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Personal Injury Legal Directory does not dispense legal advice. We urge accident victims to contact licensed attorneys by clicking on links to their websites and/or their email addresses listed on our directory pages. Normally, plaintiff attorneys agree to evaluate accident claims in an initial meeting without cost or obligation. If a lawyer accepts a case, it is customary to work on a contingency basis. This means the law firm will be paid based on a percentage of the financial recovery from either a settlement or jury award. An insurance representative may try to assure you that contacting a lawyer is unnecessary. Beware. The insurance company's foremost motive is to minimize whatever they have to expend on an injury claim. Without a lawyer protecting your rights, insurance companies will likely offer far less money to settle your claim. And, depending on your injury, you may continue to experience pain or disability due to the accident for years into the future. Plaintiff lawyers have experience and perspective in evaluting the future financial needs of injured people from all walks of life. Insurance companies would prefer to hastily settle for a lump sum, paid on the condition the claimant can never receive another dime for his or her injury. Any hestitation in seeking the help of a competent lawyer can be a costly mistake. Evidence can be lost. Memories of witnesses to an accident can fade. Witnesses may move away. Medical bills may pile up in your mailbox while the insurance company squabbles over liability. To protect your rights following an accident, it is imperative to get a legal opinion on your case from a qualified personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Often, if you cannot physically travel to see a lawyer, one will arrange to come visit you. Finally, do not be discouraged if there is no immediate and satisfactory resolution to your case. As with your physical recovery following an accident, the financial recovery often takes months or even years to complete. You may never need to go to court to settle your claim, but a good lawyer should be willing to take your case all the way to court if he or she determines the other side's offer is inadequate for what has happened to you, what you have had to endure and what long-term impact your accident may have on your ability to earn a living. For answers to some practical questions commonly asked of personal injury lawyers by accident victims, please see our Frequently Asked Questions page.
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