Questions to Ask Before Hiring an Attorney
For anyone with a legal problem who is meeting a lawyer for the first time and deciding whether to hire them. The questions follow the order of a consultation: the lawyer's experience and fit, their view of your case, fees and billing, how you would work together, and what the engagement agreement commits you to. Each has a note on what a good or a worrying answer sounds like, and because the rules for lawyers differ by country and state, many notes tell you to ask how it works where you are.
The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Experience and fit
How much of your practice is matters like mine, and how many have you handled in the last two years?
Why ask it
A law license is usually general, so the real question is what fills this lawyer's week. A good answer is a rough share of their work and a recent example close to yours. 'We handle all kinds of matters' can mean you would be paying while they read up, so ask who they would send you to if this is outside their usual work.
What happened in the last matter you handled that was most like this one?
Why ask it
You are asking for a story with the names left out, and the detail is what counts: what the dispute turned on, how long it ran and how it ended. One that went badly, told along with what they changed afterward, is worth more than a list of wins. Past results say little about yours, and a careful lawyer will say so unprompted.
Will you handle my matter yourself, and if not, who will and can I meet them?
Why ask it
The person you meet first is often the most senior, and the drafting and correspondence may go to someone junior at a lower rate. Get the names, who supervises and who would stand up at a hearing. If the firm will not introduce the person doing the work, you are choosing on the strength of someone you will rarely deal with.
Have you handled a matter like this in the court or agency where mine would be decided?
Why ask it
Procedure, scheduling and the habits of the people on the other side differ from one courthouse or office to the next. Familiarity shows up as specifics: how long that court takes to set a hearing, what that agency usually asks for first. If they have never appeared there, ask how they would get up to speed and whether you would be billed for that time.
How long have you been practicing, and how many of those years in this area of law?
Why ask it
The two numbers can be far apart. Six years of nothing but this kind of work may serve you better than twenty-five spread across everything, so weigh the second figure more. Ask what they did before, too: someone who once worked for insurers, a prosecutor's office or a company's legal department knows how the other side thinks.
Do you usually represent people in my position, or the other side?
Why ask it
Many lawyers act mostly for one side: employees or employers, tenants or landlords, injured people or insurers. Either background can help you, but you should know which it is and hear why they would take your side this time. It matters in a dispute; for a will or a company formation there is no other side to ask about.
If I do not end up hiring you, does what I say in this consultation stay private?
Why ask it
Ask this before you get into detail. Many places protect what a prospective client tells a lawyer, but how far that goes depends on the rules where the lawyer is licensed, and bringing a friend into the room can change it. The answer you want is a clear explanation of what is covered, given without hurry.
Have you checked for a conflict of interest with the other people and companies involved?
Why ask it
Give the firm every name connected to your problem when you book, so the check is done before you say anything sensitive. 'We ran the names and there is nothing' is the good answer, and 'I am sure it is fine' is not a check. If something turns up, ask what their professional rules require next: it may take your written consent, or it may mean they cannot act at all.
Where are you licensed, and is there anything on your disciplinary record I would find if I looked?
Why ask it
Many bar associations and licensing bodies post each lawyer's status and public disciplinary history online, so you can usually confirm the answer at home that evening. An old complaint explained calmly may not matter. Irritation at being asked is a preview of how your later questions will be received.
Do you carry malpractice insurance, in case a mistake on your side costs me?
Why ask it
This is cover for a lawyer's own mistakes, such as a missed filing date, and whether lawyers must carry it, or must tell you when they do not, varies from place to place. A one-word yes is all you need. A long explanation of why it is unnecessary is worth a second thought.
Is there any part of my problem you would hand to another lawyer or a specialist?
Why ask it
Legal problems rarely stay in one box: a business dispute grows a tax question, a divorce touches immigration. Someone who can name the edge of their own knowledge and has a person to call is safer than someone who says they do it all. Ask whether that second person would bill you separately and who would coordinate the two.
Can you point me to reviews, or to another professional who knows your work?
Why ask it
Confidentiality means most lawyers cannot hand you a list of former clients unless those clients agree, so a refusal there is not a bad sign. What they can usually offer is published reviews, or an accountant, adviser or fellow lawyer who refers people to them. Read reviews for what they say about returned calls and surprise bills, since strangers' results tell you little about your own.
Your case
From what you have heard so far, what are my options, including doing nothing or handling it myself?
