What You Should Consider When Hiring a Lawyer in New Jersey
When you are hiring a lawyer in New Jersey, there are several factors to consider.
Whether you are looking for representation during a business dispute or help with an injury claim, there are many reasons you might need a reputable lawyer in your area.
Hiring a lawyer is a very important choice you will make in your life and it can have a significant impact on the outcome of your claim and the quality of your life.
This isn’t a process to rush, so take your time to discover some of the most important aspects of hiring a lawyer in the New Jersey area you trust implicitly.
Watch Video Summary:
You Should Consider Their Areas of Expertise
If you have a specific legal query, you want to make sure that your chosen lawyer in New Jersey specializes in your area.
Let’s say you are looking to get into real estate; you will want to find an attorney in New Jersey that can help you with a variety of real estate transactions and issues.
Whether you are purchasing your first property or figuring out a problematic real estate deal, you need a New Jersey lawyer that will pay careful attention to your case.
Understanding their areas of expertise will help you figure out whether they are the right fit for your case.
How Much Experience Do The Prospective Lawyers Have?
You also need to consider how much experience your chosen lawyer has. If you are facing a complicated case, you don’t want a lawyer new to the field.
You need an experienced lawyer in New Jersey, who has a good track record. Look at their credentials and see how long they have been working in the industry for.
There are some fantastic lawyers in New Jersey who haven’t been practicing for long, but you need to choose someone you feel confident in.
Do They Have High Success Rates?
When you are looking for a reputable lawyer in New Jersey, you want to make sure they have a proven track record of success.
Remember that not every lawyer will have a 100% rate of success, but look for one that is as high as possible.
It is all about you and you want to make sure you get the best legal representation as possible. If this lawyer has helped clients in a similar situation to you in the past, it is likely that they will do the same for you.
Check if they have a history of being a strong and loyal advocate for their clients and you should be safe with your final choice.
Check Out Their Previous Client Reviews
One way to check out their track record is to look at previous testimonials from their clients.
Spend some time researching the firm and look for positive and negative reviews on their services so you'll get opinions from different perspectives.
Make sure you read the details on all the review to make sure you have a well-rounded view of the lawyer in New Jersey.
Make Sure They Fit Within Your Individual Budget
Hiring a lawyer in New Jersey is an expense that won’t come lightly to many people. Therefore, you need to consider legal representation that fits within your individual budget.
The cost of changing lawyers halfway through the process is much more damaging, so spend some time making the right decision the first time.
Ask the firm whether there are any additional costs you should know about. Similarly, there might be cases where you need not pay at all.
In many personal injury lawyer cases, they work on a contingency basis, meaning you don't have to pay unless you get a settlement.
Be Sure to Make a Good Connection With Them
Ultimately, you will spend a considerable amount of time with your chosen lawyer in New Jersey.
This means you need to connect with them on a personal level and make sure they understand you and your case.
They need to get to know the emotional and physical impacts to you so they do everything they can to fight your corner.
Are You Happy for Them to Represent You?
Remember that the lawyer you choose in New Jersey will serve as a representative for you.
If there are any reasons you wouldn’t be happy for them to be your spokesperson, you need to make a different choice.
You deserve to have complete control over the lawyer you choose, so don’t allow the firm to dictate which lawyer in New Jersey you get.
After an initial meeting, you should be able to request that specific person rather than another lawyer from the firm.
Do Your Research on a First-Hand Basis
You should be cautious of referral services online because they might not give you an accurate representation of the lawyer in New Jersey.
Work with a real-life lawyer who is genuinely knowledgeable in their field of work. Referral service websites often have no legal background and won’t be of much help to you.
Do your own research and make sure the lawyer in New Jersey has access to all the resources and information they need to support you in your case.
Consider these pointers when you are looking for a lawyer in New Jersey. Only the best of the best will support and protect you in the way you need.
Donnelly Warner can provide you with a variety of legal services, so explore our website and see if we can be of any help to you.
How to Find the Right DWI Lawyer in NJ
Driving while intoxicated (DWI) stats are sobering.
Over the course of a year throughout the United States, over one million people are arrested for driving while intoxicated or under the influence according to MADD.
Thousands of dollars in fines and fees, license suspensions, and possible jail time are just a few of the major consequences of DWI, the largest being loss of life for innocent pedestrians and drivers who made poor choices.
That said, wrongful convictions are more common than you might think.
You may challenge your blood alcohol test based on the results, certificates, and administration. If there is a defect, they might suppress the test results as evidence upon application to the court, which is why finding the right DWI Lawyer in NJ is essential.
