When hiring an employment attorney, be sure to ask how the attorney's experience in this field was built. This is the single-most important factor in deciding which lawyer you would want to be your advocate.
It does not matter how qualified an attorney is if you cannot build and maintain a good relationship with that attorney. Remember that you and your attorney will work as a team on your case. You do not just turn over the case and wait for it to be over.
When hiring an attorney, do not be afraid to go with your instincts. Do not hire anyone without meeting him or her face-to-face and asking all the questions you need to ask to be assured of the attorney's abilities, experience, and advocacy skills.
Most experienced employee rights attorneys will ask you for a fee to investigate your claim. Remember that an employment-related case is not like a personal injury case. There are many more defenses available to employers in employment-related disputes than are generally available to people or companies responsible for causing personal injury. Thus, a seasoned employee rights attorney is likely to ask you to pay a retainer equal to roughly six to ten hours of work to investigate the underlying facts, research the law, and give you a professional assessment of whether your claim would merit formal legal action.
Once a decision is made to sue the employer, experienced employee rights counsel generally will work with you in providing you with an array of flexible fee options. Make sure you ask about them in your initial meeting with your lawyer.
