When looking for an Ohio truck accident lawyer, you may feel overwhelmed by the options available. How do you make sure you hire the right attorney to represent you and your family? How do you recognize the difference between a qualified, experienced lawyer and an inexperienced one?
Your truck accident lawyer will play a pivotal part in helping you recover compensation, so these are important questions to ask. Here, we are going to review what you should look for during your search, including what qualifications truck accident lawyers must have to practice law in Ohio.
If you or someone you care about has recently been in a truck accident and you want to pursue compensation, get in touch with an Ohio truck accident lawyer at Colombo Law today. Schedule your FREE case review by calling us at 614-362-7000.
What Does a Truck Accident Lawyer Do?
First, let’s briefly review what, exactly, truck accident attorneys do. The short answer is that a truck accident lawyer helps victims recover compensation for their injuries and damages. These may include economic damages (such as medical bills, lost wages, repair or replacement of damaged property, etc.) as well as pain and suffering and other non-economic damages.
That said, there are many different roles an Ohio truck accident lawyer takes on within this job, including:
- Investigating the accident: Recovering compensation largely comes down to what you can prove, which requires strong evidence. A knowledgeable truck accident attorney will perform a thorough investigation to uncover key evidence, whether it be eyewitness testimony, photos of the scene, video footage of the accident, etc.
- Calculating compensation: How do you know how much compensation you deserve for your losses? Yes, it involves medical bills, property damage, loss of income, and other direct costs. But how do you put a price on pain and suffering, long-term rehabilitation, and loss of enjoyment of life? A good truck accident lawyer can calculate these damages based on experience and precedent to arrive at an appropriate amount.
- Negotiating with insurance companies: Make no mistake, the amount of compensation you deserve is not the amount of compensation the insurance company is going to offer you. They will do whatever they can to lower your settlement, although a good truck accident attorney will know how to fight for your rights and hold them accountable to recover maximum compensation.
These tasks represent just a portion of the work truck accident attorneys do for their clients, but they help show how important various skills and abilities are when representing victims—and why choosing the wrong lawyer can be so detrimental to your claim.
Does Ohio Have Any Special Qualifications for Truck Accident Lawyers?
While truck accident lawyers do not need any specific qualifications in Ohio, they are required to be licensed to practice law in the state of Ohio. The Supreme Court of Ohio maintains an online Attorney Directory Search where you can look up attorneys by name or registration number to ensure they are actively licensed to practice law in the state.
What to Look For in a Truck Accident Lawyer
Since there are no specific qualifications for a truck accident attorney beyond being licensed to practice law in the state, how are you to determine if a lawyer is the best fit to handle your case? Here are the five most important things to look for:
Experience
Much of what goes into being a good attorney is experience. Yes, you learn the ins and outs of the law in school, as well as the general process by which cases are processed. But knowing how to perform a thorough investigation of a semi-truck collision, how to negotiate with a stingy insurance company, and how to ensure you are recovering all of the compensation your client needs and deserves—attorneys only gain these skills over time with real-world experience.
Results
Experience is a good starting point, but what really counts is representing clients successfully. An Ohio truck accident lawyer should be able to demonstrate that they not only know how to navigate the process but also how to win compensation for their clients. Ideally, you will be able to find examples of these results on the attorney’s website.
View Our Results
Positive Reviews
If you are like most people, you rarely buy a product online without browsing reviews. You should do the same when looking for an attorney. Most attorneys will have reviews on multiple websites that provide a good representation of clients’ experience with the firm.
Compatibility
While 5-star reviews, million-dollar results, and years of experience may all be indicative of an Ohio truck accident lawyer’s ability to represent you, you should not discount your “gut feeling” when meeting with attorneys and their staff. You will have to work closely with your lawyer, possibly over a lengthy period of time, so you need to be able to trust them completely.
Trial Experience
In some cases, truck accident attorneys negotiate with insurance companies to agree on a fair and just settlement. Once a settlement is reached, a lawsuit will not need to be filed to obtain compensation.
However, there are times when filing a lawsuit is the only way to pursue the compensation you deserve. You need to make sure your attorney has experience taking cases to trial and is willing to do so if that is what it takes.
Read More: Can I Sue for Being Hit by a Semi-Truck?
Contact an Ohio Truck Accident Lawyer Today
Finding the right attorney to represent you—someone whose experience, knowledge, and proven results you can trust—will be a tremendous weight off your shoulders. At Colombo Law, our goal is always to take the legal challenges off your plate so you can focus on recovery.
We make a No Fee Promise to each client. You pay nothing upfront and only pay fees if an Ohio truck accident lawyer at our firm obtains a favorable result in your case.
Based in Columbus, Colombo Law serves clients throughout Ohio. Contact us today for your FREE case review.
