When you’ve been in a car accident, it may seem like an obvious first step to connect with an attorney that can help guide you toward following up on the incident in a way that protects you and ideally gets you any compensation you’re owed.

But there’s more to this process than meets the eye. The attorney you contact won’t automatically have all the answers you need to walk away from the situation with your desired end result. It’s up to you to set up your attorney-client relationship for success from the beginning, starting from the very moment the accident takes place.

In this blog post, you’ll read about a few critical steps for maximizing the value you get out of your legal representation in an automobile personal injury case, as explained by a North Carolina car accident attorney.

What should you do before contacting an attorney?

From the moment your car collides with another, you need to be taking the appropriate steps to build your case. That means following a checklist of a few important items, including:

• Contacting the police and your insurance company immediately
• Exchanging contact and insurance information with other involved drivers
• Seeking medical attention for any injuries resulting from the accident right away
• Making an accurate, detailed record of what took place from your perspective
• Avoiding mentioning or implying fault in any way or discussing the incident on social media

These steps will create the building blocks of your case, if you have one. This information will give your attorney a lot to follow up on to strengthen the case even further and better understand how best to approach it to achieve an ideal result for you.

It will also help indicate what kind of case you might have. The evidence you initially provide may, for example, point toward a case of negligence where the other driver may have been distracted or otherwise impaired.

Communicating with your lawyer

Once you’ve decided to consult a lawyer, the most important thing to remember is to remain truthful with them at all times. This is the only way they’ll be able to accurately assess your case and determine what they can realistically do to help you.

If you’re concerned that you may appear to be at fault in the eyes of the attorney, don’t be. If you aren’t completely certain you’re the one at fault, there’s a good chance you aren’t. Even if a lawyer believes this may be the case, it’s important that they tell you so at this early stage. Additionally, the information you exchange with them will remain confidential.

You should maintain this level of honesty while promptly answering any questions your attorney has for you during their time consulting with or representing you. This helps your lawyer fill in any gaps in your case and build a stronger, more convincing narrative that can help you achieve a better end result.

Keeping expectations in check

When you’ve taken the leap and hired a lawyer for your car accident case, it’s natural that you may develop fairly high expectations for what they can do to help you.

Even if you’re working with an attorney with an impressive track record, though, you should trust their guidance in terms of expectations. It may not always line up with your ideal vision of how the case will resolve, but an attorney that’s honest with you about your likely result is one that stands a reasonable chance of getting you the best one possible for your circumstances.

Get help from the North Carolina car accident attorneys at Rodzik Law Group

At Rodzik Law Group, our experienced team of personal injury attorneys is ready to help you protect yourself and win the damages you deserve in your car accident case. To get in touch with us, contact us or call directly at 910-762-1199.