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Selecting a lawyer can be difficult , particularly when you are under stress because of a police charge or some other traffic offense or legal issue. Most people when it comes to selecting a lawyer will talk to a family friend or someone at the office and asked for a recommendation. What you’ll get when you ask these questions is probably the lawyer that that person or family uses for preparing wills, real estate transactions, or setting up a small business. The majority of people do not have experience with lawyers defending traffic infractions or other more difficult charges such as DUI offenses and it can be difficult to find a qualified lawyer to mount a defense for you under those conditions.

The first step in selecting a lawyer should be to look for a lawyer that matches the area of law that you need. For example if you are purchasing a home then obviously a real estate lawyer would be your first choice. Someone who specializes in closing real estate transactions whether it is your home or small business. On the other hand if you need someone to defend you over a traffic violation or worse a charge of reckless driving or something similar you will want to choose a lawyer who has had courtroom experience.

After narrowing your search of lawyers in the area of law that you need, you can then look for review ratings and client review of the lawyers that you’re looking at. You may want to interview several lawyers if you have a difficult case that you need help with. Be prepared to pay if your case is difficult and will take a long time to resolve.

Twelve Questions to Ask Your Lawyer

Here are 12 questions that you might consider asking the potential lawyer that you may hire to help you with your situation:

• what is your experience in this field
• have you handled matters like mine
• what are the possible outcomes of my case
• what are my alternatives in resolving this matter
• approximately how long will it take to resolve
• do you recommend mediation or arbitration
• what are your rates and how often will you bill me
• what is a ballpark figure for the bill, including fees and expenses
• how will you keep me informed of progress
• what kind of approach looks at what you take to resolve the matter – aggressive and unyielding, or will you be more inclined to reach a reasonable settlement
• who else in the office working on my case
• Can junior attorneys or paralegals in the office handles some of the substantive legal work at a lower rate

The answers to these questions will be very helpful for you to select a lawyer that will best meet your needs and also will ensure that you have the desired outcome that you’re looking for.

Other Considerations

As an example if you are looking for a divorce lawyer, and the lawyer that you interview indicates that they will be aggressive and non-yielding, you could end up with a very large legal bill after your case is settled if your spouses lawyer takes the same approach. A friend of mine fell into this situation where both lawyers were aggressive and would not negotiate. There was a legal battle in court and my friend ended up with a huge five figure legal bill. Of course it did not help when my friend was also aggressive and had decided that his ex-spouse was not going to get much of his asset base.

Neither his spouse nor himself ended up with any money after the divorce due to the long protracted legal battle. On the other hand a lawyer who seeks a reasonable settlement will likely find a fair solution for both parties at minimum cost.

When requesting legal services you must understand that there is a need to manage the lawyers services that he is providing. If you want a lawyer to be aggressive, he will be aggressive. If you want a lawyer to reach a settlement quickly and you instruct him to do this, he will find a reasonable way to get to a settlement quickly. The outcomes are much different and the bill for his services can also be quite different. You must find someone you can work with, you must find someone who will follow your direction, and someone who will provide you with excellent legal advice prior to making any decision.

Listen to Your Lawyers Advice

A good client will also listen to his or her lawyers recommendations and opinions regarding how to proceed with the case.

The comments in this post are not intended to be providing legal advice, instead it was posted to help people look at the common sense process of selecting a lawyer and some of the ramifications regarding the decisions you might make. Please provide comments or additional ideas regarding this post or add comments regarding other issues that or readers may want to consider.

The only time the vast majority of people ever need to contact a lawyer and incur legal fees is when they purchase a home, sell  a home, prepare a will, or deal with minor traffic infractions. Few of us ever have to worry about a major criminal case, or lawsuit or  major divorce proceedings.

Selling a home for example can incur legal fees of between $500-$1000. Preparation of  a  will particularly if it is uncomplicated can be in the range of $300-$600. Court cases involving criminal activity or defense of DUI type traffic infractions can cost significantly more and approach $10,000-$100,000. Not everyone can afford to pay these kinds of fees so it is important to understand what the cost will be prior to your case being taken by a lawyer and how you will finance your legal fees.

How Much Will my Defense Cost

Most clients want to know how much their defense will cost when they are facing criminal charges. The answer depends on the circumstances of your case and the quality of the defense team. Most attorneys will be able to provide a quote after initial consultation regarding your situation. There are some points to consider when shopping for an attorney. Here are several questions that you may want to discuss.

Fixed or Variable Costs

Will the price of the case be fixed or will the price increase as the case progresses? Pay-as-you-go contracts can become very expensive particularly if the case lasts a long time. You do not want to find yourself running out of funds in the middle of the criminal process. Competent attorneys should be able to provide a fixed price up front.

Does the Price Include the Trial

Another question to confirm is whether the total price quoted by the attorney includes  the trial process. If your case needs to go to  court and be heard by a judge or jury an extended court case can drive up the costs significantly. Good trial preparation can result in a settlement or even dropping of charges before the case ever goes to court. Skipping proper case preparation to save money might actually cost you more in higher legal fees and in the worst case a guilty verdict.

Hidden Costs

You need to ask your lawyer if there are any hidden costs that you should be aware of. Better to find out before you make the decision to hire instead of when you receive his invoice. Request a full disclosure of all possible costs and legal fees prior to signing an agreement. A good law firm should be able to provide all of the required legal service for a flat fee and then absorb the cost when legal assistance may be needed from other firms. If professional services are required your lawyer is legally required to disclose any fee splits.

Other Expenses

Complex cases often require the use of investigators, psychologists and other non-legal staff. There may be costs associated with obtaining documents, evidence or other records. You need to understand these fees upfront and you should discuss them with your attorney. Experts agree that a good rule of thumb is to estimate about 10% of your legal fees for these outside costs.

Financing Legal Costs

There are companies who will provide loans for you to finance your legal fees. Be very careful when negotiating these fees regarding payment terms, interest rates, and other fees that may be included. Legal firms will also sell your legal fees to collection agencies and other firms that specialize in collecting debts. These firms may take a cut of 10 to 12% of your legal fee. So don’t be surprised when the company different than your legal firm comes calling to collect your legal fees.

We are providing this information to assist people in selecting lawyers and understanding how financing of their legal fees will work. You need to take full accountability for hiring a lawyer and negotiating the legal fees prior to entering into an agreement for your defense. These are guidelines only and in no way are providing legal advice. Your comments are welcome.