Did you ever hear the saying, “A lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client”? This is a popular sentiment for several reasons. First, lawyers have specialties and if they’re not a specialist in the pertinent area of law, they are not much more prepared than a non-lawyer. Also, a lawyer who has skin in the game, so to speak, who has a vested interest in the case going one way will find it hard to look at the case objectively. And if you cannot see both sides of the case, you will have a hard time defending against the arguments posed by the other side.
It’s not such a stretch then to say that a non-lawyer who represents himself is foolish.
Simply put: If you suffered an injury in Philadelphia, you should not represent yourself in your personal injury lawsuit. Read on to learn why you should hire a personal injury lawyer in Philadelphia to represent you in your Philadelphia personal injury case.
YOU WILL BE ABLE TO FILE THE LAWSUIT IN TIME
In every personal injury case, time is of the essence. If your Philadelphia personal injury lawyer does not act efficiently and swiftly, you could lose the opportunity to file a lawsuit at all! You need to hire an experienced attorney who appreciates the time-sensitive nature of your personal injury claim.
Pennsylvania law allows you two years from when you knew or should have known that your injury was the result of the defendants’ negligence. In the case of a deceased party, Pennsylvania law allows you two years from the official death date to file a wrongful death personal injury lawsuit. There are some additional exceptional rules that only experienced personal injury lawyers know, which is why it’s crucial to hire one to investigate your case.
YOU’LL BE ABLE TO RETAIN CRUCIAL EVIDENCE BEFORE THE DEFENDANT DESTROYS IT
An experienced personal injury attorney knows what actions must be taken early in the process such as ordering medical records; reviewing police reports; and collecting witness statements, photographs, and videos. The presence or absence of these crucial forms of evidence could determine whether your lawsuit is successful or not.
Much of the critical evidence is in the possession of the defendant and if those items aren’t requested early in the process, the defendant could destroy them.
Thus, you need a Philadelphia personal injury attorney to preserve any and all necessary evidence.
YOUR LIKELIHOOD OF SUCCESS IS INCREASED SUBSTANTIALLY
An experienced personal injury attorney will have tried at least dozens of cases in an actual courtroom. With each case, the Philadelphia personal injury attorney becomes more and more capable because they learn something new every time. And not only do you want an attorney who has tried many personal injury cases, but you want an attorney who has tried many negligence cases successfully. So it’s not just experience, per se, that matters – success rate is important as well.
Needless to say, if an inexperienced personal injury lawyer will likely be less successful than an experienced personal injury lawyer, certainly someone without a law degree at all will be even less successful.
YOUR COMPLAINT WILL INCLUDE ALL NECESSARY CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION
A Philadelphia personal injury attorney evaluates the case with knowledge of all possible causes of action and claims for damages. For example, here <hyperlink to categories of compensation in birth injury case> are the various forms of compensation you can collect in a Philadelphia medical malpractice case in the context of a birth injury. Also, there are special statutes in Pennsylvania that apply to certain cases. An experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney knows which statutes apply to your case and how to craft your claim in the way that puts you in the best position to win.
A PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER WILL HIRE THE RIGHT (AND BEST) EXPERTS
In many cases, a personal injury lawsuit is complicated and requires expert review and analysis. Your personal injury lawyer in Philadelphia has access to the best experts in the country. They will ensure that the most appropriate and qualified experts review your case. And they will ensure that those experts write an ironclad report to bolster your claim in court.
THERE’S NO COST TO HIRE A PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY
It’s very possible that someone else is responsible for your injuries. Either through their actions or inactions, someone else caused you to suffer an injury. The only way to truly know whether someone else played a part in your injuries is to hire a Philadelphia personal injury attorney. Your attorney will investigate the facts leading up to your injuries and make a professional determination as to whether the other person was negligent and thus liable to you for your injuries.
Your attorney will gather evidence that is critical to your case. If you were injured in a slip and fall, your attorney might collect building records, weather history, janitorial schedules, etc. If you were injured in a car accident, your attorney might gather auto mechanic invoices, cell phone records, and the defendants’ driving records.
And after all that, if your personal injury lawyer determines that there is no negligence that caused your injury and there is no one to sue, you won’t lose any money. Your attorney undergoes all that investigation at zero initial cost to you.
A PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER KNOWS THE VALUE OF YOUR CASE AND WILL HELP YOU COLLECT THE HIGHEST AWARD
People tend to (wrongly) think they can keep things simple by handling everything by themselves. They don’t want to get lawyers involved because they worry that there are hidden costs or that it will take too much effort or time. When you file a claim with your insurance company, the insurance company may try to convince you that they can handle everything. More often than not, an insurance company will undervalue your case. In other words, they will tell you that they can only collect a certain amount of money (because that is the maximum amount they’d be able to collect for you). Whatever amount the insurance company tells you is typically far less than what a Philadelphia personal injury lawyer can collect for you.
Your personal injury lawyer in Philadelphia knows how to build a case that is designed to help compensate you for your suffering and make sure that you get the most money possible for your injuries.
To find an experienced personal injury attorney in Philadelphia to represent you, contact the attorneys at VSCP Law.