Personal Injury Lawyer Salary

Industrial accidents are one of the main causes of those million dollar liability suits against companies. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics every year more than 2000 work related accidents occur and these numbers are expected to go down in the coming years due to the modern means of technology. These liability suits are filed in the court by a personal injury lawyer on the sole purpose of getting a compensation for the victim but before we discuss the salary of a personal injury lawyer, let's first understand what is a personal injury lawyer and what does he/she do.

A personal injury lawyer is a law professional representing a client who is injured physically or emotionally as a result of the actions or wrong doing committed by someone else. If the injury intentional or unintentional caused by someone else during the working hours can be challenged in court then personal injury lawyer can help the victim claim the losses. Personal injury lawyers also handle cases where accidental death or complications have occurred as a result of negligence by a medical professional.

Education of a Personal Injury Lawyer

To be a licensed personal injury lawyer, it's important that the individual clears a written bar examination and in some states a written ethics examination is also conducted. To qualify for this written examination students should have completed a four-year college degree and a law degree from an accredited law school. Once the lawyer has completed all the academic formalities, he/she should be up-to-date with the latest advancements in their field of practice. They can do that by enrolling for several courses which help personal injury lawyers know every inch of detail about their field. For lucrative career opportunities, many lawyers also opt for the Specialist in Personal Injury Certification Program recognized by the American Bar Association.

How Much Does a Personal Injury Lawyer Make

A personal injury lawyer salary is based on a lot of factors such as; qualification, location, experience, the type of law firm he/she is working for, employee work records and employer's capacity. A personal injury lawyer also provides the client with several payment options such as contingency rates, retainers and hourly rates.

Contingency rate is a kind of deal which is arranged between the lawyer and the client prior to the judgment of the case. In this situation the lawyer's fee is a small percentage of the recovery money awarded to the victim. In 85% of the cases this fee system is followed. In the hourly rate system the victim pays the lawyer for every hour he/she spends figuring out a solution to the case. Many lawyers also follow the retainer procedure which means it's a flat fee or fixed fee. In this scenario some portion of the fees is paid before the actual work begins and some is paid after. Here's a table which shows the fees of a personal injury lawyer in respect to different areas of work.

Areas of Work	Average Salary
Handling Insurance Cases	$59,000 to $80,000
Handling Government Cases	$60,000 to $100,050
Handling US Air Force Cases	$65,000 to $145,000
Handling US Army Cases	$70,000 to $100,000
Handling Law Firm Cases	$56,000 to $112,000

When to Get a Personal Injury Lawyer

Today on a daily basis, people are getting hurt or injured for someone else's actions. If you have been injured or harmed and you feel like you deserve justice you can get in touch with a personal injury lawyer. There are various myths surrounding lawyers and their work ethics, it's advisable to ignore all these rumors and only think of seeking your compensation. Getting a personal injury lawyer will not only help you get the justice but also the much-needed compensation for your injuries.

So this was all about the personal injury lawyer salary, the fee structure of personal injury lawyers normally changes according to the field of their work. To find good personal injury lawyers take help of search engines, online directories and state bar organizations.

Source : http://www.buzzle.com/articles/personal-injury-lawyer-salary.html