you hire? Not surprisingly, it is difficult to choose. However, the truck accident lawyers at the Fine Law Firm implement a novel approach to truck accident cases. We begin by recognizing that each lawyer has certain strengths and weaknesses. From there, we combine our lawyer and handle truck accident cases based on a team approach. This means that through regular meetings and constant communication, we make sure that various tasks are handled by attorneys who perform best in that area. Using this team approach. we believe that our clients get the benefit of multiple attorneys, without having to pay a penny more.
Don’t Worry About how Long it Takes, We Have Lots of Time
It’s true that some truck accident cases are highly complex and can take years to resolve. However, these delays typically occur due to over worked judges who simply don’t have the ability to quickly accommodate everyone’s trial needs. This does not mean that a truck accident lawyer can sit back and take their time knowing that it may be a while before any trial. Instead, the reality is just the opposite. Truck accident cases often include various pieces of evidence that can quickly disappear if they are not preserved. This includes witness statements, photographs, driving logs, and data recording devices.
Often times it is wise to immediately send out a letter to the truck accident company letting them know that all evidence should be preserved. Similarly, it may also be necessary to quickly send out experts to view the scene and examine the vehicles before they are repaired or sold off for salvage.
A lawyer who tells a client that they have all the time in the world to wait may at best be buying time to learn more about truck accident cases, or at worst may simply be being lazy.
Semi Truck Accidents are Just Like Car Accidents Only Bigger
Yes, car accidents and truck accidents generally occur when one or two vehicles collide while moving. However, this can be where the similarities end. First, it is important to recognize that semitruck drivers are not like any other driver. They are trained professionals with unique laws governing their every move. Failure to understand these differences know the regulations they must follow can become an incredibly serious mistake. Second, unlike car accidents are various issues unique to truck accidents such as the record-keeping involved, the preservation of evidence, and the extensive federal regulations that make them infinitely more complex and involved. Saying that a truck accident is just like a car accident only bigger is similar to saying that building a house is just like hammering a nail only there are more nails to hammer.
You Need to pay Money to Cover the Costs of the Case
Although New Mexico laws may require that a client remain ultimately responsible for costs, in practice this means that a lawyer can advance all the costs related to a case however at the end be reimbursed. Just like an attorney fee, if the case is not successful then the lawyer may not have to go to the client and ask for the costs back.
In reality, most experienced firms are in a position that they can cover the costs associated with the investigation and handling of a truck accident case. When an attorney tells a client that they need to pay the costs as the case progresses it generally means one of two things, either the attorney is not sufficiently established to handle the case in an effective way, or the attorney does not believe that they will be successful at the end.
Typically, the truck accident lawyers at the Fine Law Firm understand that once they begin representing a case they will do so advancing all the necessary costs. This means that although we are very selective in the truck accident cases we take on, once we begin representation we do so on the belief that we are “all in.”
The Attorney fee Will go up and the Case Moves Forward
These days, many lawyers offer their clients sliding fee scales. This means that the more work the lawyer has to do, the higher a percentage fee they will take. For example, some lawyers may charge a 33% fee to begin with, and if they need to file a lawsuit increase the fee to 40%, and if they need to go to trial increase the fee to 50%.
Although this is becoming the standard, the truck accident attorneys at the Fine Law Firm cannot believe this is appropriate. Arguably, such a fee arrangement may encourage the lawyer to rush into litigation and file a lawsuit to satisfy their own interests rather than keeping their client’s interests as a number one priority.
We handle all of our truck accident cases on an industry low one third fee. By keeping our fee set, we are constantly pursuing our case to achieve the best possible result for our client regardless of whatever steps we must take along the way.