How to Find a Reputable Attorney
When faced with a legal situation, one of the first steps you'll need to take is finding an attorney. But how and where? And how do you go about finding the 'right' attorney for the situation? Here are some tips.
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Instructions
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How to Find a Reputable Attorney
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Develop a pool of potential attorneys. You need to get a feel for a potential attorney. Remember, you will be working with them on sensitive, personal issues here. One of the easiest ways to gather a pool of candidates is to check the advertising for attorneys in the local white or yellow pages.
Also, most attorneys and firms have websites. Good sites will tell you who the attorney is, what kind of cases the attorney specializes in, and hopefully the kind of clients the attorney takes on. In this way, you can weed them out by specialty, location, or whatever criteria might be best for making a decision. -
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Call around locally. Once an initial list of phone numbers has been gathered, cold-call some of them. Just looking at a website won't give you as much information as simply talking to the attorney on the phone.
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Interview potential lawyers. Ask them questions. Talk to them about subjects other than just your case or legal issue. You want to be comfortable with your attorney, and asking questions is the best way to make that judgment.
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Ask friends and family members for referrals. Most of us have had contact with an attorney for some reason during our lives. Use the experiences of your acquaintances. Even if someone recommends an attorney that can't help in a specific case, that attorney probably knows another attorney who can help.
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Contact the state bar association. Every state's bar association has a complete list of attorneys that are currently licensed. The bar also has information on attorney conduct, such as whether there are any complaints against an attorney. Filter any such information, though, because not all complaints are valid. Remember that sometimes clients are unreasonable.
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Make a courthouse visit to meet some lawyers. It's always possible to simply go down to the local courthouse and just start conversations with attorneys. The fraternity is pretty small, actually, in most areas, which means that people know each other. Use them as a resource to find your attorney.
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Tips & Warnings
Use your own judgment. When talking to potential attorneys, you will get a feel for how they do business. Heed that feeling, good or bad, when deciding to either hire someone or move to the next candidate.
Understand that even with a thorough screening process, circumstances can change the attorney-client relationship. It may not work out as you had hoped. Or something may come up for one or the other of you, and you may need to change attorneys. It's okay. Just try to be diligent at the beginning and make a good first choice.