Why ask it
Listen for whether this is advice or a pitch. A good answer sets out several routes with a rough cost for each, and that may include a letter, a negotiation, a small claims filing or simply waiting. If the only route offered is the most expensive one, ask what the cheaper one would look like and why it would fail.
Is there a deadline I am up against, and what happens if it passes?
Why ask it
Time limits for starting a claim, answering court papers or appealing a decision differ by place and by type of matter, and some run only a few weeks. Ask for the date, what it is counted from and how sure they are; before being hired a lawyer may not want to fix a date, but they can say whether to treat it as urgent. Take this answer with you even if you hire nobody.
What is the biggest problem with my side of this, and can anything be done about it?
Why ask it
Bring this up yourself if the lawyer does not: hearing the weak point now, when it costs little, lets you decide whether the matter is worth starting. A useful answer names the problem and what might shore it up, such as a document, a witness or a date you can prove. An hour with nothing but encouragement in it should leave you wondering what was left out.
What would a good result look like here, and what do you expect to actually happen?
Why ask it
You are asking for two answers, and the distance between them is the useful part. Careful lawyers speak in ranges and conditions, and in many places their professional rules do not let them promise an outcome. If you hear a promise in the first half hour, get a second opinion before you sign anything.
What would you need to see before you could give me a firmer opinion?
Why ask it
A specific list is a good sign: the contract, the medical records, the other side's letter, the police report. It shows which facts the matter turns on, and it tells you what to gather this week whichever lawyer you choose. Be wary of a firm opinion offered before any document has been read.
How long do matters like this usually take, and what tends to drag them out?
Why ask it
A range with reasons is the honest answer. The reasons are usually outside the lawyer's control: the court's calendar, how the other side behaves, waiting on a report or a record. Ask which delays are in your hands, because slow replies and late documents from the client are common ones.
What are the stages from here, and at which points will I have a decision to make?
Why ask it
Someone who has run this kind of matter many times can sketch it on one sheet: what comes first, where it tends to settle, where the cost jumps. Have them mark the points where you could stop. Those are the moments to compare what you have spent with what is still at stake.
Could this be resolved without a court case, and how would you go about it?
Why ask it
Depending on the problem, the route might be a letter, direct negotiation, mediation or arbitration, and each has a different cost and a different degree of finality. Listen for a preference backed by a reason that fits your facts. Be equally careful with the lawyer who never files anything and the one for whom every problem is a lawsuit.
If it cannot be settled, would you take it to a hearing or trial yourself, and how recently have you done that?
Why ask it
Some lawyers settle nearly everything and bring in someone else when a matter has to be argued. That arrangement can work, but it is something to learn today, along with who that person would be and how the fee would be split. For the second half of the question, listen for a month and a year, not 'all the time'.
Have you come up against the lawyer or firm on the other side before, and is there any connection I should know about?
Why ask it
Save this for when the other side already has a lawyer. Past dealings can help, because yours may know whether that firm tends to settle early or contest every point. A friendship, a shared former firm or regular referrals between them is something to hear about now, along with how they would keep it out of your matter.
Besides your fees, what could I lose if this goes badly?
Why ask it
In some places and some kinds of cases a court can make the losing side cover some of the winner's legal costs, and starting a claim can invite one in return. There may also be time off work, strain on a business relationship or a result that becomes public record. Ask how each of these works where you are, and have them describe the bad outcome as plainly as the good one.
Is the amount at stake worth what it would probably cost to pursue?
Why ask it
Ask them to do the sum out loud: what you might recover or protect, the chance of getting it, and the likely fees and costs along the way. Being told the numbers do not work means the lawyer has just talked themselves out of a fee, which is a reason to trust the rest of what they said. Some matters are about a home, a child or a principle, and then the sum is only one part of the decision.
Is there anything I should stop doing, saying or posting before I have hired anyone?
Why ask it
Common answers are to keep every document and message, stay off social media about the dispute and not contact the other side directly, but what applies to you depends on the matter. Ask whether to reply to a letter or call you have already received. If a deadline or a risk of lost evidence comes up here, write down exactly what they said to do.
Fees and billing
What does this consultation cost, and is it credited toward the work if I hire you?
Why ask it
Settle this when you book, not at the end of the hour. Free, flat-fee and hourly consultations are all normal, and a paid one is often longer and more specific. Ask how long you have, so you can put your most important questions first.
