The process of hiring a lawyer is very important. Whether it be for a criminal or civil case, your lawyer is responsible for arguing your case to the court. A good lawyer will be able to listen to you and formulate a sound argument for you in order to win your case. However, you want to avoid hiring a bad lawyer. A bad lawyer likely won’t listen to you or will be unable to create a good enough argument to win your case for you.
Losing a legal case can be absolutely detrimental to your future. A lost criminal case could result in fines or jail time, while a lost civil case could result in very expensive payouts of the loss of something very valuable and essential. This makes avoiding a bad lawyer very important.
So how exactly can you identify a bad lawyer and steer clear from them? Use these tips on how to avoid hiring a bad lawyer.
Don’t Settle for the First One You Meet
The biggest mistake people make when hiring a lawyer is making their decision after meeting with only one person. When searching for a lawyer, one should cast a wide net and meet with multiple suitors. This will allow you to size up each lawyer individually, as well as compare things such as personality traits, ideologies, and costs.
Meeting with only one lawyer before you hire them greatly restricts your options. How will you know if that lawyer is particularly good or bad without first consulting with other lawyers? The first lawyer you talk to may very well end up being your best option, but you’ll never know that for sure unless you do your due diligence and search long and hard.
Help yourself avoid hiring a bad lawyer by shopping around and hearing what different lawyers have to say about your case.
Determine Your Ability To Work Together
One of the best features of a successful lawyer is their ability to listen to their client’s complaints and suggestions and work with them. Successful lawyers make sure their clients are well-informed and involved in the decision-making process. Bad lawyers will ignore their client’s wishes and suggestions and won’t keep them involved in decision-making.
Lawyers can only be successful when the client and the lawyer work together and formulate a plan. They both need to trust each other, and both need to respect each other’s advice and suggestions.
This is true for lawyers in all fields of law including divorce lawyers, criminal defense lawyers, and defective product lawyers. If you are in the process of hiring a lawyer and you can’t seem to trust them or they don’t seem like they will take what you have to say to heart, then you should probably look at your other options.
If your case is particularly sensitive, such as homicide or sexual assault, it is especially important to have a lawyer who will listen and take your complaints seriously. As stated by this Los Angeles Homicide Defense Lawyer, few crimes carry the same consequences and stigma as homicide, therefore it’s important to get the help of qualified professionals that will uncover all the weaknesses in the case and fight for the best possible outcome for you. A successful lawyer will do all this and more.
Observe Personalities and Tendencies
When trying to hire a lawyer, you should take notice of their personalities and tendencies in order to determine whether or not they are a quality lawyer. A bad lawyer will typically be condescending, rude, or straight-up dismissive toward you. It may also be hard to get in touch with them, or their staff may be unhappy or bitter. He or she may also have several things going on at once and may struggle to manage them effectively.
If you notice any of these personality traits or tendencies during your meeting with them, then you should probably look towards finding a different lawyer.
Avoid Hiring a Bad Lawyer by Keeping Track of Promises
Lawyers are known for having grand empty promises, so it is important for you to keep track of what they say and compare it to what they actually do. When sitting down with a lawyer before you hire them, the lawyer will likely make several promises and guarantees to you. Any lawyer that proclaims he can definitely win your case should automatically raise some red flags.
The law is fickle and can be very unpredictable, meaning no case is predetermined. To avoid hiring a bad lawyer, look for someone who will let you know how they can help, but won’t guarantee that you will automatically win your case.
False promises are a sure sign of a bad lawyer who is grasping for straws to acquire new clients. If a lawyer makes any additional promises about your case, make sure you write them down and remember them. You can then compare these promises to past cases the lawyer has worked on and see if any of them ring true. Quality lawyers will likely shy away from guarantees and promises, and will instead let their work and their experience do the talking.