Every firm claims local presence. The claim is easy to make and, in a state the size of California, easy to fake. So it is worth being specific about what local knowledge actually buys, because the honest version is narrower and more concrete than the marketing version.
It buys three things: knowledge of the roads, knowledge of the courts, and the ability to physically be somewhere quickly.
Kern County and the Roads
One thing very specific to a place like Kern County is that you are dealing with a very large rural area.
So you end up with a lot of semi-trucks, farming equipment, and county roads that are often monitored by different agencies, from the sheriff's office to the police to the highway patrol. That last detail has practical consequences. Which agency responded determines where the report lives, what it contains, and how it gets obtained.
It really helps to have somebody in the area who understands the roadways in a specific way. It is also useful to have a lawyer in your city who knows the local judges. For those reasons, hiring in Kern County is a little bit different from hiring elsewhere in the state.
The Central Valley and the Courts
The Valley has a different characteristic, and it is about people rather than geography.
One thing specific to the Valley is that, in my experience, the people from the Valley have generally lived there for a long, long time. And so, when it comes to the court system, the judges and the court reporters know who is there and who is jumping in to get cases.
If you know the court system, you know what to expect. You know which judges you would want adjudicating and being part of your case and which ones you would not. That is a real value to the client, and it is not something that can be researched from a distance.
When you know the landscape, when you know the history of the Valley, you are simply more a part of the community. Whether it is up on the 41 or the 99, when you get a call, do you know these different exits? Do you know which way people are supposed to be going? Do you know where the problem areas are?
Presence, Not Address
Then there is the operational question, which is the one that decides evidence.
Do you have a legal team that can be on site in moments, collecting real information that is used to not just move the case forward, but oftentimes be the difference between winning and losing? Or do you just have a fake office address, pretend you've been there, and try to pick up as many cases as you can when you're really located in San Francisco or Beverly Hills?
That is a sharp way to put it, and it is checkable, which is what makes it useful. Chapter 11 covered why the first days decide what evidence survives. A firm that cannot place a person on the scene within that window will not collect the camera footage, and this is frequently the case.
So the question to ask is not whether a firm has an office in your city. It is whether anyone from that firm has been there this month, and who specifically would go if your case needed it tomorrow.
Common Questions
- Should I hire a local car accident lawyer?
- Yes, for reasons that are practical rather than sentimental. Local knowledge includes the roads and responding agencies, the court and its judges, and the ability to get someone to the scene while evidence is still available. Those things directly affect what the case is worth.
- What is different about a car accident case in Kern County?
- It is a large rural area, which means more semi-trucks and farming equipment, and county roads monitored by several different agencies, including the sheriff, police, and highway patrol. Knowing the roadways and the local judges makes a practical difference in how the case is handled.
- Does the local court matter in a California car accident case?
- Yes. Historical results differ across California and even within counties, and knowing which judges and which venues favor which cases is genuine value to a client. Lawyers who work a venue regularly know what to expect from it.
- How can I tell if a firm's local office is real?
- Ask who from the firm would come to the scene if your case needed it tomorrow, and when someone from the firm was last physically in your city. Robert May draws a direct contrast between a team that can be on-site in moments and a firm-maintained listed address elsewhere.
Chapter Reflection
Local is not a slogan; it is a capability, and one you can verify with two questions over a phone call. Which brings this book to the only step that costs nothing.