Blog

General

• Three Injured in Wichita when Speeding Motorist Runs Red Light and Hits Ambulance

View All

How Do I Find the Best Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer for My Missouri or Kansas Accident Injury Claim?

Finding the right Kansas City personal injury attorney for your Missouri or Kansas personal injury claim can seem like a daunting task but you just need to know where to look. There is so much good information about how to find the right Kansas City personal injury lawyer for your Missouri and Kansas accident claim that we could write a book. In fact, we have. If you want to know everything there is about how to choose the right Kansas City personal injury lawyer for your Missouri or Kansas personal accident injury claim, contact our office for your FREE book, "THE TRUTH ABOUT LAYWER ADVERTISING." In the meantime, here is the basic outline of our system to help you find the right Kansas City personal injury attorney. These common sense pointers that will get your Kansas City personal injury attorney search started on the right foot:

Step 1. Forget about lawyer advertisements for awhile (ads that tout nothing but meaningless phrases such as "we fight for you" are useless)

Step 2. Start to learn about your legal problem (unlike "the old days," you can now search the internet and many helpful sites for general information about your particular legal problem)

Step 3. Start gathering names of potential Kansas City personal injury attorneys (good sources include personal knowledge, someone you know who has used a lawyer, the internet [informative sites with a lot of information, NOT glorified phone book ads])

Step 4. Call and ask for written information (as with any high-priced consumer item, you're often better off doing your initial research from home, avoiding initial high-pressure sales tactics

Step 5. Review the information sent to you (get a feel from this info as to whether you might feel comfortable with the lawyer/law firm

Step 6. Narrow your search and schedule an appointment (there is no substitute for an in-person interview. No matter how experienced or successful they are, you have to fee comfortable and trust them)

Step 7. Ask the right questions (the best attorneys and the most successful Kansas City personal injury attorneys may have a line of people looking to hire them and may be selective in types of cases they will handle. They will not be insulted by questions. Rather, they will welcome them because it shows you are taking steps to educate yourself). Some good questions include:

1. How many years have you been in practice?
2. Do you have actual experience handling my particular Missouri or Kansas personal injury case?
3. What is the process for handling my case?
4. What is the hardest part about my case?
5. Who in your office will be working on my case?
6. How will you keep me informed about my case?
7. Where can I read about your other cases?
8. Have you won any large verdicts or settlements?
9. Do you carry malpractice insurance?
10. Are you an active member of any state or national trial lawyer organizations?
11. Do you represent any insurance companies at all? You really need to know where their interests lie. Some lawyers do most of their work for the insurance companies. This may suit you just fine. For others, the appearance of bias would be too much.
12. Do you represent any corporations (besides “mom and pop” local businesses)? Again, if you are calling about an injury case, you may want to find an attorney who is passionate about representing individuals – not big businesses.
13. Can I take a copy of the written fee agreement home with me to study? (There is no “standard” fee and no standard fee agreement. Do not assume that if you have seen one, you have seen them all.)
14. If you are looking for an injury, disability or malpractice attorney, ask, “Do you spend at least 90% of your time representing individuals against insurance companies in injury, disability and malpractice cases?”
15. Do you regularly attend Continuing Legal Education courses in your area of expertise?
16. Do you teach Continuing Legal Education courses to other lawyers?
17. Can you provide me with testimonials from other clients who have been happy with your services?
18. Have you published any articles, guides or books for consumers or other attorneys?

Step 8. Assess the meetings you have had and review the info you have obtained (reflect on your meetings. How do you feel about the lawyers you met? Did they make you feel comfortable? Did they answer your questions? Did you feel pressured? Did you learn anything about your situation that you did not know before?)

While there are certainly many opinions on the “most important” factors to consider when hiring a lawyer, we believe that the top four are as follows:

1. Consistent results in the past: Yes, “past results are no guarantee of future results,” but the lack of consistent results by way of settlement or trial in the past should be a warning sign.
2. Experience: Simply put, the longer you have been doing anything, the better you probably are at doing it.
3. Testimonials: Happy clients are indicative of the time and effort an attorney has put into a case. The ability to point to happy former clients is an important consideration for anyone seeking an attorney.
4. Comfort Level: Your comfort level with an attorney is vital. The trust factor between you and your attorney is an important key to the success of your case.

Step 9. Make Your Selection! Now that you have done the hard work required, you are ready to make your selection. Although there is no absolute guaranty of success when you choose, (remember the “Disclaimer”) I am certain that you will feel far more confident at this point with your choice than had you simply chosen an attorney on the basis of what is contained in a Yellow phone directory, TV ad or lawyer directory service.

For complete information about how to find the right Kansas City personal injury attorney, download our FREE book, "The Truth About Lawyer Advertising".

For a FREE consultation with no obligation, contact Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys at 816-471-5111.

Just Ask

Free Consumer Guides

Testimonials

• I’m highly satisfied, I would call Victor again. I needed his help, and he has been a great attorney. I’m very comfortable recommending victor to other clients. Now that I’m happy with how much he’s helped me, I’m definitely recommending him to anyone that needed his help.
• Heather was very nice and polite and very informative. Heather was very responsive when I asked her questions and very informative. Yes, she was very aggressive with the insurance company. She was very aggressive trying to get a higher amount. Yes she was very nice. She is very informative and knows what she is doing.
• It was great to work with Heather, she kept me informed about everything, the dos and the don’ts and what everything was and kept me on track. she was very professional she told you what was going on, she kept you a breast of everything that was going on, she was an excellent lawyer. Ms Heather and the whole staff at the Accident Injury firm, I would recommend them to anybody across the world, that they are excellent, honest attorneys.

View All

Latest News

• Posted on 5/2/2012Kansas City Highway More Dangerous because of Constant Construction
• Posted on 4/30/2012One Dead and 17 Injured after Storm Blows over Tents Outside St. Louis Busch Stadium

View All

FAQs

General

• Are there any defenses against negligence?

View All