Facing Civil Litigation? You Need an Attorney

There may be times in your life when you are involved in complex civil litigation. It could be a car accident in which you are injured by another driver or you injure someone else. It could be a medical malpractice case. You might wind up suing your employer because of discrimination. In other cases, you might might be sued because of something that happens on your property or because of something you said about someone online. In any of these cases, it is worth it to spend the money on an experienced attorney. You might see the attorney fee as excessive, but it could wind up saving you multiple times more money than what you actually spend.

One of the advantages of having an experienced, competent attorney is that person will have a good idea of whether you have a good case against someone else or if a person suing you has a good case against you. Few cases these days actually make it in front of a judge or jury. In fact, only about 1% of federal civil cases go to trial these days, compared with 11.5% in 1962. Most cases wind up settling. Your attorney can advise you on whether you should settle and help you negotiate the best deal.

If you do wind up going to trial, your attorney will be invaluable to help you through the process. If things don’t go your way the first time, you might wind up in appellate court, which takes some expertise to maneuver, so it’s good to have an attorney on your side who knows what he or she is doing.

Complex civil litigation may not even make it into the court system at all. You might choose to or be bound to go through mediation or arbitration. These are processes by which you try to work out your differences and come to an agreement, so the need to file a lawsuit is eliminated. Just because you aren’t going to court doesn’t mean you don’t need an attorney, however. Attorneys are just as valuable in mitigation and arbitration proceedings to ensure your rights are protected and that a mediator or arbitrator doesn’t stick you with a raw deal and favor your opponent.

Facing complex civil litigation may not seem as scary as a criminal trial, but it is serious business. Getting a bad settlement or being hit with an unfavorable trial verdict can devastate your finances. That’s why it’s important to have a competent, experienced attorney by your side every step of the way.