How do you charge for a matter like mine: by the hour, a flat fee, a contingency fee or a mix?
Why ask it
Each puts the risk in a different place: hourly billing leaves the risk of a long matter with you, a flat fee moves it to the lawyer, and a contingency fee means they are paid only out of what is recovered. Which arrangements are allowed for which kinds of case varies, so ask what is possible for yours and why they suggest this one.
What is your hourly rate, and what are the rates of everyone else who would bill time on my matter?
Why ask it
Ask for all of them: partner, associate, paralegal, clerk. A high partner rate with most of the work done by a capable junior can cost less than a lower rate from someone who does everything personally. Ask as well whether two people at the same meeting or on the same call both bill for it.
What is the smallest unit of time you bill, and how is a short email or call charged?
Why ask it
Many firms bill in fractions of an hour, often tenths or quarters, and round each task up to the next unit. Where the unit is a quarter hour, a two-minute reply is billed as fifteen minutes, and that adds up over a year of short messages. Once you know the unit, save your questions and send them in one email.
Can you give me a cost range for each stage, in writing?
Why ask it
Few lawyers can price a whole dispute on day one, but most can estimate the first stage and say what would push it higher. A range with named triggers, such as a contested hearing or an expert witness, is a serious answer. 'It depends' with no figures at all leaves you unable to budget or to compare this lawyer with the next.
How much is the retainer, and what happens to any of it that is not spent?
Why ask it
The word covers different arrangements: an advance that is held and drawn down as work is billed, or a fee that belongs to the lawyer once paid. Where the money is kept and whether an unspent part comes back depend on the agreement and on the rules where the lawyer practices. Ask which kind this is, and check that the letter says the same.
When the retainer runs down, do you ask for it to be topped up, and how much warning would I get?
Why ask it
Some agreements keep the balance above a floor, so the first payment may be followed by a second and a third request for funds. Ask what that floor is and how many days you would have to pay. An unexpected demand for money in the week before a hearing is the situation to rule out now.
Which costs are charged on top of your fee, and who pays them as they come up?
Why ask it
Fees pay for the lawyer's time, and costs are everything else: filing fees, serving papers, transcripts, expert reports, copies of records, travel. Ask which the firm pays up front and bills later, which you must fund in advance, and for a rough total. Expert witnesses are often the largest item, so ask whether your matter is likely to need one.
On a contingency fee, what percentage do you take, and is it worked out before or after costs come off?
Why ask it
Ask them to run an example on paper with a round number, because a percentage taken before costs are deducted leaves you with less than one taken after. Ask too whether the percentage rises if the matter goes to trial or appeal, what you owe for costs if nothing is recovered, and whether any limit on these fees applies to your kind of case. Skip this one if no contingency fee is on the table.
How often will I be billed, and what does each entry on the bill show?
Why ask it
An itemized monthly bill, with the date, the person, the time and the task on each line, lets you catch a problem while it is small. A single line reading 'for professional services' cannot be checked. A sample invoice with the client's details blacked out will show you which kind this firm sends.
Will you tell me before the bill passes an amount we agree on today?
Why ask it
Name a figure, for the month or for the stage, and ask that work pause for a conversation when it is reached. Many will agree, and some will write it into the engagement letter. One who will not agree to any checkpoint is asking for an open account.
Could you handle one part of this and leave the rest to me?
Why ask it
Some lawyers will take on a single piece, such as drafting one document, reviewing a settlement or coaching you for a hearing you attend alone, though whether that is allowed, and in which courts, varies. It suits organized people with simpler matters. Where the other side has a lawyer for the whole thing, think hard before choosing it.
Could anyone else end up paying part of your fees: the other side, an insurer or a legal plan?
Why ask it
Some contracts and some laws let the winner recover fees from the loser, and many do not, so ask which is true for your kind of matter where you live. Before the meeting, check your home, auto or business insurance and any benefit through an employer or union for legal cover, and bring the policy. If the lawyer raises this before you do, they are already looking after your money.
What happens if I cannot pay a bill on time, and could we agree on a payment plan now?
Why ask it
Easier to ask today than in the month it happens: does work stop, is interest added, and at what point would they ask to leave the matter? A payment plan written into the letter now is worth more than goodwill later. If the fee is out of reach from the start, say so and ask where they would send you, since legal aid offices, bar referral services and law school clinics exist in many places.
Working together
Do you have time to take this on now, and what else is on your calendar over the next few months?
