What to Look for in an Attorney

Hiring an attorney is difficult for several reasons:


1. You are under stress most of the time when you hire an attorney -- something has gone wrong and you want an attorney to "fix" it.

2. Good attorneys are busy. This is true of every other profession that I know. For example, we schedule my husband's doctor's appointment for route care 1 month before we want to see the doctor.

3. It is hard to tell if the attorney is a good match or not at just one meeting.

So what is a person to do?

Know your goals for the relationship. I try to keep my clients' eyes on their goals for the case. If they hire me for a bankruptcy then they have a reason to be in the case. For example: I am trying to get my clients to think about what they want at the end of the case: it could be to just stop the creditors and/or collectors from calling; or it could be to pay off a car. It helps everyone to know what you want ... if you don't know what you want then you are not likely to get it.

Communication styles matter. You and your attorney must be able to communicate. Don't let the attorney talk over your head. A good attorney will take you step by step through the process of the case. If you don't understand you could make a lot of mistakes. Ask questions! Now please don't call every 5 minutes with a new question ... nor am I suggesting that you ask everyone in the office the same question over and over just to see if you get a different answer. But you need to understand what is going on in your case. It is your life and you need to understand what is going on in your case.