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Why You Should Call A Personal Injury Law Firm, Not a 1-800 Number
If you live anywhere near the San Francisco Bay Area, you’ve probably seen or heard advertisements – perhaps lots of them – for 1-800 services offering to connect you with a personal injury attorney who can help you “win big.” It’s easy to see why these ads are appealing – when you’ve been hurt by another person’s negligence, you want someone to fight for you, and fast. But it’s important to understand the limitations of these services and why you may be better off finding an experienced Bay Area personal injury lawyer and reaching out to them directly.
What Happens When You Call a 1-800 Number to Find a Lawyer?
Most advertisements for legal services that encourage people to call a 1-800 number will direct the caller to a lawyer referral service, not an actual law firm. The representative, who likely does not have any legal training, will ask the caller a few questions about the type of injury they’ve experienced and then direct them to a law firm that handles these cases.
This method of finding legal help might not be a bad idea if the call service has strict methods for admitting attorneys or firms to their group, but unfortunately, that is rarely the case. Most of these call services will accept any attorney who pays to join, and there is little to no verification of the lawyers’ qualifications. You may be directed to a new, inexperienced lawyer or one who handles many different types of cases. Respectfully, this is no way to choose a lawyer. The fact is that many people who do find representation this way never receive value for their cases. At the end of the day, they may not even know what value was for a case they were advised to settle.
Can a 1-800 Service Recommend a Lawyer?
Representatives from a call center cannot give actual legal advice, and they cannot give you a recommendation on which firm to call or direct you to the attorney they think is best for your case. In fact, it violates ethical standards in California and other states, for an attorney to pay someone to recommend them. Instead, your case will be randomly assigned to a random attorney who has paid to be a part of the call service.
Are There Legitimate 1-800 Numbers for Legal Help?
Attorneys can purchase a 1-800 line for use at their office, and some organizations that offer pro-bono legal advice may use a 1-800 number so that callers can reach them more easily. Not all numbers that begin this way are call forwarding services, but many of them are, and injured people should be extremely cautious when using such numbers. Here are a few signs to look for:
- Does the advertisement mention a specific attorney or firm, or a legal help organization? If not, it may be a call center.
- Are there promises of results? No skilled lawyer will tell a client what outcome to expect without first reviewing the details of the case.
- Are they pressuring you to “act fast?” Some lawyer referral services encourage injured people to call right away, even from the scene of a crash, so they can speak to them while they are still scared and vulnerable. Your safety and well-being should always come first, and an attorney with your best interests in mind will understand this, too.
Trust Your Case to an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney
Using a lawyer referral service might seem quick and easy, but in reality, rather than reaching out to an attorney who is peer reviewed and has experience in the area of the case you may have, you are essentially throwing a dart onto a board that may point to just about anyone.
At our office, our phone rings through to us. The number is a San Francisco phone number with a 415 area code. It is 415-544-0115. Our e-mail, for our lawyers, which you may often find hard to locate on many 1-800 sites is dependent upon who you wish to reach at our office but Mr. Righthand’s is Scott@righthandlaw.net. Call them or e-mail them. The office is located in San Francisco. It is very much still there, even during the pandemic. They have an office in Sacramento as well.
The Law Office of Scott Righthand, P.C., does serious or catastrophic injury cases. They have done them for 40 plus years. They are peer-reviewed. Scott Righthand has been listed as a Super Lawyer for 15 consecutive years. The US News and World Report has listed Scott among America’s Best Lawyers for more than 10 consecutive years. If you’ve been injured, contact our office today to request a free case evaluation.
