When a client seeks out the help of a personal injury attorney to get retribution against a negligent party, one of the first things the lawyer will do is tell the client to avoid social media completely. That is good advice, and it is advice that personal injury attorneys should heed for themselves. There are just as many ways for an attorney to compromise a personal injury lawsuit through social media as there are for the plaintiffs and defendants.
When a personal injury attorney is looking for witnesses or other information for their personal injury case, they will sometimes use social media to reach more people. The problem is that sometimes attorneys give too much detail in their calls for information, and official investigators could consider the case compromised before it even reaches the negotiation stage. Attorneys need to be very careful with the language they use when making a public request for information.
A statement published on social media is there for everyone to see for many years to come. Even if the statement is deleted soon after it is published, there are still ways to retrieve the statement and use it against the person who made it. Savvy personal injury attorneys know that making detailed statements defending their clients on social media is a very bad idea, but that does not stop overzealous attorneys from making this mistake over and over again.
Social media is a good way to get information out to a lot of people very quickly. But that does not mean that it is the best way to offer a clarification for evidence or a statement that was utilized in a personal injury case. Once again, attorneys need to be aware of the permanent nature of the information they post on social media. Releasing information on social media regarding evidence or statements made in support of a personal injury case is a very bad move for any attorney to make.
Social media is a very powerful way to reach a large audience and convince that audience of your point of view. While this can be a great way to turn public opinion in favor of an attorney's client, it can also be used to cloud the truth and cause problems for a client's case. Some personal injury attorneys deal in misinformation to try and convince a jury that their client deserves maximum compensation. But in the end, using social media to cloud the truth can be a tactic that will backfire on the attorney and their client.
When it comes to personal injury law, social media is a very tricky tool to try and use. It is always best for attorneys and clients to avoid putting any information on social media to avoid making problems for their case. But even though avoiding social media is sage advice, it is not often advice that attorneys take for themselves.
