HOW TO SELECT A FAMILY LAWYER?

The most important decision you will make the selection of your family lawyer. You need to actively search for:

• Experienced, 100% family lawyers;

• Structure and accessibility of their firm;

• The right fit; and

• Fees you both understand and agree to

Experienced, Pure Family Lawyers

An experienced family lawyer is critical. You don’t want to begin with what looks like a small, uncomplicated case only to have it turn nasty (which it often does) and find your attorney is now in over their head. It is best to hire as much attorney as you can afford. Then, if something goes wrong, you are covered. The focus of your lawyer is also a deciding factor. Some attorney’s approach the practice of law as a “job” and for some its their purpose and calling. You will always fair better with an attorney who sees each client as part of what they were meant to do and not just a means to a paycheck. Be very wary of using an attorney that practices other areas of law with their family practice. How important is your life? You want an expert who deals with your kinds of problems day in and day out, over years time.
We would not recommend a custody matter being handled by an attorney with less than 5 years family law experience, for instance.

Understand the Communications Structure

Ask about how regular and emergency communication is handled in the firm. How often will you speak with the attorney? With their staff? What is their policy on the use of emails and faxes? Most clients do not realize that they will not constantly be speaking with their attorney directly. Ask the firm how you are to communicate with them in the event of an emergency? How long do they usually take to respond to requests from clients? The biggest compliant clients have is feeling out of touch with or unable to contact their lawyer. It helps to understand that clients usually have much greater access to the staff (secretaries, paralegals, etc) than the attorney and make sure these people feel helpful and comfortable to you.

You must believe and TRUST your lawyer

Family law is intensely personal. Like a confessional, nothing can or should be held back in order to ensure your attorney has the information they need to adequately protect you. Thus, you must feel comfortable with your attorney’s style. Some attorneys are brilliant but have “no bedside manner.” Beware of these lawyers, as their stellar reputation will impress you in the beginning, but the lack of comfort and concern and simple ability to put you at ease without making you feel lesser will begin to become more important as the case gets heated. If you are spiritual, you should have a spiritual attorney. If you are frugal, you should be sure your attorney has the concern deeply at heart. You will find it easier to take advice and direction from someone you feel connected with. This connection must also be there between you and the main staff person in charge of your matter. Remember, you will probably talk to them 75-90% of the time. If the attorney is great but has a nasty assistant, it will not suit you in the long run.

Fees: Understand them and Expect them

Fees are everyone’s concern. The lawyers want to be paid for their services and you want to ensure that you are not being overcharged. Universally, people grossly underestimate the fees required to do battle in this area. Things people don’t think of : 1) you must pay your lawyer while you wait in court for your turn to argue, the wait could be 1 hour or 6 hours; 2) a common rule of thumb is that the cost of the trial alone (without all the other fees spent before the trial) usually costs an entire retainer at minimum; 3) your lawyer cannot control how crazy the other side behaves and therefore cannot control or cap your legal fees! The problem with family law is the amount of emotion bound within it. So many people are operating from a position of anger, hatred, revenge or spite that they simply do not care how much money they are wasting in their attempt to harm the other party. That said- what does it cost? No good family lawyer would begin a contested divorce for less than $1,500-$3,000 as their retainer, depending on the aggravating factors. Custody is the most expensive thing family lawyers do and look for retainers to begin $3,500-$6,000+. If you have abuse or a particularly crazy party or crazy lawyer on the other side closer to $6,000-$10,000+. Expect your fees for custody to be higher if you are a man seeking custody.Be clear on how you will fund your divorce case, as not good attorney will accept a ‘wait and see where I’ll get it somehow’ approach. Remember, if your current boss said that to you on your next payday, how long would you stay working there?

An experienced divorce lawyer will require this payment, called a retainer up front, from which that firm’s expenses and the lawyer’s hourly rate will come. You should find out what that lawyer's hourly rate is, what the up front retainer will be, whether any portion of the retainer is refundable if it is not exhausted, and how often you can expect to receive invoices that detail their hourly charges and expenses. You also will want to know how detailed the invoices are.

Expect to do your homework to assure yourself of a good advocate. Use the following to assist you.

