There is a lot of talk about the high cost of attorneys. Rarely is it discussed the cost of NOT having an attorney represent you. I understand all too well the cost of attorneys and wondering how to pay for said attorney, yet anytime I needed someone to represent me I found a way to do it and here is why:
- I have been in several car accidents. Car insurance companies look to settle cases for the bare minimum which usually means to replace your car or fix the damage. Sometimes they will even look at your medical bills and agree to pay those bills and maybe even your time off work. But what they do not willingly offer to do is pay for your time as you recovered. They do not offer any compensation for the things you were unable to do while you were recovering. An attorney that focuses their practice on personal injury knows best how to get you more money as a result of your pain and suffering. Usually the attorney will be able to get you far more than his/her cost of representing you.
- Similarly, property damage claims are best handled by an attorney as the attorney knows the ins and outs of what experts to hire. They know how to present your case to the insurance company to get you money to compensate for your inconvenience as a result of the property damage.
- In divorce situations an attorney knows how to look at your financial picture, they know how to prove what was separate property and how to best present your case in court.
In the situations above, the cost of the attorney may actually be less than what you would have lost had you not hired an attorney. Many times in divorce cases potential clients come to me because they found about assets that they did not know about during the divorce. Unfortunately many times there is nothing we can do about it after the divorce is final. If they had contacted an attorney prior to the divorce being final the attorney could have done discovery to find out about all assets and if those assets were not disclosed then there may be remedies available.
So when considering the cost of an attorney, you also need to consider the cost of not having an attorney represent you.
Related