Why ask it
A long trial coming up or a planned absence need not rule them out, provided they tell you who covers and what waits. Ask what the first month of your matter would look like alongside the rest of their work. 'We are always busy' with no plan behind it suggests yours will be fitted in around the others.
How will you keep me up to date, and how often should I hear from you when nothing is happening?
Why ask it
Legal matters have long quiet stretches, and silence is hard to read from the outside. Agree on a rhythm now, perhaps a short note every few weeks even if it only says nothing has changed. Ask whether those updates are billed, so that being kept informed does not come as a surprise on the invoice.
When I call or email with a question, how soon do you usually reply, and who answers if you are in court?
Why ask it
One or two business days is the kind of answer you are listening for, along with the name of an assistant or paralegal who can reach them. Compare it with how the firm has treated you so far. If booking this consultation took a week of chasing, that is the more reliable evidence.
Will I get copies of what you send and receive on my behalf?
Why ask it
Many firms copy clients on correspondence as a matter of routine or share a folder online, and a yes means you can follow your own matter and notice if it stalls. Ask whether you would see drafts of anything important before it goes out. A letter sent in your name is hard to take back once the other side has read it.
Which calls would you make on your own, and which would you bring to me first?
Why ask it
In many places the goals, and the answer to any settlement offer, belong to the client, while the lawyer chooses the methods, but the professional rules where they practice draw the exact line. Have them describe it in their own words. If they say they would accept or reject an offer without bringing it to you, keep looking.
If you and I disagree about strategy, how do you handle it?
Why ask it
Listen for a process: they explain the risk, put their advice in writing if it matters, and then follow your decision where it is yours to make. Ask for a time a client went against their advice. If the story is told with contempt for that client, expect the same when it is you.
Which tasks could I take on so that I am not paying your rate for them?
Why ask it
Typical answers are gathering and labeling documents, writing a dated account of events and collecting contact details for witnesses. Ask what format helps most, since a tidy folder that a paralegal has to sort again saves nothing. No answer at all suggests your bill has not been given much thought.
If I hired you this week, what would you do first, and what would you need from me?
Why ask it
A concrete answer has an order and dates in it: a letter sent, a filing prepared, records requested, and what you must supply for each. Ask which items are urgent and which can follow. If the only first steps named are a signature and a payment, they have not yet thought about your matter.
What happens to my matter if you leave the firm, retire or are out for a long stretch?
Why ask it
At a larger firm another lawyer normally steps in, so ask who that would be. A solo practitioner should have an arrangement with a colleague who could pick up the files, and should be able to name them. This matters most for something that will run for years, such as an estate plan or a long dispute.
The agreement
Will there be a written engagement letter or fee agreement, and may I take it home before I sign?
Why ask it
Whether a written agreement is required depends on the place and the type of fee, but you should ask for one in every case. It ought to be an easy yes, with the document handed over or emailed the same day. Read it away from the office and check that the rates, the retainer and the scope match what you were told.
What does the agreement cover, and what would count as separate work?
Why ask it
Scope is where surprises come from. An agreement for a lawsuit may stop at the judgment and leave out an appeal or the work of collecting the money, and one for a contract review may not include negotiating the changes. Ask them to name what is excluded and what each excluded piece would cost if you needed it.
Who is the client under this agreement: me alone, my business, or more than one of us?
Why ask it
The answer decides whose interests the lawyer must protect and who they can share information with. Spouses, business partners and family members hiring one lawyer together can find their interests pulling apart later, and whoever pays the bill is not always the client. If more than one person is involved, ask what happens to the representation if you stop agreeing with each other.
If I decide to change lawyers partway through, what would I owe and how do I get my file?
Why ask it
Clients can usually end the relationship, though a court may need to approve a change in the middle of a case and work already done is normally still owed. On a contingency fee, ask what the first firm could claim from money a later lawyer recovers. Who owns the file and how quickly it must be handed over are set by local rules, so ask what applies here.
In what circumstances would you stop representing me?
Why ask it
Unpaid bills, a client who will not follow advice on something essential or a conflict that appears later are the usual reasons, and the engagement letter often lists them. Ask how long a warning they would give and what help you would have finding someone else. Once a case is in court, a lawyer may need the judge's permission to leave, so ask whether that applies to yours.
If I think a bill is wrong, how is that sorted out?
