It is legally allowed to hire an out-of-state personal injury lawyer for your personal injury case. Even if your personal injury accident occurred in a state other than your home, you can still avail of the legal services of a lawyer from your state of residence. Your personal injury attorney, who is licensed in your home state, can ask for the permission of the court to handle your claim. If the request is granted, he/she will be allowed to represent you in the courts of the state where the accident occurred. This is a great advantage to you claim as you will have a familiar face helping you with your claim.
However, the courts in the state where your accident occurred can also reject your personal injury lawyers request to represent you, which will mean that you will have to spend time searching for another lawyer from a state you are unfamiliar with, which can be even more drawn out than hiring a personal injury lawyer in your home state.
Since the pros and cons of hiring an out-of-state attorney can really define your case's outcome, the more important question should be: If you are involved in an accident in one state but live in another, would it be better to hire a personal injury lawyer from the state where the accident occurred?
In a personal injury case where you are a defendant, you may not have to worry about this too much since as your insurance company will most likely provide you with a personal injury lawyer. If you are the plaintiff, it will matter more which state your personal injury attorney is licensed. Remember that 75% of personal injury cases do not involve litigation and end up in an out of court settlement. As long as your personal injury lawyer is skilled and knowledgeable enough to handle the negotiations, you should be in good hands.
It is advisable to hire a personal injury lawyer who resides near you if your personal injury case will indeed proceed to a lawsuit. Working with a lawyer close to home makes it easier to meet regularly with them in order to get updates on your case and its progress. However, the disadvantage of this is that your personal injury lawyer from home may not be familiar with the laws in the state where your accident occurred so this may affect your chances of making a successful claim.
Given the diversity of laws in different states, it will be necessary to analyze the circumstances and facts of your case before deciding on whether to work with your home personal injury lawyer o to hire one from the state where your accident occurred.
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