Here are some tips to consider:
1. Make a list and do your homework
While you might be a little flustered after a DWI arrest, it’s important to take a calm, strategic approach to your DWI Lawyer search.
Follow these steps to get started:
Create a list
To get started, create a sheet in Excel, or whatever spreadsheet tool you are most comfortable with.
List out some categories such as their:
- Name
- Website
- Location
- Cost
NOTE: There will be more categories to add as you move along and read through this post.
Research online
Begin your online research.
Start with a simple Google search of “DWI Lawyer NJ” or “DWI Lawyer Near Me” and see what comes up. We would recommend listing results from the top 2-3 pages.
Add their names and websites to the sheet as you comb through the pages. You can even snoop around and look up the lawyers' business and personal social media pages.
Read reviews
Check Facebook pages, Google My Business profiles, Yelp, Glassdoor, Avvo.com, Lawyers.com and other valued review sites to see what people are saying.
Look at recent reviews and note both positive and negative experiences. Be on the lookout for any DWI mentions as those may provide more relevant insight.
Ask around
Word of mouth is still a powerful and grossly underutilized tool.
Ask your family, friends, co-workers and other important people in your life if they have any recommendations on DWI Lawyers.
2. Interview the DWI attorney and let them interview you too
It’s essential for you to interview the lawyer and not be afraid to ask questions about their background, experience and expertise.
You are literally interviewing them for a job (the job = your case).
You also must come prepared to answer all of their questions accurately. You can’t lie or bend the truth about what happened, by now there has already been an official police report filed.
You need to be upfront, honest and stand by what you say.
Come prepared with a list
We suggest going into each meeting or phone call with a DWI attorney with a list that outlines questions you need to ask, and details you yourself need to disclose.
This will ensure that each legal service provider gets and gives all the same information, which will help in the decision-making process down the road.
Ask about their DWI experience
Would you hire someone to build your home who has never built a house before? Probably not.
Try to find lawyers that have extensive DWI experience and training.
Many criminal defense attorneys may have a lot of experience that can benefit you more than just representing yourself.
If they specialize in or have handled several DWI cases successfully, hiring them may work to your advantage.
They would be more familiar with the rules, regulations and processes of fighting a DWI charge and would have less of a learning curve based on their experiences.
Ask about their relationships with local Prosecutors
This is an important one that many people overlook...
Make sure your DWI Lawyer has a good relationship with the local court, police and prosecutors!
If they have had trouble in the past, or have a bad reputation, look elsewhere for a legal service provider.
If you choose an attorney who has had negative experiences with the local court system in the past, it might reflect poorly on your behalf from the get-go.
3. Additional considerations
The above steps were to help you get started, but there are several other important factors to consider when choosing a DWI Lawyer in New Jersey if you want to go deeper.
Here are a few more:
Size of the firm
Size can impact the representation you receive.
If it’s a large firm where each lawyer has a lot of cases, you might not get enough close attention, but you may have more resources at your disposal.
If you go with a small firm, they may be more focused on your individual case, but have limited resources available.
Costs
For many, it comes down to cost when choosing legal representation.
You should consider how much you have at stake to lose, and what you’re willing to pay to make these problems go away.
If you’re facing jail time, you might be more inclined to go all out and spend more, while if you're facing only a couple hundred dollars in fines and just want to plea out, you can go with a less expensive option.
Comfort level, confidence and trust
As you analyze the size of the firms you’ve been in contact with, think about who you truly feel most comfortable with.
Do you want a cheap, sleazy lawyer with amateur commercials and billboards, or one that has a strong online presence with positive reviews and DWI experience who was referred to you by a friend?
Some may be more comfortable with the former, while others prefer the latter. It’s all about personal preference and who YOU feel comfortable moving forward with.
4. Weigh your options and decide
By now you’ve got a long list of DWI Lawyer’s and data. It’s time to make a decision.
We suggest making this decision in the comfort of your own home rather than in the office of an attorney. Go through your list and cross out ones you’re sure wouldn’t be a good fit.
Narrow it down to the final few and decide what matters to you most about the ones that left.
Once you’ve chosen a winner, call them and inform them of your decision. From there, the defense process will begin.
Whether you wish to reject a plea offer and mount a defense, or accept your charges, to move forward with your life you need a strong DWI Lawyer in NJ by your side.
Our team at Donnelly & Warner will zealously defend you at trial if that is your wish, or guide you through the plea deal and guilty verdict processes if you want to accept your charges.
Call us at (973) 696-6770 to speak with a D&W representative today.