People rarely go through life looking forward to the day that they will need to hire an attorney.  This is why people who have been involved in accidents often have questions about how to go about selecting the right attorney for their case.

Among several other factors, many people do the smart thing by considering an attorney’s track record, or case results, before making a selection.  After all, case results can give a prospective personal injury client a good idea regarding the kinds of cases that an attorney or law firm handles, and a good idea about how the lawyer or law firm’s clients have fared.  However, a wise consumer should be careful about taking these case results at face value.

As an Orlando trial attorney, I spend a significant amount of my professional time in courthouses.  Given the nature of my work, a great number of my colleagues also spend a lot of their time in courthouses.  It is common for lawyers who litigate cases to talk about things happening in courthouses, including trials and verdicts.

I recently received a call from a colleague who was at the Orange County Courthouse a few weeks ago, where people were talking about a $100 million jury verdict.  Ordinarily, this would be huge news.  However,  in this instance, the firm that got the jury verdict was a local law firm more well-known for their television and billboard ads with people standing behind over-sized checks, than for their courtroom prowess.

It turns out that this huge jury verdict was against a Defendant who was incarcerated (apparently, he wore his orange jumpsuit throughout the short trial), and had no money, assets, or insurance.  In other words, it is extremely likely that this $100 million verdict is worth about the same amount as the paper it was printed on.

Of course, this firm might have secured this jury verdict as a matter of principle – to demonstrate its commitment to its client.  However, a cynic or skeptic might think that this particular verdict was secured so that the firm could advertise about a $100 million verdict on television, its website, and other marketing materials.  Regardless, this case is a great example of why an informed consumer would be wise to dig a little bit deeper regarding advertised case results.

If you have any questions regarding an Orlando personal injury case, or how to select an attorney after a Florida accident, call Winter Park personal injury attorneys Kim Cullen and Robert Hemphill at 407-644-4444.  At Cullen & Hemphill, questions are always answered at no charge.

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