Students are exposed to numerous areas of law during law school. Deciding what area of law is right for you can be challenging. You may have been interested in several fields of law while in school, but now you question whether any of those will be a good fit for you in the real world.
Some law students know the exact area of law they want to practice during their first year of law school. Other students may not know which practice is right for them until graduation. The fact is that it could take several years of practice to decide which area of law you like the best.
If you are leaning toward a practice in personal injury law, your fellow students may make jokes about you becoming an ambulance chaser or defending wealthy insurance companies seeking to cheat injured victims out of fair compensation. Regardless, practicing personal injury law can have its unique challenges despite having the potential to be a very lucrative field.
If you are thinking about becoming a personal injury lawyer, here are a few things that you should consider.
You Must Be Ready For Intense Competition
There is a lot of competition in the area of personal injury law. Personal injury law is one of the “default” areas of law that many attorneys fall into when they do not have a specific field of law that appeals to them. Therefore, you need to be prepared to market yourself and your law firm aggressively to attract clients.
With that said, there is plenty of room to specialize in certain areas of personal injury instead of accepting any injury case that walks in the door. For example, you may want to limit your practice to medical malpractice and defective drugs and medical devices instead of motor vehicle accidents and slip and fall cases. By doing this, you can carve out a niche for yourself and become an expert in a specialized field within personal injury law.
You Must Be Able To Stand Out
Even though there is a lot of competition, there is also a high demand for trusted injury attorneys. Thousands of people are injured each day in various accidents and incidents that are not their fault. They need qualified, experienced lawyers who understand the law to help them.
The key is finding your niche and setting yourself apart from your competition. Why should injury victims hire you instead of other attorneys with more experience? When an injury victim is ready to contact a personal injury lawyer, why are you the right person to call?
It might be hard to set yourself apart if you don’t have years of experience. You might have to charge less or offer more personalized attention while you make a name for yourself. Be prepared to have to go above and beyond for your clients during your first few years of practice in order to add value to your brand. If you can do that, you can excel in personal injury law.
You Like Helping People Who Are Injured and Suffering
One of the most common reasons why law students enter the personal injury field is to help people. Individuals and families who are the victims of negligence and other wrongdoing suffer great physical pain, emotional distress, and financial hardships. Without a competent attorney, they may be taken advantage of by insurance companies and large corporations.
Being a personal injury lawyer means that you have the opportunity to help injury victims receive the compensation they deserve. You have the chance to right a wrong and stand up for someone who cannot stand up for themselves. You have the privilege of working with someone who is going through one of the most challenging times in their life and making a difference.
Most personal injury lawyers view themselves as an advocate for the little guy against a well-funded, resourceful opponent. They help prevent a party from taking advantage of a weaker person by leveling the playing field. In other words, they fight to ensure an accident victim receives a fair outcome.
You Have Explored Personal Injury in Detail During Law School
If you think you might want to become a personal injury lawyer, become an intern for a personal injury law firm during law school. As an intern, you have the opportunity to learn about every aspect of the practice. You receive real-world experience while trying on an area of law to see how it fits.
Interns immerse themselves in a specific area of law while still in law school. Interning for an experienced personal injury law firm allows law students to see the real-world application of the sterile, dry facts and laws taught in a classroom. Interning also helps law students learn whether they may enjoy a specific area of law or whether they need to keep searching for the right fit.
Metatag: If you think you might want to become a personal injury lawyer, become an intern for a personal injury law firm during law school to learn about every aspect of the practice.