How can you find out if your attorney is a good one?
You ask for his/her license number in the local Legal Bar Association and then you ask if that person has been reported for negligence or misconduct. Also you can ask around. Just be realistic that a lawyer can't win all his/her cases (specially if the clients are "really" guilty); so they can't always win so sometimes their job is to get the best possible deal for the clients (like 5 in jail instead of 10 or 20; or parole instead of doing any jail time). So be realistic about that: winning or losing cases doesn't really tell you if the lawyer is good or bad. They just can't pick really "innocent people" all the time.
There are many ways.Talk to friends and family about an attorney in the same area that you need. For example, a family law attorney should not be hired to handle a complex business litigation case - they are very different.The best free website in the US is www.avvo.com.Look at your state bar website and make sure there are no complaints against the attorney.Also, many cities have a Lawyer Referral Service and they give you 2–3 names of attorneys in your area in the practice area you need for free. The attorneys agree to talk to you at a discount for the first 20–30 minutes.You can ‘google” the area of law you need and many names will pop up. Just remember, many people pay lots of money for good placement so just because they are #1 does not mean they are the best. But look for reviews. Again, reviews can be written anonymously by the party that lost so some of the “worst reviews” could actually be the best since it reflects that the attorney won the case for the client.You can even go to the courthouse and watch trials. You can see attorneys in action. Ask for their business cards if you like them.
I would first do your due diligence in determining whether you actually NEED a probate attorney.Depending on the state where the probate needs to be filed, most probate proceedings are fairly straightforward and with some non-attorney professional help of a legal document assistant, can be successfully completed without having to hire an attorney. A few states such as California, Florida and Oregon have licensed, non-attorney document preparers that may be able to help you. Check your state to see if this is an option. In California, attorney's charge statutory fees based on the value of the estate. This makes the attorney's fees run thousands of dollars and it is not uncommon for fees to be over $10,000 even on a simple estate. A person that uses the services of a legal document assistant can save thousands of dollars to handle the probate documentation and process as compared to using an attorney for the same matter. There may be also other low cost probate alternatives to use to settle the estate as well rather than filing s full probate. Not every state has made provisions in their statutes for low-cost, alternative legal access provisions through the services of a legal document assistant or legal technician professional. It is an option, however, that you may want to explore, if available. Just make sure you do your homework and, if you do need to hire a lawyer, I would try to bargain for the best deal possible. The probate process is typically very procedural and unless there are contested issues, it is a step-by-step, simple matter for which most attorneys are overpaid.
How do I find a good divorce attorney in the Daytona Beach area that will not cost thousands of dollars?
This is for a good friend of mine. They were together for many years, but only married for three. They only lived together for those three years. There are no children involved. She stole a lot of his belongings and has hired an attorney to take the rest, just to be mean. She knows he can't afford five grand to fight back. They make approximately the same amount of money. She was very abusive, and he's already resigning himself to losing what little he has left, just so she'll leave him alone. I want him to fight back and put an end to her 'reign of terror'. She has her house, he has his. This is all over "stuff". I want to help him, but don't know how to go about it.
How can I find the right attorney?
In addition to calling the state or local bar association (look for "lawyer referral service" in the listings) if you happen to know someone who has had a personal injury as those persons who they hired and what they thought of their service. Word of mouth can be an effective way of finding the right person. Also, if you know an attorney who specializes in some other area (e.g., family law attorney who may have done a divorce, or estate attorney who may have helped probate an estate) call that attorney and as her or his opinion. Referral is a great wahy to find someone good.
There is a lot that goes into finding a good Workers’ Compensation attorney. Here are a couple of tips:Find an attorney or firm that specializes. Workers’ Compensation is its own body of laws, with its own judges. You want someone who is familiar with the intricacies of the laws, familiar with the board, and also the local judges. Workers’ Comp. firms also have relationships with medical practices that accept Workers’ Comp. patients, which can greatly improve the quality of your treatment. You won’t get the same level of assistance if Workers’ Compensation isn’t an attorney’s primary practice area.Do your homework on Google. Search for Workers’ Compensation attorneys in your area. Look at reviews, browse websites, and read attorney bios online. These days, lots of firms and attorneys have social media presences and blogs. Get to know your favorites!Don’t forget about the support staff. Workers’ Compensation cases generally work on a contingency fee, and that means you’re not paying directly for your attorney’s time. Consequently, more often than not, if you have a question or need help filling out some paperwork, you’ll be dealing with case managers, legal assistants, and intake specialists, while the attorney handles the legal aspects of the case. Make sure the support staff is knowledgeable and well-trained in the area of Workers’ Compensation.Look for someone who will prioritize your treatment and not just your award. Your financial award or settlement is obviously an important part of your case, but it’s not the most important part of your case. Your health and well-being is priceless, and your lawyer doesn’t receive attorney’s fees based on it. Make sure whoever you retain will help you get the best possible medical treatment and will fight for you when the insurance company denies necessary treatments. If your case is denied, your attorney should help you find a doctor who will treat on lien.Get a free consultation. Most firms offer free consultations to prospective clients! Does the person you talk to make you feel comfortable? Does he or she answer your questions and reassure you? Dealing with a workplace injury and a Workers’ Comp. claim can be incredibly painful and stressful, and you want to retain someone who will help you get through this difficult time.That’s it! Hope this helps.If you want to learn more about Pacific Workers’ Compensation, watch our video or visit our website.
How to find the honest family law attorney?
When I needed one for a custody battle, I didn't have any idea who to get. So, I got the phone book and picked the first one in the yellow pages that lived in the next town. We were fighting against the most influential people in our small town (the ex-wife's parents), so didn't want a lawyer in our town that they would have bought off. The lawyer that I randomly picked turned out to be a gift from God. He was able to get us custody of my step-daughter and we didn't have any money to speak of. He was awesome!
How do you research an attorney?
You could also contact your state bar association, or even see if your legal aid would help. But mostly you want to know what kind of law the problem is so that you can get the right one. The law is increasingly more complex and people have to specialize in order to be any good. You wouldn't want a patent attorney to defend a DUI for example. It's hard to find any attorney who will talk bad about another, but they will tell you who they would recommend in that area of practice. This is not to say that you have to go with the best in every case, because the best charge more. If you have a relatively simple and benign case, call around to those who advertise in the phone book and ask what their retainers are. But first and foremost, law is a service, and you have to like the person providing the service. If you are suspicious of your attorney, your relationship will not work, and it will result in bad feelings and possibly worse results.