A lot of people seem to assume that because they’re honest and conscientious they’ll never need a lawyer. How wrong that can be!
There are so many common occurrences that create situations where normal people like you and me suddenly find themselves in need of good legal counsel. And generally, that is not the time to start looking for a lawyer.
When you really need a lawyer, you’re going to be stressed, possibly injured, or perhaps even incapacitated. In some of these situations you’ll not be physically able to seek out a good lawyer. And in all cases, you’ll probably not be mentally able or time-equipped to find excellent counsel.
Your lawyer should be your trusted ally, not just someone you are meeting for the first time when things go wrong.
Here are two situations where folks wished they had a good lawyer lined up well before trouble struck:
- Many folks in Great Britain complain about the difficulties of the ongoing Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) scandal. Without going into too much detail, PPI is a kind of insurance that was sneaked into many financial contracts, signed by thousands of people all over England. This went on for years, and many plaintiffs ended up paying thousands of pounds each — money they didn’t know they were signing up to pay. If that sounds like it wouldn’t be so bad, just check out this PPI claim form. You wouldn’t want to fill out that form and neither would I. The problem is, there have been a whole bevy of lawyers who have popped up to help people with their PPI, only to charge a little more than they should for the process. This way, people are spending more money than they need, or they would if they had good legal representation in the first place.
- I know someone who was recently administered too much of a certain kind of medication which contributed to a blood clot. This young healthy individual suddenly had a stroke, and spent the next two weeks confused and unable to speak normally. But because she had no close relatives or friends in the city she had moved to just two months prior, she wasn’t able to get good advice and was just sent home. Eventually, she was able to contact a lawyer who worked out the whole problem for her and secured her a sizable settlement. Even so, she was in harms way for the two weeks prior to her having secured that lawyer, and things could have gone a lot worse. If she had a lawyer in the first place, the hospital would have contacted him or her when the health problem occurred. Remember,medical malpractice is common, and so you need to be prepared.
These are just two scenarios that you may find in your own life someday. If you don’t have a lawyer now, you should definitely consider one. There are endless applications of their skills, and you’ll find that you really need their services someday.
So why wait? Consider getting a lawyer today and put your mind at ease.
Photo Credit: taberandrew
I have never tried to hire a lawyer. When the time comes for me to hire a lawyer, I’ll make sure that it’s recommended by friends or a family relative and it is not the first time we meet when I need his service.
Hey, Enero! I’ve been debating whether or not to hire an attorney to handle my divorce, so you can see why I found your post so helpful. I completely agree with you: your lawyer should be your trusted ally! I’ll be sure to look for the quality when I find one that I like. Thanks for sharing this article!
You’re welcome!
This article focuses on tort situations, but there are times one needs what the British call “counselors”, not barristers (trial lawyers).
When our family contract work, or will or trust drafting, we have found that asking folks we know to be successful in their personal and business finances who their lawyers are has served us well.