Why ask it
The first step should be simple: you call, and they go through the entries with you. Then ask what the agreement says about a dispute that is not settled that way, since some require arbitration and some bar associations run fee dispute programs. If the question is taken personally, you have had a sample of that future conversation.
Which terms in your agreement do clients most often ask about or overlook?
Why ask it
Someone who knows their own paperwork will point to them: interest on late bills, a right to raise rates during the matter, a claim on any money recovered, a minimum fee, how long the file is kept before it is destroyed. Ask whether any of those can be changed and get the change in writing. If a lot rests on a document you do not fully follow, it is reasonable to have a second lawyer read it.
How long does this fee quote stand, and is there any reason I need to decide today?
Why ask it
The only good reason to hurry is a deadline in the matter itself, and the lawyer should be able to show you where it comes from. A rate that rises next week or a calendar that is 'filling up' is sales talk. Ask for a few days, and notice whether the answer is 'of course'.
How to get the most from a first consultation with a lawyer
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Before the consultation
Write the story on one page
Put the events in date order with the names of the people and companies involved, and finish with what you want to happen. A page the lawyer can read in two minutes leaves the rest of the meeting for advice. Email it ahead if the firm will take it.
Bring the papers themselves
The contract, the letters, anything from a court or agency, and the envelopes or emails that show when each arrived. Deadlines are often counted from a date on a document, and a lawyer can do more with the page in hand than with your memory of it.
Settle the logistics when you book
Ask what the meeting costs, how long it lasts and whether it is in person or by phone. Give the names of the other parties at the same time, so the firm can check for a conflict before you have told them anything that matters.
Pick a dozen questions and decide what you want to leave with
Nobody gets through a full list in one meeting. Most people need three things by the end: an honest view of where they stand, a cost range and any deadline. Start with who would handle the matter, then choose from Your case and Fees and billing, and send the rest by email afterward.
In the meeting
Tell the awkward facts too
An opinion is only as good as the facts under it, and the detail you would prefer to leave out is usually the one the other side leads with. Ask first how confidentiality works for a consultation where you are, then tell the whole story.
Ask for plain language
When an answer goes past you, say so and have them put it another way. Watch what happens next. A lawyer who can explain your position so that you could repeat it to a friend is better placed to make it clear to a judge or to the other side.
Take notes, and ask before you bring someone
Nobody remembers a whole consultation, so write down figures, dates and names as you hear them. A second pair of ears helps, but another person in the room can affect confidentiality in some places, so ask the lawyer before the meeting whether to bring anyone.
Leave without signing
Take the engagement letter home and read it against your notes. Unless a deadline in your matter is days away, a lawyer worth hiring will expect you to think it over and may well tell you to see someone else for comparison.
Comparing two or three lawyers
Line up the same figures
For each lawyer write down the rates of everyone who would bill, the billing unit, the retainer, the estimate for the first stage and the likely costs. The lowest hourly rate is not always the lowest bill: more people on the file or a larger billing unit can close the gap.
Compare what each said about your weak point
Put each lawyer's answer about the biggest problem with your side next to the others. The one who named the thing you were hoping nobody would notice probably listened most closely, and is the least likely to surprise you with it six months in.
Judge the person who will do the work
If one firm would give your matter to an associate and another to the lawyer you met, compare those two people, not the two senior names. Ask to speak to the associate for ten minutes before you choose.
When the one you trust costs more
Ask whether they would take on a first stage only, or a single task such as a letter or a document review, and then reassess with you. Paying for a limited piece of work from the lawyer you believe can be a better use of money than a whole matter with one you doubt.
Reasons to keep looking
A promised result
No lawyer controls a judge, an agency or the other side. Confidence about the strength of your position is fine. Certainty about the ending, especially when attached to a figure, is something to check with a second lawyer.
Pressure to sign in the room
A deadline in your matter can be a real reason to move quickly, and the lawyer should be able to show you where it comes from. Pressure with no date behind it, or reluctance to let the agreement leave the office, is a reason to go slower.
Vagueness about money
If rates, the retainer and the billing unit cannot be stated plainly before you sign, the bills will not be clearer afterward. The same goes for an offer to start work on a handshake with the paperwork to follow.
Hard to reach before you are a client
Firms are at their most attentive when you are deciding whether to hire them. Allow for a lawyer who is in trial that week. If calls still go unreturned and the consultation is cut short, expect that pattern to continue once you have paid.