How Soon After a Colorado Auto Accident Should You Call a Lawyer?

After an accident in Colorado, your main focus should be on medical attention to ensure you are out of danger. As days pass, the reality of your life's disruption following an accident starts to hit. 

Notable changes may include piling medical bills, loss of a livelihood, disability, and disfigurement. 

“The law provides an avenue for recovering compensation for damages if the accident was caused by another person's or entity's negligence. Trying to handle a personal injury case on one’s own can be frustrating given Colorado’s complex laws. You may want to involve a lawyer to help you fight for your rights,” says injury attorney Amy Gaiennie. 

How Soon Should You Call?

The sooner you can have a lawyer involved, the better, and there are several reasons for it. First, involving a lawyer early means evidence collection will be much easier, and they will deal with you and witnesses when your memory is fresh.

A lawyer also helps ensure you avoid mistakes; the sooner you have them involved, the more mistakes you can avoid, ensuring your case remains solid. 

While you want to involve a lawyer as early as possible, you also want to ensure you pick the right time so there is no harm in doing your research. Below are some things you need to look out for when picking one.

Experience

Hands-on experience teaches skills no class can, so the more years a lawyer has in the field, the better your chances of a favorable outcome. 

You also want to consider experience with a case similar to yours. For example, if you have suffered a spinal cord injury after an accident, a lawyer's experience in handling spinal cord injury claims can be an added advantage. 

Track Record

A lawyer is as good as their track record. If they have a history of winning favorable outcomes for their clients, they will likely win a favorable outcome for your claim.

However, it is important to understand that circumstances differ, and your claim may not turn out as in the case they have handled in the past. What past clients say about a lawyer is also a good way of knowing their track record. So, ask around or check testimonials, reviews, and social media mentions. 

You may not expect to have all past clients sharing positive sentiments about a lawyer, but you may want to look out for some red flags, such as accusations of lack of integrity, dishonesty, or fraud.

Resources

Most law firms do not charge their clients legal fees until they win their case, so they have to invest their resources in a client's case to recoup it after settlement. 

The resources required to investigate and bring in experts can be quite significant, and a lawyer may have several cases running simultaneously. So, when picking a lawyer or law firm, look at its financial muscle power as it determines the resources it will assign your case and, ultimately, your chances of a favorable outcome. 

Older law firms tend to have more resources than newer ones. So, you can use years of experience as a measure of resources. Also, you may need to visit a lawyer's office to understand how resourced it is. Indicators of sufficient resources can include office location, furnishings, number of staff, and the wait times for consultations.

Final Words

There is no magic timing for involving a lawyer. As highlighted in this guide, the earlier you can involve one, the better. However, taking your time to pick the right lawyer for your case is also critical.