A personal injury lawyer is a lawyer who provides legal services to those who claim to have been injured, physically or psychologically, as a result of the negligence of another person, company, government agency or entity. Personal injury lawyers tend to practice especially in the field of law known as lawsuit lawsuits. Examples of common personal injury claims include injuries from slip and fall accidents, traffic crashes, defective products, workplace injuries, and professional malpractice.
The term "court lawyer" is sometimes used to refer to personal injury lawyers, although many other types of lawyers, including defense attorneys and prosecutors also appear in trials and although most personal injury claims are resolved without trial.
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Qualification
A personal injury lawyer must be eligible to practice law in the jurisdiction of the lawyer's office. In many states, they must also pass a written ethics exam.
Lawyers can take continuing legal education classes (CLE) to learn about legal developments or to learn about new areas of practice. In states requiring lawyers to attend CLE, personal injury lawyers may take CLE courses that are relevant to personal injury law, but are not required to do so.
United States
Some lawyers associations and lawyers' organizations offer certification, including attorney certification in the field of personal injury. Certification is not required to practice personal injury law, but it can help lawyers demonstrate knowledge in the field to potential clients. In the US, not all states offer certification for personal injury law. Some states, such as New Jersey, allow lawyers to become Certified Trial Lawyers, the credentials available to both plaintiffs and defense attorneys. Some states, such as Arizona, restrict the use of "specialist" or "specialize" words to attorneys who have been certified by the State Bar Board of Legal Specialization in a particular field of law, with one such certification in that area. personal injury law.
Maps Personal injury lawyer
Practice
Lawyers can concentrate their practice into specific legal areas, including personal injury law. Some lawyers may be more specialized in specific areas of personal injury, such as medical malpractice laws. By limiting the various cases they handle, personal injury lawyers can gain special knowledge and experience.
Client relations
Before accepting a new case, a personal injury lawyer will usually interview prospective clients and evaluate client cases to determine basic facts and potential legal claims that may be made, identify possible defendants, and evaluate case strengths. An attorney may refuse to accept a case if the lawyer believes that a legal claim will not be successful in court, if the litigation fee is expected to exceed the amount that can be recovered from the defendant as compensation for the injury to the client.
Compensation
Attorneys fees can be charged in a number of ways, including contingency fees, hourly rates, and fixed costs. In many countries, personal injury lawyers work primarily on contingency costs, sometimes called when-coming fees, in which the attorney receives a percentage of client recovery as a cost, but does not recover the cost if the claim is unsuccessful.
In some jurisdictions, or under a levy agreement between a lawyer and a client, the amount of legal fees may vary depending on whether a case precipitates before a lawsuit is filed, after the lawsuit is filed but before the trial, or if the case goes to court. For example, a punggawa agreement may specify that an attorney will receive a non-conformance fee of 33 and 1/3% if a case is settled before the lawsuit is filed, and a contingency fee of 40% if the case is resolved after the lawsuit has been filed.
Due to the high cost of litigation, personal injury lawyers are rarely retained to work on an hourly basis. However, defense lawyers hired to file personal injury claims are often paid every hour.
Ethics
An attorney should provide a diligent representation to the client, and the primary professional responsibility of a personal injury lawyer is to help the plaintiff get a fair compensation for their losses. Like all lawyers, the attorney-client relationship is governed by ethical rules.
In the United States, lawyers are governed by a code of conduct set by state bar associations, which have the power to take disciplinary action against lawyers who violate professional or ethical regulations. States usually require all contingent agreements between lawyers and their clients to be made in writing, and may limit the amount that may be imposed as contingent fees for a certain maximum percentage of recovery.
Organization
Although membership is not required for personal injury training, many personal injury lawyers join professional associations. As an example:
- American Bar Association - professional association dedicated to improving the legal system and providing accreditation for law schools and continuing legal education programs
- Personal Injury Lawyers Association - an association based in Nottingham, England; founded in 1990 by a personal injury lawyer on behalf of the accident victim
- The American Association of Justice - A lawyer association of courts established in 1946 by a group of plaintiffs lawyers who are committed to protecting the rights of victims. Prior to 2007, the organization was called the American Trial Lawyers Association, or ATLA.
Criticism
Critics of personal injury lawyers claim that litigation increases the cost of products and services, and the cost of doing business.
For example, critics of medical malpractice lawyers argue that lawsuits increase the cost of health care, and that lawsuits can inspire doctors to abandon medical practices or make shortages of doctors. This concern has not been proven properly. A publication by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found little evidence that traditional tort reforms affected the cost of medical or defensive treatment responsibilities. A bi-partisan study in Texas has found that tort reforms, once enacted have no impact on reducing the cost of medical care, are likely to cast doubt on claims made by tort reformists.
See also
- Ambulance chasing
- Pothole Committee and Great Apple Sidewalk Protection
- Culture of compensation
References
External links
- Personal Injury Lawyers Association
- The American Association for Justice
Source of the article : Wikipedia