During a consultation with an attorney, you can get a good sense of how they feel about the odds of success, how they’ll handle your case, and if they’re a good fit for you. To help you find the best legal representation for your case, let’s review the five most important questions you must ask your employment attorney before hiring them.
Many law firms don’t just engage in one area of law, so it’s very common to find a practice that simultaneously engages in employment, business, or family law. This doesn’t mean the attorney doesn’t have experience in employment law, but there is a chance they have less experience than an attorney in a firm that exclusively practices employment law. You can get a feel of their experience and exposure to employment law cases if you ask them how much of their practice they dedicate to employment law. Remember that the more complex your case is, the more experienced you want them to be.
Most law firms tend to focus on representing employees as it’s easier, and more likely, for an employer to have the money to find quality legal representation. However, this isn’t always the case–defenses and arguments vary widely depending on whether their client is an employer or an employee. You’ll want an attorney that’s competent in representing people like you.
There are no guarantees in law. However, some scenarios are more likely to occur in employment law cases. A knowledgeable and experienced employment attorney should be able to give you an idea of how your case may play out. Some standard employment law results include the following:
Attorney fees can vary depending on the practice. Some attorneys only charge a contingency fee, which means you don’t have to pay anything unless you win your case. Others might charge an hourly wage or a monthly retainer fee. None of these charging methods is wrong or better than the other; it simply depends on what they charge and what you can afford. However, it is arguably one of the most important questions you should ask an employment attorney–if you can’t pay, they can’t represent you.
Every employment case is unique and different from the other, and there are many different areas of employment law. While an employment attorney should be competent in all of them, that doesn’t mean they’ve handled every type of employment law case. The more cases they’ve taken that are similar to yours, the more equipped they are to handle it. Additionally, there is no shame in asking an attorney what their success rates are with cases like yours and cases they’ve taken in general.
If you believe you’ve been a victim of harassment, abuse, or discrimination in the workplace, contact the Law Firm of Tamara N Holder today. We can put you in touch with a workplace discrimination lawyer and get you the representation you deserve.
