If you’ve been injured in an accident, you may be wondering whether it truly matters who you hire, or if any lawyer will do. The short answer is yes, it can make a significant difference, especially when it comes to the value of your settlement.
Let’s break down why.
The Reality: Representation Often Impacts Settlement Value
Research consistently shows that people who hire personal injury attorneys recover substantially more compensation than those who don’t, even when you factor in the cost of hiring an attorney:
- The most oft-cited figure indicates injured individuals with attorneys recover about 3.5 times more than those handling claims themselves.
- Another study found that injured people who hired lawyers received an average settlement of roughly 4x the amount of the average settlement of those unrepresented.
- The Insurance Research Council (IRC) has found that over 85% of insurance payouts go to people who have legal representation
How are experienced personal injury lawyers able to secure higher settlements?
The value of a case depends on what a reasonable jury would award to the injured person at trial. Untrained non-lawyers typically don’t have an understanding of what damages they’re entitled to, or how to present a case at trial. Insurance companies understand this, and try to get away with paying less to those who don’t fully understand what all they are entitled to, or how to ask the jury for it at trial.
The same general thing can be said about non-personal injury lawyers – they are not experienced in all the nuances of personal injury law that operate to increase the compensation an injured person is entitled to claim.
Specialist vs. General Practitioner: What’s the Difference?
Insurance law is incredibly complex. It is difficult to “dabble” in this area, because there are significant nuances that apply in different ways to different facts.
An experienced personal injury attorney has confronted the various laws in lots of different facts scenarios over the years. This means they will have argued certain issues in front of judges, and have a deep appreciation for the complexities of the law. They can use that to maximize the compensation available to each client.
A general practitioner may handle a wide variety of cases but may not have the same depth of experience in these highly specific issues.
The Bottom Line
Hiring a personal injury specialist, especially one with trial experience, can make a meaningful difference in your case.
In many situations, it affects:
- Whether you receive compensation at all
- How much you recover
- How seriously the insurance company treats your claim
While no attorney can guarantee a result, experience and focus in personal injury law generally translates into stronger outcomes.
If you’ve been injured in Wisconsin, choosing the right lawyer isn’t just about convenience, it can directly impact the value of your case and your financial recovery. Call Doar, Drill & Skow for a free consultation with one of our personal injury attorneys.
