1. A lawyer that will communicate with you, listen to your concerns, take your phone calls, and inform their office staff on the details of your case so you can talk with someone even when your lawyer is unavailable. This is what our office and the network of personal injury attorneys with whom we work will do.

We are committed to working for our clients and ensuring that they understand their case and the steps that we are taking on their behalf. We work with a network of Missouri personal injury attorneys who care about their clients and communicate with them, and if you need help finding a personal injury lawyer outside our main geographic area of practice, we will give you a free consultation to help you find the right attorney for you.

2. Working with an attorney who often handles these types of cases will boost your chances of winning a fair settlement. Someone who handles these cases on an ongoing basis know the laws surrounding personal injury cases in Missouri, recent settlements, how jurors in Missouri respond to personal injury cases, and many more of the specific details that are vital to your case.

3. It is important to thoroughly prepare your personal injury case from the beginning, preparing the matter for the assumption that it will have to go to trial. A common mistake that many lawyers make is to take too many clients in the assumption that they can be easily settled for “easy money,” and then the lawyer does not have time to adequately prepare any of his or her cases, where all of them end up undervalued when they are settled. Many attorneys do not know, or underestimate, how much work is involved in personal injury cases, many of which have to ultimately go to trial.

In order to be prepared and fight for the best settlement the case must be approached as if trial were imminent. The more work that is done on the front end, the more prepared your attorney will be to fight for you and your best interests. While many cases are ultimately settled, the attorney who thoroughly prepares each and every case with the expectation that it will go to trial will get you the most compensation for your case possible, regardless of whether the case is eventually tried or settled.

Most of the best settlements come when the insurance adjuster realizes that your attorney is prepared and ready to go to trial. When the adjuster is presented with the well prepared evidence in your case which lays out for them clearly why if they do not settle you might get even more money at trial, you get truly fair compensation in settlement without trial. Insurance adjusters will “low ball” claims made by attorneys which are obviously not well thought out or where the attorney is looking for settlement and not ready for trial, knowing that that he will likely take whatever offer is given, making you ultimately settle for less than you would otherwise be entitled to if your case was properly worked up.

4. You want a lawyer who understands the law and all of the elements which must be proven in a personal injury case. He or she should be able to articulate to you clearly a plan for you to proceed with your case. What has to be proven to win at trial should be clearly explained. Potential problems with your case should be discussed thoroughly, including defenses that the other side will make in an attempt to minimize your claim.

For instance, the attorney that you are interviewing or about to hire must be able to explain to you the importance of separating out prior injuries from those related to this case. Only previous injuries that were made worse by this incident are relevant to your case. Your attorney should not waste time or money looking into injuries that will not benefit your case.

5. Your attorney should explain to you that under Missouri law, there may be multiple parties responsible, or considered legally liable, for your injuries. Similarly, you may be able to “stack” various insurance policies to legally claim coverage from multiple sources.

6. The attorney should explain to you the statute of limitations on your claim, and how long you have to proceed before you are “time barred” from asserting a claim under Missouri law. It is vital that you file suit on all parties before the statute of limitations time runs out if you are “close to the wire.”

7. Your attorney must be realistic about your case—this means regarding both the work involved and the value of your case. An attorney who knows this work has the ability to tell you honestly what your case is worth. They also know how much work must be put into the case and how quickly that work needs to begin. Lawyers who do not often handle personal injury cases are not aware of the front tail work involved in these types of cases, and often hurt their clients by trying to quickly settle as many as possible for easy money. Having an attorney from our network of personal injury attorneys in Missouri will offer you a realistic picture of what you can expect and what they can do for you.

8. Your attorney should advise you of the out-of-pocket expenses and costs associated with your type of claim. Under most contingent fee agreements, clients do not pay anything unless they recover money for their injuries. However, you should discuss with your attorneys how much money they are willing or able to apply to your case to make sure that it is adequately prepared in a way that will be most favorable to you. Most attorneys will not charge costs and out-of-pocket expenses for cases, but many also do not have the ability to carry the expense of hiring expert witnesses or conducting depositions, and many personal injury cases will be undervalued if just settled without such “tools” being utilized, particularly with cases involving traumatic injuries. You lawyer must be able to basically finance a lot of expense for expert witnesses and other costs if you are able to properly prepare your case, and many are not capable of doing so.