A couple of weeks back I got a call from someone who had been injured in a car accident. They wanted me to give them a list of the best five car accident attorneys in Chicago.  When I told them that didn’t exist they didn’t give me a chance to explain why and hung up. So for them or anyone else who is looking for the “top” or “best” attorney for their case, let me tell you why it’s not that simple.

Let’s say that you are driving down the highway and you hit the breaks because traffic has come to a crawl.  Ten seconds later a semi truck slams in to your car, killing two of your family members and shattering your leg, pelvis and arm.  Physically it will take you years to recover and emotionally you likely never will. While it sounds like a slam dunk case, the reality is that there are only a handful of law firms qualified to handle that case.  Trucking cases require a high level of experience as many truck owners create shell companies to disguise the true owner of their truck and make it appear there is only limited insurance available to make a recovery against.

In a case like that I’d say there are maybe ten Chicago law firms at most with a real track record of success in those cases. Hiring the “best” one in that case might be the difference of millions of dollars as you really have to know how to handle these cases to get the most money.

So while those firms are great, if you told me that you were sitting at a stop light and rear-ended by a person with a GEICO insurance policy for $100,000.00 and sustained a back injury, I would not tell you to hire them.  It’s not that they couldn’t do the job, it’s that there is no way a lawyer who deals with truck death cases is going to spend the time needed on a smaller case like this.  They’d likely assign a very young, inexperienced associate to handle the case.  The “best” car accident attorney for you in that case is a smaller firm that handles these types of cases all day.  You’ll pay the same fee, but have an attorney with 20 years of experience in your corner.

There are many other issues that make who is best for your unique case an issue.  Maybe the defendant has what is known as a sub-standard insurance company which means to get the best recovery you need a lawyer who is willing to go to trial.  Believe it or not, not all firms will do that.  Perhaps you have a unique injury.  In that case getting someone in your corner who has won a similar case and understands the medicine is important. Maybe you are calling for a family member who does not speak English. To be successful the case might require someone who speaks their language.

I could go on, but the bottom line is that the top attorney for you might not be the top for someone else.  Every case is different. If you want to talk with a lawyer for free, call us any time at 312-346-5320 for a free consult.