Common Myths About Personal Injury Lawyers
- MYTH #1: All lawyers have the same training.
- FACT: Not all lawyers have the same training. Many lawyers continue their professional training throughout their careers, but for some, the last time they learned anything about their craft was in university. In fact, some lawyers have never even been to university!
- MYTH #2: All lawyers have the same experience.
- FACT: Not all lawyers have the same experience. This may seem obvious, but many people think that “a lawyer is a lawyer”.
- MYTH #3: If a lawyer advertises for personal injury claims, he/she must have experience with those types of claims.
- FACT: The Queensland Law Society does not determine whether a lawyer can advertise a “personal injury lawyer” or a “divorce lawyer” or any other type of specialist lawyer. Once a lawyer is issued with a Practicing Certificate, they are legally allowed to handle virtually any type of legal claim.
- MYTH #4: A lawyer who advertises will actually be the lawyer handling your claim.
- FACT: In many firms, claims are handled by paralegals, clerks or secretaries. Sometimes a lawyer will not actually perform any work on your claim until a conference or court date (although you will no-doubt be charged for the lawyer “supervising” the less qualified staff working on your matter!).
- MYTH #5: Lawyers who advertise on TV on M1 billboards must be successful, otherwise they couldn’t pay for the ads.
- FACT: Massive advertising budgets are not necessarily a sign of success. Most big firms run a “volume practice” similar to a production line. The only time you will actually see your lawyer is when you are watching the TV ad!
- MYTH #6: Choosing a lawyer from the “Best Lawyers Guide” (or anything similar) is a good method of finding the right lawyer for your claim.
- FACT: Most internet directories are nothing more than another form of online marketing. Lawyers pay or sponsor sites to be promoted as the “best local lawyer” in a certain region. The “best lawyers” list may simply be a list of the lawyers that nominated themselves for a specific award or filled in an online questionnaire.
- MYTH #7: A lawyer or law firm with a large number of positive Google or Facebook reviews is another good method of finding the right lawyer for your claim.
- FACT: Larger firms often direct employees to submit positive or 5-star reviews on Google or Facebook. Negative reviews are often left by a disgruntled client who may have been caught making a “not-so-genuine” personal injury claim. Online reviews are rarely an accurate reflection of the quality of work performed on a daily basis.
