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How to Choose the Best Personal Injury Lawyer

Dedicated Accident Attorneys Serving Syracuse and Surrounding Communities

After you are injured in an accident, whether it is a car crash, a slip and fall, or a construction accident, you may be concerned about how you will pay your bills and provide for your family. Most people do not have enough saved up in case of a serious accident. It can be challenging to choose the best personal injury lawyer. There are numerous attorneys, but they are not all equally capable of handling a personal injury lawsuit. The attorney whom you choose can have a substantial impact on the amount of damages that you are able to recover, either in a settlement or in a verdict. At DeFrancisco & Falgiatano, our Syracuse personal injury lawyers have helped many seriously injured clients obtain damages from the parties responsible for their injuries.

How to Choose the Best Lawyer for Your Personal Injury Case

It is important to choose an attorney whom you can trust. One way to find the best attorney for you is to look at an attorney’s biography and specifically examine their experience in personal injury law. There are attorneys who practice exclusively in the area of personal injury, or they may couple their personal injury practice with medical malpractice and wrongful death cases. Generally, these attorneys know the insurers who may be handling your claim, and they have developed a reputation among insurers. It is critical to choose a personal injury attorney who has a solid reputation and who is respected by insurers.

Often, attorneys who restrict their practice to catastrophic injuries and wrongful death have very strong reputations, particularly if they have a record of success. Their website may reveal the sizes of their settlements and verdicts. They may belong to the prestigious Million Dollar Advocates Forum or the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Membership in these groups is restricted to trial attorneys who have won million-dollar and multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements.

Word of Mouth

Some people choose their personal injury attorney based on an advertisement. However, the outcome of a personal injury lawsuit can have significant and long-lasting consequences, particularly when catastrophic injuries form the basis of the case. You should also talk to friends and family members about whether they have retained a personal injury attorney and what the outcome of their case was.

It can be important to check with the state bar association to make sure that any attorney whom you are seriously considering is in good standing with the bar. It may be helpful to review the attorneys' Martindale Hubbell ratings, as well as their Avvo ratings. It is worth considering any honors or awards earned by the personal injury attorneys whom you are interested in hiring. You should make a list of a handful of personal injury attorneys based on your research and inquiries, and then you can make calls to set up free consultations with each of them.

Personal Injury Attorney Biographies

Reviewing the attorney biographies and website should give you a good idea as to the extent of the experience and results the attorney has achieved. While attorneys cannot guarantee results for your case, the best personal injury attorneys will prominently show their biography and past results on their website. Another important factor is the attorney’s experience and reputation in the courtroom.

Experienced attorneys also know claims adjusters. If your attorney has a good reputation as a trial lawyer, it is more likely that an adjuster working on your claim will take your case seriously. Insurers are more likely to take a personal injury attorney seriously if he or she is a skillful trial attorney with a record of success.

Television Advertising

Many personal injury lawyers nowadays advertise on television and handle large volumes of cases. When choosing your personal injury lawyer, make sure the lawyer has the time and experience for your case. When personal injury lawyers handle large volumes of cases sometimes clients just become a number. The most successful personal injury lawyers will have the time, resources and experience to move your case efficiently while providing high quality legal services. They may be able to achieve better results if your case gets the time and attention it deserves.

The Role of Your Attorney in Proving Liability

Personal injury lawsuits are brought under a theory of negligence. The law specifically requires a plaintiff to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant was negligent, and that the negligence was a substantial factor in causing injury. In more complicated cases, the top personal injury lawyers may retain experts to prove your case. One example would be an accident reconstruction expert in a major truck accident case involving multiple vehicles. Or, when the injuries are complicated, it may be necessary to retain medical experts to testify to the extent, severity and permanency of the injuries. When the injuries are catastrophic and disabling, such that a plaintiff can no longer work, it may be necessary to retain an economic expert. They can help prove the scope of your past losses and future costs.

Seek Representation for a Personal Injury Claim in the Syracuse Area

DeFrancisco & Falgiatano provides aggressive representation to accident victims in personal injury lawsuits in Syracuse and Rochester. Our experienced trial attorneys also represent victims throughout Upstate, New York and in Elmira, Auburn, Binghamton, Ithaca, Norwich, Herkimer, Delhi, Oneida, Lowville, Watertown, Oswego, Utica, Wampsville, Canandaigua, Cooperstown, and Lyons. Call us at 833-200-2000 or contact us through our online form for a free consultation.

Client Reviews
★★★★★
"We were very impressed with how Jeff DeFrancisco represented us at trial and we were extremely happy when the jury found in our favor." D.M., Auburn, NY
★★★★★
"I suffered a serious injury as a result of medical malpractice. My husband and I retained Jeff DeFrancisco to assist us in this case. We were extremely happy with his representation and highly recommend him." Kelley R., Syracuse, NY
★★★★★
Since the insurance company was unwilling to settle the matter my case ultimately went to trial. At trial Jeff DeFrancisco did an absolutely amazing job by obtaining a very favorable result for me." T.H., Oneida, NY
★★★★★
"I highly recommend DeFrancisco & Falgiatano - Charlie represented me for a medical malpractice case. He is the best of the best. He is friendly and I am very happy with the representation he provided." Roger N., Oneida, NY