How to Be a Personal Injury Lawyer

 Millions of people are injured every single year through no fault of their own. From automobile accidents and things that go wrong on the job site to merely have some sort of accident in public due to someone else's negligence, you would be surprised to learn just how many different people are injured every year. What can these people do? By and large, most people deal with insurance companies if they need money for rehabilitation, pain and suffering, lost income, and other financial things associated with an accident. Though this is not an easy thing to do; insurance companies are stingy and do not want to give that money up! That's why most end up seeking a qualified personal injury lawyer to help.

 A qualified attorney, like the one you would find practicing at Edwards Injury Law and similar locations, is really the key to victory for accident victims. Having a good lawyer is the difference between forcing those companies to cough up a settlement or just chalking your accident up to bad luck and moving on with your life without any compensation. But what does it take to become a good lawyer? Here are some of the steps a personal injury attorney must take in order to practice.

Steps for Becoming a Personal Injury Attorney

1: Get Your Undergrad Degree in a Law-Related Field

 Realistically, you really want to start while you're in high school, getting a feel for the law and ensuring that you get into a good college. Though the first practical step in this journey is to obtain a four-year Juris degree of some sort. Because this is the undergrad degree, this doesn't matter that much if it's from a community college or a fancy, big-name school. What you want here are great grades and a grasp of the law.

2: Complete an Accredited Law School

 Next, you need to go to an accredited law school. It sort of does matter here if the school has some prestige. The more popular the school, the easier it's going to be for you in the field once you graduate. Though this isn't a given; you can go to any accredited school, just don't expect things will be easy if you go to some no-name school.

3: Gain Experience in the Field

 While you're in that school, and over your summer breaks, and even after graduating, do what you can to gain experience. No one starts out as a personal injury lawyer; it's something that one must strive toward, and the only way to do that is through ample experience and education.

4: Complete Your Articling

 In Canada and some areas of the US, you must complete at least a year's worth of articling after graduating from law school. This is still a phase of formal education, and it's required in order to be licensed to practice any sort of law. But it's also going to help you gain exposure and experience.

5: Pass Your Bar Exam

 This one isn't long and complicated. After graduating and completing your articling, you will have the chance to take the bar admissions exam to gain your license. Take it and ace it!

6: Get Your Foot Into the Door at a Firm

 This step is optional, but if you really want to start practicing law right away, you should go and apply to work in an existing quality law firm. You likely won't be put on any cases at first, but this allows you to gain a lot of necessary experience. This way, when you're up to bat to try a case, you'll be ready and will do a great job. This will open a lot of doors for you going forward.

7: Move Up or Start Your Own Practice

 Now, you have two choices if you want to remain an attorney. You can stay with your existing practice and perhaps work your way up to a partner, or you can branch out and start your own practice. Now that you are a legitimate lawyer with ample experience, you should be able to make either choice pay off.

 Lawyers are very skilled at what they do and have gone through a lot of education and hard work. Though some are still better than others. That's why it's important you chose the best when you need a personal injury attorney.