Top Chesapeake, VA Personal Injury Defense Lawyers Near You

Facing a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

If you’ve been accused of causing someone else to suffer injuries, you’re facing serious consequences. You may be liable for that person’s medical expenses, property repairs, court costs, and potentially even punitive damages.

Strong Personal Injury Defense

In many cases, your insurance company will support you during these particular types of lawsuits. In cases where you don’t have insurance or they won’t/can’t defend you, you should consider speaking with a Chesapeake personal injury defense attorney.

He or she will negotiate directly with the injured party and reduce your liability and out-of-pocket expenses. If you are being threatened with a lawsuit, or even if you’ve been sued, talk with an attorney as soon as you are able. The sooner you call, the quicker this event can be behind you.

Best Time to Seek Legal Help

No matter what your legal issue may be, it is always best to seek legal help early in the process. An attorney can help secure what is likely to be the best possible outcome for your situation and avoid both unnecessary complications or errors.

What to Expect from an Initial Consultation

• Seek to determine whether the attorney can represent you. There is no one-size-fits-all legal solution and it may turn out your needs are better served by an attorney in a different specialization.
• It’s important to find a legal ally who is both competent in the law and someone you can trust to protect your interests.
• Discuss how the practice’s billing works and discuss possible additional charges or fees that may arise during or after the resolution of your case.

An attorney consultation should provide you with enough information so that you can make an informed decision on whether to proceed with legal help.

Types of legal fees:

Bill by the hour: Many attorneys bill by the hour. How much an attorney bills you per hour will vary based on a number of factors. For instance, an attorney’s hourly fee may fluctuate based on whether that hour is spent representing you in court or doing research on your case. Attorneys in one practice area may bill you more than attorneys in a different practice area.

Contingent fee: Some lawyers will accept payment via contingent fee. In this arrangement, the lawyer receives a percentage of the total monetary recovery if you win your lawsuit. In sum, the lawyer only gets paid if you win. Contingent fee agreements are limited to specific practice areas in civil law.

Flat fee: For “routine” legal work where the attorney generally knows the amount of time and resources necessary to complete the task, he/she may be willing to bill you a flat fee for services performed.

Common legal terms explained

Affidavit – A sworn written statement made under oath. An affidavit is meant to be a supporting document to the court assisting in the verification of certain facts. An affidavit may or may not require notarization.