Guidelines Worth Considering

• Look at biographical information, including whatever you can find on Web sites for the lawyers and their law firms. Do they appear to have expertise in the area of family law that you need? Do they have any information on their Web sites that is helpful to you?
• Use search engines to surf the Internet. Do searches under the name of the lawyer and his or her law firm. Can you find any articles, FAQ's or other informational pieces that the lawyer has done that that give you a level of comfort?
• Ask other people if they have heard of the attorneys and what they think about them.
• Contact your state bar association or visit their Web site to find out if the lawyer is in good standing.
• Check out the yellow pages of your telephone directory. Does the lawyer advertise? If so, do you find it compelling? Helpful? Tasteful?
• Consider any special needs you have. For example, could you benefit from an attorney who speaks a language other than English?
• Your analysis of each prospective lawyer begins with the first phone call. Many lawyers with predominantly courtroom practices are hard to reach on the telephone, so you may be spending a good bit of time with the person who answers the phone. Does the person answering seem pleasant? Well informed about the issues you are facing? Able to deliver results?

Other factors in Hiring a Family Lawyer

• You will probably want to hire a lawyer with at least a several years of experience.
• Look to see if a lawyer is affiliated with associations that cater to your needs. Contact your State Bar to see what associations may be active in your state.
• Unless there are special circumstances, you will want to hire a lawyer with a local office. Family actions can take place in another state, and you will need an attorney licensed in that state, and close to the court where your action will take place.
• Ask about conflicts of interest. Does the lawyer represent any opposing or interested parties?
• Ask for a copy of a firm brochure and promotional materials. Crosscheck these materials against other sources and references.
• Ask to be provided with a copy of the lawyer's retainer agreement and have it explained to you before decide on retaining the lawyer or the lawyer's law firm. You may end up paying a lot of money to the lawyer who you retain so make sure you understand what you are signing up for. You should note that the professional rules which attorneys must operate under usually prohibit contingent fee agreements in domestic matters like divorce and seeking support orders.

Prepare Questions Before Your Teleconference Or Meeting

• What sort of experience do you have with divorces? How have you handled divorces like mine before? Without breaching client confidence, please tell me about them. How many divorces like mine did you handle in the past year?
• Do you specialize in divorces, or are divorces just a part of your practice?
• What can you do to help me understand the tax effect of the decisions I will have to make?
• What kind of resources can you make available to me to help me get through my divorce with as little pain as possible?
• Will anyone else in your office be working on my case? Can I meet them?
• How long have you been doing divorce work? How have you seen divorce and your practice change during this time? (More and more divorcing couples are taking control of their divorce, reducing the frequency of adversarial divorce and increasing their use of mediation. Some lawyers embrace and encourage these changes, and some don't.)
• How will you charge me? What is your hourly rate? What rate do you charge for the time I spend with other lawyers, with paralegals, and/or with secretaries?
• Do you insist that I pay you a retainer up front, or will you allow me to pay you as you render services? In addition to the fees for your services, what expenses do you expect will be involved (for example, for private investigators, forensic accountants, physicians, and/or psychologists), and how will you charge me for them?
• Do you charge for faxes, copies, and long-distance telephone calls? How much?
• What's your estimate of the total cost to me of this divorce? (Don't be concerned if the lawyer resists answering this question. So much of the cost of a divorce depends on the degree of conflict between you and your spouse, and you know that better than the lawyer. You may learn a lot from the lawyer's answer, however, so it's helpful to ask.)
• Do you advocate mediation? What style of mediation do you prefer? In how many cases have you represented a client who was mediating his or her divorce? What mediators would you recommend? If my spouse and I mediate, will I have to pay you to be there the whole time, or can I use you simply as an coach on an as-needed basis?
• If I decide at any point I'd like to take control and negotiate directly with my spouse or with my spouse's lawyer to save money, will you let me do that, using you as a coach? Or do all communications flow through you? How do you feel about unbundling of legal services in divorce?
• How can I keep the cost of my divorce down? Are there tasks that I can do myself to cut down on the amount you will charge me?
• What other services do you think I will need from you in connection with my divorce, such as bills of sale, deeds, trusts, and an updated will, and how much will you charge me to do them?
• Based on what you know about my case, how would you predict a judge would rule on it? What facts would make the ruling more in my favor? If my spouse were sitting here with you asking the same questions, how would you answer my spouse?
• What has been your biggest cause for conflict with your former clients?