How Do I Find the Best Issaquah Car Accident Lawyer?

Posted Friday, December 16, 2022 by Chris Thayer

Car accident victims have many choices. Washington has one of the highest number of lawyers per capita in the United States. Almost all lawyers take a fundamental tort (personal injury) class in law school. Additionally, the bar exam covers this topic. So, all lawyers have some basic skills in this area. However, there is usually no such thing as a “simple” car crash claim. Therefore, your attorney needs advanced skills that only some lawyers possess.

Liability issues usually complicate car accident claims. Most insurance companies either deny responsibility altogether or try to convince victims to settle their cases for pennies on the dollar. Additionally, many car crash cases involve advanced legal theories, like negligent entrustment owner liability and respondeat superior employer liability. Soft skills are necessary, as well. Most car crash victims just had their lives completely uprooted. Only a few Issaquah car accident lawyers have what it takes to successfully resolve your injury claim.

*Experience*Law school classes teach students how to think like lawyers. Standardized tests confirm this ability. Only experience teaches people to act like lawyers.

All courts have their own rules of evidence and procedure. Many of these rules are unwritten. Your vehicle collision claim is far too valuable to be a training tool for an inexperienced lawyer.

This experience should include a successful track record. A losing college basketball team that returns all five starters is experienced, but it is only experienced in losing. Likewise, a veteran lawyer without a successful track record is only experienced in taking the easy way out.

Additionally, this experience should include trial experience, even though almost all cases settle out of court. If the insurance company knows an Issaquah personal injury lawyer is unwilling to go the distance, the insurance company makes lower settlement offers, and clients suffer.

*Dedication*Many lawyers handle a few personal injury cases on the side, mostly for friends, former clients, or family members. Lack of dedication is often a serious issue in these cases.

The late Grant Cooper, who represented RFK assassin Sirhan Sirhan in the late 1960s, is a good example. Cooper was a well-established lawyer. However, he was a general practice attorney as opposed to a dedicated criminal defense lawyer. As a result, he may have overlooked some subtle weaknesses in the state’s case, like the inconsistencies between eyewitness statements and the autopsy report.

Incidentally, Cooper is at the center of one of the latest Kennedy conspiracy theories. Supposedly, Cooper intentionally threw the case so the Los Angeles County District Attorney would not indict him on charges stemming from an unrelated matter. But, as all the principles involved are dead, we will probably never know if that allegation is true.

*Accessibility*Many car crash victims work with very large firms, reasoning that these firms have the resources to take on large insurance companies. The lawyers at these firms often delegate most of the work to less experienced associates or even non-lawyer paralegals.

Size is not everything. David took out Goliath, mostly because he had right on his side. Similarly, a personal injury attorney has a cause. A car wreck is not just a financial statistic.

Nevertheless, David has five rocks and a slingshot. So, a lawyer must have resources like professional and paraprofessional assistants. Thus, if your lawyer always personally answers your phone calls on the first or second ring, that’s usually a bad sign.

*Count on an Experienced King County Attorney* Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney in Mercer Island, contact Pivotal Law Group, PLLC. Attorneys can connect victims with doctors, even if they have no insurance or money.