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Lawyer /
Attorney Background Check |
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Choosing the right lawyer makes the difference between winning
and losing a case, getting the settlement you want or getting an
innocent verses guilty verdict. A background check is one of the
options to consider when deciding to
choose a lawyer. |
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Lawyer or Attorney background checks search the following
items: |
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Firm Name, Address, Areas of
Practice, Educational Background, Professional Affiliations, Any
Awards or Honors received by the Lawyer, Lawyers professional
memberships. Any Disciplinary Actions against the
Lawyer, Any Complaints, Lawyers Year and Month of Birth,
USA Nationwide
Criminal records,
Civil Court records Search, Bankruptcy court search, Real Property
Search, Aliases used and
ratings as available. |
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List of cases that Lawyer has
tried in Courts |
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Search returns list of cases that a lawyer has tried in County,
State and Federal courts including Family courts, District
courts, Appeals courts and Supreme Courts at both the State and
Federal level. The list generally includes Case
Numbers, Title of the cases and names of the courts where the
cases were tried. Most times the title includes names of the
Plaintiff and Defendants, Petitioners and Respondents. This can help you
determine the experience level of the Lawyer / Attorney or
review each case to find the outcome of those cases. Full case files or documents are
independent searches. |
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*Success history of Trial Lawyers
can be searched as an additional option. Success history includes the
percentage of cases won, lost and settled. |
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How do I choose a lawyer? |
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The process of choosing a lawyer is
similar to choosing a doctor, dentist, accountant or anyone who provides
services. The process is not that different from how you would choose a
product. It is always good to comparison shop and
check the credentials of different attorneys.
Ask them about the wisdom of retaining legal counsel and discuss
all the fees upfront. You should also consider issues such as does it make sense to spend $800 in legal
fees and court costs to recover a $200 bad debt? Before you look
for a lawyer define the nature of your legal problem. Choose a
lawyer who specializes in your type of problem. You will be wasting
both your time as well as an attorney's if you bring a simple
issue like a real estate transaction to a Divorce Lawyer.
Once you define the problem you can choose a lawyer specializing in the
areas of your problem. In choosing a lawyer, keep in mind
competence as well as accessibility and price. One way to judge
competence is by the amount of time the lawyer has devoted to
keeping up with changes in the law through continuing legal
education. Since you are hiring a lawyer to perform services for
you, don't be embarrassed or reluctant to ask the attorney about
his or her qualifications, experience and continuing education
and verify it by conducting a background check on the lawyer.
Remember the success of your case or resolution of your problem
depends on the competency of the lawyer. |
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Questions
to consider before selecting an Attorney
Is the Attorney a certified specialist for the legal scope
of your problem?
How long has the attorney been in practice?
Will the Attorney be doing the work himself or herself and if
not then who will?
What will be the fees?
Are there any retainers and how does the retainer fees work?
What other costs will be involved in addition to the fees?
Can the Attorney give you an estimate of the total costs of
the proceeding?
How does the Attorney bill and does he itemize the time
spent?
How will the payments be made and will there be a payment
schedule?
Does the Attorney have malpractice insurance and how much is
it?
What does the Attorney expect you to do. |
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What are your options if you have problems with your lawyer? |
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Arbitration is a good option
If you have a billing or fee dispute with your lawyer. Some bar associations provide free
arbitration of fees. If you find or suspect your lawyer's
conduct to be unethical, you can make a complaint to the
appropriate disciplinary agency by contacting your local bar
association or the highest court in the state. The fifty state
supreme courts may suspend, disbar or censure a lawyer for
unprofessional conduct. There is no reason to feel it is
necessary to continue to be represented by a lawyer once you
have discharged him. But don't take hasty actions. Often a
meeting or conference with the lawyer can ease your concerns. He or she
may not be aware of your dissatisfaction and the
dismissed lawyer may be entitled to a fee for services
actually rendered. |
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Can you sue a lawyer if you are not satisfied with him? |
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Most lawyers are competent and ethical. Can you sue a lawyer
if he screws up? If you agreed to submit
disputes to arbitration then no. In arbritation the rules of law and evidence
don't always apply, and you'll have neither the right to a
jury nor perhaps even the right to appeal. Lawyers
can insert compulsory arbitration provisions in their retainer
agreements. This isn't necessarily unethical, according to
the ABA, provided the agreement doesn't insulate the lawyer
from liability and the client understands what it means. It's mighty tough to nail a lawyer for malpractice. Some
68% of malpractice claims from 1996 through 1999 closed
without the client receiving payment from the lawyer's
insurance company, and only 6.7% netted more than $50,000,
according to a 2001 ABA survey. Why is it so hard? For one
thing, only an estimated 30 to 50% of lawyers even carry
insurance, so collecting is a long shot. Plus, to win your
case, you have to prove not only that the lawyer failed to
perform but also that your case would have turned out
differently had he done a better job. This is very hard to
do since a legal issue is seldom a slam-dunk, even
if the lawyer does everything right. Malpractice insurance
doesn't cover everything. |
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* Contact us for quotes on Optional Services. |
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