What you should look for when hiring class action lawyers.
Are you thinking of hiring class action lawyers to represent you as the lead plaintiff? If so, you might be interested to know not all class action lawyers are created equal.
In fact, many have very focused areas of expertise. Some class action lawyers focus only cruise ship and maritime incidents. Others handle product defects. And needless to say, you wouldn’t hire the product defect lawyers to sue a cruise line for negligence and endangerment!
How to Find the Right Class Action Lawyers for Your Case
There are three things you should be looking for before making a hiring decision: experience, track record, and resources. Here’s why each is important, and what they mean to you:
- Prior experience. You want someone competent, capable, and well-informed about the areas of law pertaining to your case. In addition, you’ll likely want a lawyer with previous class action experience under their belt, since the rules and regulations regarding class action suits differ from normal litigation.
- Proven track record. Would you bet on a losing horse at the racetrack? Probably not. And this is the same reason you want to hire a lawyer with more wins than losses. Before hiring, ask about their case history, record, and past settlements. Does past success guarantee your future outcome? Well, no. But it’s a good indication of legal skill and prowess in area you need.
- Access to additional resources. Class action suits require a lot of time, energy, and research to set you up for your best chance of success. It’s likely going to take more than a single individual to put in all the work necessary, so be sure and ask how many team members will be assigned to your investigation, and whether or not they are working other cases simultaneously. You don’t want a group who is already overextended and can’t dedicate the time to pursue your case.
- Personal fit and interaction (optional). You will be spending a lot of time with your lawyer, so it’s a good idea to make sure you see eye to eye, and have similar, or at least compatible, communication styles. It also wouldn’t hurt to talk to a lead plaintiff who has worked with them previously, and see how they felt about the lawyer’s overall performance and responsiveness throughout the case.
Now that you know what you’re looking for, where are you going to find these individuals? Well, you have a few options:
- Referrals from another lawyer
- Referrals from business professionals in a related industry
- Google search of successful class action lawsuits similar to yours
- Google search of class action specialists
- Legal directories outlining specialties
Click to learn more about hiring experienced, qualified class action lawyers by contacting the Wilbanks Law Firm, P.C. online.