After practicing personal injury law in St. Petersburg for 20 years, I have compiled a list of common techniques that clients use to find a personal injury attorney. These techniques can certainly be used in cities other than St. Petersburg as well. I have found that when clients do their research before hiring a personal injury attorney, they are more likely to be satisfied with their experience. Hopefully, these tips and techniques will be of assistance when trying to find a personal injury attorney who is right for you and your claim.
Is the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney Licensed in Florida?
Looking at the status of the license for the personal injury attorney should be mandatory for every client. To find the status of the lawyer’s license, the Florida Bar has made it remarkably simple. Simply go to The Florida Bar website and enter the lawyer’s name and click search. The search results will tell you if the attorney is in good standing, whether he or she is eligible to practice law, when they were admitted, and even the areas of practice. All attorneys in Florida are required to provide their information to The Florida Bar so you can rely on this information as being accurate.
Does the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney have a disciplinary record?
Although an attorney may be in good standing and eligible to practice law, you can learn more about that attorney’s character by searching for their disciplinary history. If a lawyer has been in trouble by The Florida Bar in the past 10 years, this information will be listed on their profile on The Florida Bar website. If the lawyer has received some type of ethical sanction, there will be a link to all of the filings concerning that case. You can then read the reports and determine whether that is the type of personal injury attorney that you want to trust with your case. Again, this is a simple resource to research and review prior to meeting with any St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney.
Is the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney a Member of the St. Petersburg Bar Association?
Finding out whether the personal injury attorney actually practices law and handles cases in St. Petersburg is relatively easy to do. All one has to do is to go to the St. Petersburg Bar Association website and perform a member search inquiry. If the attorney who claims to be a personal injury attorney in St. Petersburg is not a member, you can learn a lot from his or her absence from the association. The St. Petersburg Bar Association is a group of approximately 1,000 lawyers and judges in St. Petersburg that serves the local legal community. All attorneys in St. Petersburg that regularly practice law in St. Petersburg should be a member and participate in the St. Petersburg Bar Association.
Read the Online Reviews for the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney
Not every St. Petersburg personal injury attorney has a strong online presence. But, reading client reviews about the attorney is a helpful technique to learn more about how people feel about the attorney and the staff. When reading the reviews, please look to see when they were posted. Obviously, the newer the review, the better insight into the lawyer’s operation. Also, please watch out for reviews that sound too good to be true. If the amount of reviews and the language seems too good to be true, trust your instincts.
Research Any Honors or Awards for the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney
A good way that my clients determine who to hire is by researching the personal injury attorney’s awards, honors and accolades. There are many lawyer rating sites available such as martindale.com, The Best Lawyers in America, AVVO, Super Lawyers just to name a few. If the St. Petersburg personal injury attorney that you are researching appears on some or all of these sites, you should feel more comfortable that the attorney has been vetted and approved independently.
Research any Accomplishments for the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney
A lesser used technique is for the client to research whether the St. Petersburg personal injury attorney has accomplished anything other than simply practicing law. In other words, is the personal injury attorney a member of volunteer organizations in St. Petersburg? Has the personal injury attorney served on any Boards in St. Petersburg? If you research the lawyer’s background, you can learn more about the character of the lawyer and whether they are truly connected to the area in which they claim to practice law. If you do not see a history of giving back to the community or being charitable, ask yourself whether you want that type of person representing you.
Research Where the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney Went to School
Knowing where the St. Petersburg personal injury attorney went to college and law school is a factor that should be known to every injury client. Obviously, the better the school that your lawyer went to, the better the chances that he or she is a better lawyer. Also, look to see if the personal injury attorney went to school locally. Many lawyers and judges in the Tampa Bay area went to school at Stetson College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida. If the lawyer that you are researching went to Stetson College of Law, you can be assured that they will have a strong network of connections in St. Petersburg.
Research the St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys Law Firm
Researching the law firm where the personal injury attorney works is just as important as researching that lawyer’s individual background. If the firm is located in St. Petersburg and has a long history of serving that community, you will have a better chance at finding a match for your case. Not all law firms who claim they are located in St. Petersburg are actually located here. Many personal injury attorneys set up satellite offices and may only visit that office periodically.
If you do your homework and implement some of these techniques, you will hopefully find a quality, experienced St. Petersburg personal injury attorney for your injury case.
Contact a Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident, then you should take the proper measures to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. Contact St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas today and speak with an attorney. For over 60 years our firm has been successfully helping people who have been injured due to someone else’s carelessness. We have been nationally ranked for decades by US News and World Reports as a Tier 1 law firm, which is the highest ranking that can be received. Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas have dedicated their careers to continuing the firms legacy of superior legal representation.
Remember that we never charge a fee, unless we win. Call us today at 727-381-2300 so that we may answer your questions, help you navigate the complexities of insurance claims, and recover the compensation that you deserve.
We work hard to make sure each and every client gets the attention that they deserve. We appreciate feedback from our clients and reviews are validation of our work. Every 5-star review that we receive lets us know that our services were appreciated by our clients.
St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorneys McQuaid & Douglas
5858 Central Ave suite a, St. Petersburg, FL (727) 381-2300
5 out of 5 based on 20 reviews
Sean McQuaid and Jonathon Douglas were voted best personal injury attorneys in Saint Petersburg, Florida for 2019.
