Trust and Experience when Hiring a Local Attorney

From the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally to the increasingly popular off-road vehicles, many visitors to our state come here to attend rallies. Unfortunately, many are also involved in vehicle accidents that result in serious injuries.

When you’re injured in a vehicle accident in South Dakota, you should hire an attorney local to the area. They understand local ordinances and state laws pertinent to your case, and their familiarity with local law enforcement and legal procedures gives you the best chance of receiving the maximum compensation for your injuries.

Trust experience in gathering evidence

Having an experienced South Dakota attorney on your side gives you many advantages. One of those is evidence preservation, which is critical. When you’re injured in the Black Hills, it’s likely that witnesses to the accident are also tourists, and therefore may leave the area shortly after the incident. An attorney must act quickly to preserve witness testimony and maintain contact with them. By using out-of-state legal counsel, you risk losing important information in the time they take to conduct interviews, which diminishes your ability to access the compensation you’re entitled to.

The vehicles involved in the accident can also be important sources of evidence. Having someone who knows how to acquire and preserve this evidence is crucial to building your legal suit. A South Dakota attorney is also familiar with local law enforcement officers and their procedures, which makes gathering information for your case much easier and more thorough.

After your accident, getting immediate medical care is important for your personal health, but also ensures you receive an accurate and timely diagnosis. This information is critical in determining the compensation you are entitled to due to injury. Having a South Dakota attorney on your side also means you have someone well versed in insurance rules specific to the state you’ve been injured in. They may differ vastly from your place of residence, which can impact the care you’re able to receive or how much you’ll have to pay out of pocket.

Why local matters to maximizing your recovery

When you’re injured on vacation or on out-of-state business, it may seem like the best course of action is to call a nationwide "attorney group" or your local lawyer . There are limitations that come with hiring a lawyer that isn’t licensed in the same state as your accident.

A South Dakota attorney knows the laws and regulations in South Dakota, but also knows and works with other people in the local justice system. If your case does go to trial, a South Dakota attorney understands the legal landscape and overall jury pool temperament. They understand when a good deal has been presented to a client, or if it’s worth it to push a case through litigation, and the costs associated with either course of action. A South Dakota attorney also understands whether a local jury is likely to scrutinize a certain case more than another, which is an important insight when properly advising you on your case.

Even if you hire an out-of-state attorney, state law may require you to be represented by a locally licensed attorney. This means the person representing you may not be who you expected. Further, the local attorney may not appropriately prioritize your case due to having to split their fee with the out-of-state attorney, which is why such fee-splitting isn't allowed in South Dakota except under certain circumstances. By hiring a South Dakota attorney from the start, you can rest assured knowing that you have the best possible representation.

How we can help

For fifteen years, Michael Shubeck has run the South Dakota branch office for his mentor, Gregory Yates, who is legendary in California for his civil rights, product liability, and motor vehicle accident cases. In that time, Michael’s cases have routinely outperformed the firm’s California experiences for clients because of his expertise in South Dakota’s laws. He has represented clients in vehicle injury cases of varying circumstances, but is particularly successful with cases involving injury due to motorcycle accidents.

In one example, Michael was able to settle a case from the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for ten times the original adjuster’s best offer. Michael’s dedication to researching every avenue has resulted in an impressive legal track record, not to mention countless satisfied clients. If you’ve been injured while visiting the Black Hills, he should be the first person you call.

Michael Shubeck helps out of state victims to quickly preserve evidence and find medical care. Michael Shubeck knows how to value your case based on local experience and laws, and he is motivated to get you the best result.

Contact our office today to schedule a free consultation on your case. We can advise you on whether to pursue your personal injury claim and how we can assist. Discussing your case is not a guarantee of legal representation.

 

DISCLAIMER: Discussion of past results does not constitute a guarantee, warranty or prediction regarding the outcome of your legal matter. Each case is unique to its own facts and laws are constantly changing, past results do not guarantee or predict future results.