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Unlike other purchases, it is very
difficult to determine the quality of a legal product when
hiring an attorney. It's not as though you can pick up the
latest Consumer Reports to find out what track record an
attorney has. If you're lucky, you have a trusted friend or
colleague with extensive first-hand experience with an
attorney. More likely, however, referrals are given because
someone knows someone who knows someone, and virtually nothing
is known about the referred attorney. In fact, some business
groups require their members to make referrals only to other
members of the group, no matter how bad or unknown the services
of that person may be. Even if the referral is based on
someone's legitimate good experience, the attorney may know
nothing about your particular matter. Thus, even with a strong
referral, your search is not over; you still need to interview
the attorney. It is shocking how few
clients ever ask even the simplest questions of their attorney
before hiring him/her. Some clients never even ask how much the
attorney charges, while the vast majority ask about fees only,
and nothing more. For this reason, most attorneys are not used
to being asked any questions, and some may take slight offense.
Such a reaction may not suggest they are hiding anything or that
they are bad attorneys. It may mean, however, the attorney
doesn't like being questioned, which could be a little
problematic. Here are some questions you should consider asking
any new attorney you hire, or any attorney you've been working
with for a while, but are considering asking to do something in
a different area. Not all questions may be of concern to you,
and there may be questions not listed here that are important
to you, so by all means ask them.
How much experience have you had with my particular legal
issue?
| Experience is a valued commodity in an attorney.
However, asking how long the attorney has practiced law
isn't necessarily going to tell you much. An attorney
with many years experience in real estate isn't
necessarily the best choice to draft a business
partnership agreement. However, if you've received
excellent service from an attorney in one area, chances
they will try and bring that same level of quality to the
new area, even if they don't know all the ins and outs of
the new area. Nonetheless, it is worth asking what the
attorney's experience is with a particular matter in order
gage whether they have done anything remotely similar.
If your attorney has a specialty in the specific issue
for which you are seeking help, all the better. However,
beware that attorneys cannot use the word "specialty" or
anything that implies a specialty unless a certification
in that area is available, which is almost never the
case. Instead of looking for "specialty" ask what
percentage of the attorney's practice is involved in the
area in which you need assistance. If it's an obscure
area, then even 1 prior experience may represent a good
understanding of that area with respect to other
attorneys.
You must realize too that each legal matter is very
specific to the facts and circumstances of that matter, so
it is unlikely any attorney has seen a matter just like
yours. Shop for general familiarity in an area, not
specific understanding. And, keep in mind that even an
attorney with experience in your area will most likely
have to do some legal research, because the law is
constantly changing.
When inquiring about experience, pay attention to the
kinds of clients your attorney has served, not only
whether they have done similar transactions. What may
seem like a standard agreement in one context may have
nuances in a different context. This is especially true
where the context involves rapidly changing technology.
For instance, some attorneys have created a niche out of
Internet law, because many of the old ways of doing things
have new twists and implications when you try to do them
on the Internet.
Finally, it is worth noting that experience should not
be relied on as the only factor when shopping around. An
astonishing number of shoddy attorneys have been in
practice for years. Nonetheless, inquiring about
experience is a good first question, and should be an
important factor when choosing an attorney.
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Why should I hire you instead of your competitors?
A common answer would most likely refer
to the attorney's reputation and years of experience.
That's fine, but reputations are virtually unverifiable,
given attorney-client confidentiality issues. Plus, there
is a tendency for "reputation" to be used as a synonym for
visibility rather than quality of performance.
Good answers to this question should go beyond just the
attorney's years of experience. Ideally, the attorney has
worked with businesses of similar size, in a similar
industry or in a highly related industry. Beyond this,
smaller law firms can usually brag about better personal
service. Larger law firms can brag about handing matters
that may require huge teams of legal staff, such as in
complex litigation. Keep in mind that it is unethical for
attorneys to site their successes in a way that implies
you will have the same successful result, because each
legal matter is different. |
Why should I hire you instead of doing this myself?
| More and more, people are handing their
own legal matters using self-help materials available from
publishers such as Nolo Press in order to save money. In
most instances, even if you pursue your own legal matters,
you will still want an attorney to provide input on the
legal matter you are pursuing, such as the overall
strategy you're using, or an occasional answer to a
specific question. Thus, you will want to select an
attorney who is willing to acknowledge the validity of
self-help legal strategies in general.
Keep in mind a good attorney may legitimately believe
that the particular legal issue you are trying handle on
your own isn't one that easily lends itself to self-help
legal work. As long as the attorney doesn't belittle or
discourage self-help work in general, you may still have a
good attorney. One question to ask in that case, would be
whether the attorney has ever assisted self-help clients
before. At a minimum, a good answer to this question
should be logical, and shouldn't simply rely on a cliché
such as "anybody who represents themselves has a fool as
an attorney," as a way of discouraging self-help
representation. |
What is your hourly rate, and will you consider reducing
it for me?
| It is astonishing the number of clients
that hire attorneys without even asking what they will be
charged. Among business attorneys in this region, a
client can expect to pay anywhere from $125/hr for a new
and unspecialized attorney to $600/hr for an experienced
and specialized attorney. Most business matters can be
handled for between $150-$190 per hour.
Similarly, it is important to ask how many hours the
attorney expects to spend on your legal matter. Estimates
are not binding, but attorneys often feel pressure to not
exceed the estimate by too much.
Once you've established the general rate for an
attorney, it can't hurt to simply ask if they would
consider reducing that rate. Often attorneys will reduce
their rates for a good cause. So, if you have a good
cause, go ahead and pitch it (very briefly). Also, if you
are the type of client that is likely to use the attorney
frequently in the future, you may be able to negotiate a
lower rate because the attorney saves time in the future
with marketing. |
What kinds of clients do you typically serve?
If you find an attorney serving many
clients that are just like you, the attorney is more
likely to be familiar with some of the circumstances
surrounding your business, and thus may be in a position
to more effectively give you good advice. However, most
attorneys don't serve one type of client, and if you find
one that does, it may be worth paying a little more for
that attorney.
If you're a small or medium sized, owner-operated
business, watch out for attorneys that serve mostly large
corporate clients. Such attorneys are not used to the
limited legal budgets of smaller companies, and they have
a tendency to over-lawyer legal matters. (Read more about
over-lawyering) |
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