Should anyone do their own PI case?

This article was received from a self-help legal advisor website. Although legal (based on the freedom of information), there are many more potentially dangerous self proclaimed self-helpers out there. This post is intended to make the public aware of the sites and the possible mistakes that could be made if an individual follow their advise.

The article starts by saying "Personal injury lawsuits, also called torts, arise when one individual harms another individual or his or her property.” [See HALT Consumer Alert: Your Personal Injury Lawsuit] In tv and phone book ads, PI lawyers have long contended that they can get you much more money than if you go it alone, especially against insurance companies. Nonetheless, most of those same law firms then only take cases involving “serious” injuries [meaning serious money], leaving many injured persons to fend for themselves anyway. When they do take you as a client, they virtually always insist that you accept the local “standard” contingency fee, on a take-it-or-leave it basis.

Notice the antagonism and the generalization of the writer of the article. The article continues in this way "The good news, if you have a personal injury claim, is 1) there are many instances when it is perfectly sensible to handle a PI claim yourself, and there are numerous sources of self-help advice; and 2) if you decide to hire a lawyer, you have the right to negotiate for a fee other than the “standard” fee you will be offered."

I remember in law school on of the professors indicated to us that "only a fool has himself/herself for a client.." I would love to send this article to the professor. Lawyers need to be aware of this type of misleading information by self proclaimed self-helpers, which by the way, are only out to make a buck.