Personal injury law or tort law helps individuals to claim relief for the damages suffered because of a third party. The third party can be a government agency, large corporation, medical institution or a person. Personal injury law deals with charges such as assault, trespass, battery, negligence etc. Personal injury law is categorized into three broad categories. These are:

* Intentional torts
* Negligent torts
* Strict liability torts

Educational Requirements to Become a Personal Injury Lawyer

Individuals who wish to take personal injury law as a career field should have completed a four-year degree course and a law degree from a accredited institution. After completing the law degree an individual is required to pass the following bar exams:

* Multistate Bar Examination (MBE)
* Multistate Essay Examination (MEE)
* Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE)

After passing these examinations, it is important for an individual to get certified by the American Bar Association to be recognized as a specialist in personal injury law. Some of the best institutions to study personal injury law are

* Harvard Law School
* Stanford Law School
* Yale Law School
* Columbia Law School
* University of Chicago Law School
* Cornell Law School
* Georgetown University Law Center
* Northwestern University School of Law
* University of Michigan Law School
* University of Pennsylvania Law School

Job Description of a Personal Injury Lawyer

A personal injury lawyer has to research all the aspects of the case to determine whether he or his law firm would benefit from representing the client. If he feels that the case is strongly in his client’s favor, then he starts the paperwork for the case by conducting researches, interviewing clients and evaluating the strategies. Some other duties and responsibilities are

* A personal injury lawyer has to gather evidence that can be produced in court like medical records, police records, etc.
* He has to prepare legal briefs and testimonies for case preparation.
* Personal injury lawyers are entrusted with advising corporate clients on various legal matters as large organizations are most vulnerable to lawsuits.

These were some of the duties and responsibilities of a personal injury lawyer. The demand for personal injury lawyers has increased in the last few years and the employment outlook for this field is positive. Let us now more about the career opportunities and average salary of a personal injury lawyer.

Employment Outlook and Average Salary

Like other branches of law, personal injury lawyers either work independently or with a firm. Initially, they work as associates, but with experience, they can work as partners in a firm. The lawyers who work independently usually work for lower fee and are willing to take up smaller cases. The employment outlook for personal injury lawyers is positive with estimates pointing out that this field will see a growth of 13% by the year 2018.

The average salary of a personal injury lawyer depends on certain factors like the state that they are working in and the size of the firm that has employed them. The salary range for personal injury lawyers in America is between $51,700 to $90,000. New York, Los Angeles and Chicago are the cities that offer the best compensation packages to personal injury lawyers. As far as the state wise ranking is concerned, California leads the list, followed by New York and Florida.

This was some information on the average salary and employment outlook of personal injury lawyers. As accidents, bankruptcy cases, work related accidents continue to rise, personal injury lawyers are being sought after by organizations and individuals. A career as a personal injury lawyer is financially rewarding and provides you with numerous growth opportunities for advancement. In the end, we hope that this article would have helped you know how to become a personal injury lawyer and given you an insight to this field of law.

Armbruster, Dripps, Winterscheidt & Blotevogel, LLC is a Illinois and St. Louis personal injury, railroad accident, maritime injury, and wrongful death law firm—representing individual plaintiffs across the United States who suffer serious injuries due to negligence or corporate misconduct. Based in Alton, Illinois, each attorney represents clients in state and federal courts throughout Illinois and Missouri as well as across the United States. They are trial attorneys dedicated to obtaining full compensation for client injuries.

Family, friends and business acquaintances are all excellent places to start your lawyer search. Why is this, you may ask? Talk to friends and family. Chances are good that someone you know has used a lawyer or knows someone who has. Ask friends and family who they used and about their experience. Were they satisfied with the service they were provided? Ask for specifics about why they did – or did not- feel their lawyer provided good service. Find out if the lawyer returned telephone calls or emails in a timely manner, whether the case was pursued and completed in a reasonable time, whether the lawyer listened to requests and concerns, whether the person was kept informed about the status of his or her case, whether fees charged were fair and bills detailed enough to know what legal work was completed on the case.

Referral Services. There are a number of referral services in Texas. The State Bar of Texas provides a list of referral services around the state. Referral services require lawyers to register and generally require lawyer members to carry malpractice insurance. In the Austin and central Texas area, contact the Lawyer Referral Service of Central Texas. Referral services often also set a limit on the fee charged for an initial consultation. The Lawyer Referral Service of Central Texas requires its member lawyers to provide a 30 minute consultation for $20.

Courthouse. Go watch lawyers in action. In family law matters, divorce, child visitation, child support, etc., you can find hearings going on at the Travis County Civil Courthouse on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Except in rare circumstances, court proceedings are open to the public. Locate a hearing to watch by asking at the information desk or check the directory of courtrooms and investigate until you find a hearing to watch. You may enter and leave a courtroom while proceedings are ongoing, but remember to be respectful and quiet. Turn off cell phones and pagers and do not bring food or drinks into the courtroom. It also advisable to not bring your children. Some of the issues in these cases may not be appropriate for children, who likely should be in school in any event, and children may have a difficult time sitting still and quiet during proceedings.

Interview potential lawyers. Many lawyers offer an initial consultation free or for a small fee. You may only have 30 minutes for an initial consultation so prepare before you go. If there are any orders in place, bring those with you to the consultation. Be prepared to open the consultation with a concise description of your situation and outcome you seek. Make a list of questions and concerns so you don’t forget to raise them during the meeting.

Ask about legal fees – does the attorney charge by the hour or provide services for a flat fee? Will you need to provide an upfront retainer or deposit. If so, how much? What happens to that retainer or deposit at the end of the case? Will it be returned to you? How often will you be billed? What types of expenses will you be charged for? Does the lawyer accept credit cards or offer a payment plan? What happens if you get behind on your bill?

Ask about lawyer accessibility and communications – does the lawyer have a policy about the length of time it takes to return calls or respond to emails? Does the lawyer use email in his or her practice at all? Will you be able to reach the lawyer via cell phone? How will the lawyer keep you informed about the status of your case? I give my client’s my cell phone number for use during business hours and make every effort to return calls or reply to emails same day, or the next day. Sometimes that means I call clients at 7pm or respond to an email at 10pm but I have never had a client unhappy to be contacted after hours.

Ask about the process and timing – based on your circumstances, what does the lawyer advise be done and what is the process? How long will it take. It is important to have a realistic understanding of how long the process will take. Unfortunately, legal proceedings sometimes take months, or longer, to resolve depending on the issues.

Ask about experience and qualifications – does the lawyer have experience with your type of case? How long has the lawyer been practicing? Does the lawyer have any specialized training or certification?

Don’t feel pressured to hire the attorney during the initial consultation. Take a few days to think about the meeting, and interview other attorneys. Once you decide on an attorney you will set up another appointment to sign a representation agreement and take care of any retainer or deposit requirements. The representation agreement is the contract between you and your attorney. Read it carefully and ask the lawyer to explain anything you do not understand.

Al Rowaad Advocate is duly licensed to perform legal services and advocacy in the U.A.E., with an office in Dubai.They serve and represent both local and expatriate company and individual clients.Their strong practice areas are labor, corporate & commercial, private equity, banking, maritime & transport, litigation & arbitration and real estate.Their team of lawyers, advisors and administrative staff collaborate with a single goal: the success of our clients. Their lawyers are known for the clarity, timeliness and effectiveness of counsel, and as a result have become their clients’ call of first resort for solutions to their toughest legal challenges.Al Rowaad Advocates & Legal Consultancy has been honored to represent the following clients: Emirates NBD Bank, Shell Petrol Company and Middlesex University.