How To Hire A Good Lawyer

Hiring a lawyer to represent you as you face legal action is a decision you should never take lightly. A lawyer can be chosen if you seek legal advice on a matter where you can represent yourself, whereas an attorney can fully represent you in the courtroom throughout your entire case.

For more simple cases, such as divorce, wills, or other civil matters, you may consider hiring a lawyer. A lawyer will offer you legal advice throughout your case without full representation in the courtroom.

An attorney who provides full representation is recommended for detailed court proceedings. You may need an attorney’s representation if your case involves a large sum of money, potential jail time, or other serious components. An attorney will know how to navigate the details of the case to help achieve the best outcome.

While an attorney’s obligation is to provide fair and competent representation, you should still practice due diligence when making your decision for representation. Personal referrals or positive reviews are helpful in determining which attorney to hire, but how do you make your decision if neither are available?

The first step you're going to need to take is determining what kind of lawyer you'll need. In both criminal and civil cases, you're going to find a lot of attorneys specialize in certain fields of law. For example, I am a criminal attorney, I represent clients in DUI/DWI, battery, lewd conduct, domestic violence, traffic, criminal damage to property, shoplifting, and things too that nature.

You'll find some lawyers specialize in workers compensation or personal injury. To my point, you should should find an attorney that specializes in the field of law you need.

Once you know the specialized field of the attorney, you can begin to evaluating attorneys to call.

Now, some people need an attorney now, I understand that but that doesn't mean you should call the first attorney you come across. I know this all too well. As a criminal lawyer myself, many of my clients need an attorney right away. They often perform a Google search, type in New Orleans criminal lawyer," and they call the first number they see.

While there's nothing wrong with that in practice, take a minute to look over the profiles of the attorneys you're viewing. You should want an experienced attorney that has credentials and plenty of real reviews. Google reviews is fine, just be sure you evaluate the list Google populates for you. If you do this alone, you have a higher probability of finding a good lawyer.

Above, you can my Google profile for my New Orleans law firm. As you can see, I have 40 (5) star reviews potential clients can see on my Google Business Listing. Here, you can review what my clients have said about their experiences working with me. At the very least, you should take a few minutes to review the attorneys you're considering.

Don't just call anyone, take a few minutes and review your potential attorneys.

I always try to encourage my clients to ask questions during our initial consultation. I want to make sure they fully understand everything and what to expect.

While there's a ton of questions I get depending on the scenario, here's a few of the most common I'm asked.

• Do you think you can win my case?
• How much do you charge?
• Do you accept payment plans?
• How often do we need to talk?
• Can you appear for me in court?
• How often will you provide updates?

Once you've done all of your due diligence, you need to schedule a consultation.

You should be able to find their phone number or website, reach out and talk to them. If required, schedule a consultation.

If you can follow these steps, you're going to be able to hire a good lawyer. No question about it.