5 Tips to Help You Find the Right Maritime Accident Lawyer
If you have been in a traffic accident on land, you call a car accident lawyer but what do you do if you have been in an accident on the water? There is a special section of law that governs personal injury law at sea. This is called maritime law. If you have been in an accident while on the water, you will need to consult a maritime accident lawyer. You may not know where to turn. Here are five tips to help you find the right maritime accident lawyer for your case.
1. Talk to the people in your life that you trust. Whenever you need to find any kind of products or services, it is always a good idea to start by asking the people you know. Given the number of lawsuits in the country every year, there is a good chance that you know someone who has hired a personal injury lawyer. Maritime injury law falls under the umbrella of personal injury law so even if their case was not one that dealt with maritime accident law, the firm they used may be able to help you.
2. Talk to the lawyers you know. Have you had to use a lawyer for anything? If you have had to hire an attorney for anything, you should check with them to see if they have any suggestions for maritime accident lawyers. No, the lawyer you hired for your driving under the influence charge will not be able to help you with any maritime injury settlements but they may be able to point you in the right direction.
3. Look to maritime legal associations. While maritime accidents can fall under the umbrella of personal injury law, it is a separate kind of law. There are maritime legal associations that you can turn to for information about maritime accident lawyers.
4. Take advantage of the free consultation. All law firms offer prospective clients a free consultation. This is especially important for personal injury law cases because these kinds of lawyers operate on a contingency basis, for the most part. That means they do not charge their clients any fee unless they win. If you are not sure if you have a case, you should go in and talk to a maritime accident lawyer. They will evaluate your case and let you know if you should move forward.
5. Get your questions answered. You should write up a list of all of your questions and bring them with you to your free consultation. If a lawyer will not take the time to talk to you and answer your questions before they are hired, you can bet they will not take the time after they are. Here are some questions you should ask:
- What is the fee structure? If I do not have to pay before, what costs, other than the fee, will I be responsible for? There are often a lot of costs associated with these cases such as research. Ask what the plan is for those in advance so you know what you are getting yourself in for. If you do lose, you may be on the hook for a lot more than you think.
- How much experience do you have with maritime law? You want a lawyer who has some experience in this area. Remember, at least 95 to 96% of all cases never see in the inside of a court room so you need someone who knows their way around this kind of law.
- Who will be working on my case? Law firms have other staff. They have legal assistants and paralegals who are there to take care of the grunt work in these cases. You should know who will be working on your case and who will be available to answer your questions when you have them when your lawyer is not available.
Hiring any kind of personal injury lawyer is a stressful experience. No one really wants to have to need a maritime accident lawyer or a plant explosion lawyer, for example, but they can really help when you have an accident. If you do your research you will find the right attorney for your case.
