Frequently Asked Questions

Preparing your case and taking it to trial will involve attorney's fees and general expenses. Attorney's fees are typically charged by the hour or on a contingency basis. Hourly fees vary by attorney, even within a law firm, and are charged to you monthly or on some other schedule as your case proceeds. If a lawyer takes your case on a contingency basis, you do not pay a fee unless your case is won or settled to your benefit. Either way, these fees and the payment plan should be agreed on up front, before you hire the attorney, and should not change at any time during your case without your approval. General expenses involve the costs incurred by your lawyer in preparing and trying your case. Under the rules of ethics of the American Bar Association and the Georgia Bar Association, you are personally responsible for paying expenses, whether you win, settle or lose your case. Expenses cover a wide range of items: expert witnesses, travel, hiring investigators, clerical and secretarial support, preparing exhibits for the trial, copies, faxes, videotaping testimony, etc. Attorneys may advance these expenses on your behalf, these costs but must be reimbursed by you.
Good Communications: Your lawyer should be able to explain the strengths and weaknesses of your case clearly, outlining your options and the laws that apply, in terms you understand.
Plan of Action: Before agreeing to use a particular attorney, you should ask how the lawyer will proceed with your case, including the names of attorneys and staff who will assist your case, what they will do and when they will do it.
Clear Explanation of Costs: Law firms are a business, and you are the customer. You have a right to expect good service and, in advance, an explanation of attorney's fees and what they cover. Your should know the hourly rates of every lawyer who will be working on your case. Bottom line: When it comes to the bill, there should be no surprises at any time.
Lawsuits are sometimes settled too early, not because the evidence doesn't support the claim, but because the law firm does not have the financial resources (to pursue the case until the absolute best outcome.) Major lawsuits (such as those involving medical malpractice, major accidents and injuries, wrongful death and product liability) frequently take many months to prepare before going to court. A trial itself can last weeks. The law firm you choose should have the financial resources to stay with your case from beginning to end and to cover expenses for expert witnesses, investigations, etc. until the verdict is reached. If the law firm you use does not have enough "money in the bank" to sustain your case over weeks or months, your lawyer may encourage you to settle your case too early. You may not get all the compensation you deserve. Before agreeing to use an attorney, you should ask about the firm's financial staying power.
Not all lawyers can handle all cases. Just as real estate or bankruptcy law is a specialty, so, too, is law that applies in cases involving major accidents and injuries, wrongful deaths, medical malpractice and products that maim or kill. Attorneys who handle these kinds of cases are called trial attorneys. The law firm you choose and the lawyer or lawyers who will actually represent you in court should have experience with cases like yours and a record of winning them in court. The insurance companies only really respect lawyers who they fear can get winning verdicts from juries.
When you are shopping for a law firm, be aware that just because a lawyer advertises in the local telephone book, in newspapers or on television that does not mean that the law firm is local. Even though a law firm may have someone meet with you in your own community to discuss your case, the firm may assign someone else in the practice to represent you. This is particularly true with large law firms whose main offices are located in other cities. You should not agree to hire a law firm until you know without doubt who will work with you to prepare your case, if that person will actually represent you in court, and if he or she has experience trying cases like yours.