The loss of a loved one is a difficult time in your life, to say the least. While you certainly have plenty of emotional challenges to work through at this time, you may also need to think about legal action. Depending on the circumstances surrounding the loss of your loved one, a wrongful death suit may be in order. If that is the case, hiring the best wrongful death lawyer for the job will be a crucial decision.
As you are getting ready to make this choice, keep the following points in mind.
Start Close and Expand
The best place to get a recommendation for a wrongful death attorney is from those closest to you. Does anyone you know in your personal or professional life have experience working with this type of representation? If so, that individual would be a great place to start. Ask them about their experience and whether or not they would recommend the lawyer they used for their case. Even if they would not recommend their own lawyer, they may be able to give you extra tips to use when finding your own.
Take to the Web
As you might imagine, the internet is the greatest resource you have available when it comes time to pick out a lawyer for yourself. First, you will want to find attorneys who work in your area and who specialize in wrongful death cases. Experience is important here, so be sure that wrongful death is specifically listed as one of the lawyer’s areas of expertise.
Through the process of searching the web, you should be able to identify at least a few options in the local area. From there, you should start reading reviews to get an idea of the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate. You can’t take everything you read online for the absolute truth, but these reviews should still give you a pretty good understanding of how each lawyer has performed in the past.
Make Some Calls (Or Send Some Emails)
When you are finished reading reviews and searching the web for options, it will be time to contact three or four lawyers for more information. Most likely, each of them will be willing to speak with you for no charge. During these meetings, you will want to gather as much information as possible. Of course, the lawyer will be gathering information from you as well, to decide whether or not your case is worth pursuing. Note: you don’t have to give up on the case if one attorney turns you down – it is always a good idea to check with several firms before you settle on a plan for moving forward.
Only when you have finished interviewing a few lawyers will you be ready to make a choice and proceed with your case. It is not a good idea to rush into this kind of important decision, so take your time and review all of the information available before you retain representation and get started.
