Five questions before you engage a lawyer
How do I know what lawyer to appoint, whether they know what they are talking about and whether they are reasonable with their costs?
The single best way is to ask friends and family and find out what lawyers they have used and what the experience has been like.
Here’s my top five questions, for the lawyer who will be managing your file:
5. How much of this kind of legal work have you done in the last year?
4. Can you do this legal work for a fixed fee?
3. If you can’t provide the legal advice for a fixed fee, can we set a cost budget and you let me know before that budget is exceeded? (If yes, how do you manage that internally? How often is your time entered in your time recording system? Can you email me a cost update report on request?)
2. What outlays will I be charged for and how will I be charged?
And my number one question for the lawyer you intend to hire:
1. Will I be able to get you on the phone for extra questions? (Of course the answer will almost certainly be “yes”. Test them a couple of days later by trying to get them on the phone and see how they go.)
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