Car accidents are one of the major causes of serious injury and death for millions of adults and children throughout Kentucky, Tennessee, and the nation. The death of a child is a lifetime loss that is hard to bare while the loss of a spouse or beloved friend is devastating.

The law firm you choose will not bring back the life you lost but it can provide you with the assurance that you receive justice.

The Kentucky Office of Highway Safety determined that there have been 167 vehicle related deaths as of April 6, 2021. In 2019, there were a total of 732 vehicle related fatalities. Lack of seatbelt usage is the primary factor in these fatalities.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security reported several types of vehicle fatalities in 2020 totaling 1,221 persons killed, with the majority unrestrained.

How To Find The Best Fatal Car Accident Lawyer

If you have lost a loved one in a car accident, how will you put your life together? You want an attorney who shows compassion to help you get through perhaps the most difficult time in your life.

You also want a law firm with the experience and resources necessary to obtain maximum recovery for both you and your family. So how do you go about locating the best fatal car accident lawyer?

Compassion

You need to feel comfortable with the attorney who will be working on your case. Therefore, you will want your attorney to not only show compassion, but empathy and understanding during this difficult time.

Although it may be difficult to do, you will need to relay personal and private information and it may take time to build up this trusting relationship. Your attorney will be exploring all damages, to include emotional damages, so the more this has affected your life the greater your recovery.

At our law firm we often recommend counseling with a social worker or psychologist to help you deal with your grief. Much of your communications will be with the staff or paralegal, who should likewise be understanding and knowledgeable as you are not only retaining the attorney on your case, but the staff with whom you will be dealing with on a day-to-day basis.

With this being said, you want to make sure the attorney representing you is the top lawyer in the firm- the one with experience and reputation that you will need to be successful in your wrongful death case.

Reputation

How did you locate the law firm? One of the best ways to locate car accident lawyers dealing with fatalities is their reputation in the community and how you were referred to their office.

Merely seeing an attorney on television or another media platform does not mean that attorney will be the one representing you in your case or the attorney will have all the qualities needed for your case. The best referrals come from friends, family, and professionals who personally know the attorney.

You will also want to explore their website to find out who they are and reviews of past clients for their experiences with the law firm. Be sure to explore the profile of that attorney on their website which is usually found on their ‘About Us’ page to make sure that it is the attorney for you and your family.

Generally, if the lawyer has a good reputation, they will have countless reviews from past clients that detail their experiences. Do not hesitate to read these Google reviews to make sure that this law firm is right for you.

Experience

You will not only want an experienced attorney, but you want an experienced fatal car accident attorney.

For such serious cases as wrongful death claims, you will need an attorney with years of experience representing families who have lost loved ones in vehicle accidents; an attorney who spends the majority of their time representing the injured in automobile collisions. Just like when you seek a physician and you have a broken bone you will want an orthopedic surgeon, when you seek a fatal accident lawyer you will want one that concentrates in that area of practice.

You also need to look for an attorney with actual litigation or trial experience in the courtroom. Make sure that the attorney at the law firm you select is the one who will be representing you in your case with the experience needed.

Once again, you can review their website with recognitions and awards that they have received, such as the American Association for Justice which is a top national organization for personal injury attorneys. So, you need to ask these questions:

How many years have you practiced law in the area of personal injury and in particular, car accidents involving death?
How many families have you represented in wrongful death cases?
What percentage of your practice is devoted to these cases?
Will you be the one handling my case?

Negotiation Skills

At some point in your case before or after suit is filed you, will want to make sure that the attorney representing you will be the one negotiating your case.

Most cases settle prior to the filing of suit. If suit is filed in court the great majority of cases settle by mediation prior to trial.

Therefore, negotiation skills are crucial in the selection of your attorney. During the initial consultation, which should be without charge or obligation, you will need to explore the personality of the attorney you will be hiring to see if they have the qualities you will need to negotiate the maximum settlement for you and your family and keeping you informed every step of the way.

Results

Superior negotiation skills get good results for significant settlements or verdicts for someone who has lost a loved one in an automobile collision.

Usually, the website of most law firms will include the results they have obtained for their clients. If not, this would be a red flag.

If the attorney has practiced for many years, they should have collected settlements well over one million dollars. Each case is different, such as the amount of insurance to collect even in a fatality, but over time an attorney with the experience needed for fatalities recovering wrongful death damages should have obtained millions in settlements.

So, in your first consultation with the lawyer you are considering hiring, be sure to ask questions about their past experience and their successes.

Ask How They Will Help You And Your Family

Ask how your attorney plans to obtain maximum recovery by building the strongest case possible for you and collecting wrongful death damages which should include the following:

Medical bills: If your loved one survived the car accident before they passed there could be significant medical expenses that will need to be paid. How will these be collected?
Funeral and burial expenses: How will these be paid?
Loss of future income and household services: How will these be calculated? The attorney should explain that an economist will be retained in most cases to determine the future loss of income that your loved one would have received if they were working at the time they lost their life which is one of the damages to collect in a wrongful death case.
Loss of Companionship: Your attorney should be your voice for the loss you have sustained which includes being deprived of the companionship of your loved one whether a spouse or child.
Pain and Suffering: If your loved one survived for a period of time following the car accident they will be entitled to pain and suffering. In addition, you will have pain and suffering along with your loved ones for their loss.
Annuities: Does the law firm set up annuities for the children of the deceased? This can be an important protection of your children with the loss of a parent.

Call the Law Firm Who Cares About You

Flora Templeton Stuart Accident Injury Lawyers enjoy a reputation throughout Kentucky and Tennessee where they are licensed to practice with compassion and caring for their clients. For this reason, Flora wants to meet personally with her clients so she can gain their trust and be their voice.

At our law firm we do not charge a fee unless we are successful. There is no charge for an initial consultation to see if we can be your attorney in this most difficult time in your life. We often meet with clients on weekends and are available 24/7 for a consultation. With offices throughout Kentucky and Tennessee we are available to meet or travel if you cannot come to us.