subject: Where Do I Find The Attorneys That Might Hire Me As an Expert Witness? [print this page] Attorneys have specialties, and while the largest firms can handle virtually any litigation, other firms specialize.
The initial step to creating clients from attorneys is to know where to look. The biggest firms handle the biggest cases; they have Lawyers and support personnel that can work on various facets of a large case. The largest law firms employ attorneys that specialize in different kinds of litigation. Other firms offer specialized case services; they may limit themselves to financial cases, intellectual property cases, medical cases or accident cases. Sole practitioners and law firms with just a few attorneys on staff may specialize in an area such as accidents or employment law. Find out which law firms mesh best with your experience.
For instance, some law firms specialize in automotive accidents or in insurance cases. If you are an automotive engineer, you might be selected as an expert witness in cases that involve cars, or issues that range from safety issues to accident reconstruction. If you are an accountant, a financial or investment attorney might need your services in litigation that requires analysis or reconstruction of financial records. If your qualifications is in copyrights or patents, then you can expect to find your legal clients at firms that specialize in copyright or patent infringement.
So how can you make sure your name and credentials get to those attorneys? Advertise in a journal or magazine that focuses on their part of the law. A small advertisement about your expert witness services that includes your website address may get the ball rolling and the phones ringing.
Do not sound overly aggressive or overly biased toward one kind of client, i.e., in favor of the plaintiff or the defense. You can easily eliminate fifty percent of your possible clientele by doing this. Worse still, if you eventually testify, an opposing attorney may use your ads against you to establish your bias toward one side or the other, which will reduce your credibility with a jury.
Although some experts regularly use print advertising, my preference is to use the Internet for no cost or relatively inexpensive advertising.
Do not use advertising that sounds aggressive or skewed toward one side or the other.
Direct contact is an efficient form of marketing; it can be time consuming, but a visit to a large firm where many attorneys may need your services can be worth it. first identify law firms that specialize in the area of law that may need your expertise. Call the firm to determine which of their attorneys specializes in cases involving your experience, and try to arrange meetings to present your credentials. If you can meet with more than one lawyer during your visit, that is even better.
Where Do I Find The Attorneys That Might Hire Me As an Expert Witness?
