Get Facts Straight Before Picking an Attorney

Everywhere you turn these days you find attorneys soliciting for business and making claims about their own abilities.

The practice of lawyers who are in hot pursuit of accident victims while using questionable advertising tactics has become so out of control that the State Bar of California is considering some sort of regulative action that would ensure ethical standards.

Most people seldom have occasion to consult an attorney, or so they might think. While many folks have a general impression that you don’t consult an attorney unless you’re forced to, there are some good reasons shy you might need a competent and ethical attorney when you don’t think one is necessary. Quite often people would be better off having an attorney go over an important document such as a real estate purchase, lease agreement, home-improvement contract, will or trust. The usually small fee that it often takes for such legal scrutiny could save you thousands of dollars and a lot of headaches down the road.

The average person probably doesn’t have or even know an attorney to call upon when an occasion for legal advice arises. In fact, a trusted attorney’s number should be somewhere on your phone list just as your physician or dentist – when you need one, you might not have the time to do much research, forcing you to walk through the Yellow Pages, or surf the web.

Many people worry about what an attorney will charge just to talk. Most experienced and competent attorneys who really care do not charge for any initial consultation visit, which can last anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. And by the time you leave his or her office, you should know just what the fee for your particular need will be should you decide to use their services.

A civil attorney’s fees generally are negotiated, based on the particular case. Some services call for a flat amount of money to do a specific job such as drawing up a will or sending a letter. Other services such as conducting a lawsuit would call for expenses and possibly a percentage of any settlement or monies awarded by a court.

Criminal defense attorneys will charge quite differently – anywhere from a small fee awarded by the court (court-appointed attorney) to much more, dependent upon a person’s financial ability to pay.

If you don’t have an attorney, you might keep the following query points in mind whenever (and if ever) the occasion arises when you need to select one who will be right for you.

• How long has he or she been in practice? How long has he or she been practicing with the same law firm, city, etc.? Has he or she been a member of the state bar for very long?
  
  
• What types of clients do they usually represent? Are they primarily geared to representing businesses or individuals?
  
  
• What is the area of specialty? Do they specialize in any particular field such as civil law, criminal law, etc.?
  
  
• How is the attorney (and law firm) viewed by local judges? You can easily find an answer to this question – any good public and/or law library will have a set of Martindale-Hubbell rating books where judges and fellow attorneys make assessments on attorneys. An “A-v” rating is the best any attorney for competence; the “v” is for ethics. The Martindale-Hubbell rating system is a good barometer for measuring the abilities of an attorney.
  
  
• Does he or she do arbitration work? Most who do have a reputation among other attorneys as being knowledgeable, fair and impartial.
  
  
• Does he or she sit occasionally as a judge pro tem for the Superior Court or serve as a settlement judge on a settlement committee? This indicates a reputation of fairness and impartiality.
  
  
• Do they relate to your needs? Will they be sensitive to your particular situate?
  
  
• Call the State Bar of California and ask if the attorney in question has ever been suspended.

Now, it isn’t unusual for an attorney law firm to have been investigated, but suspensions are significant and you should know about them when placing trust in a particular attorney or law firm.

Any attorney or law firm with a “yes” to most of the above questions and who has never been suspended by the State Bar will probably do a good job for you. An objection to any of these questions may be a good reason for continuing your search. Whatever your legal needs, you’ll want an attorney who will fully, competently and ethically represent you or a family member for a fair and reasonable fee, thereby allowing a mutual trust and understanding as the basis for an effective attorney-client relationship.

James A. Testa is senior partner of the San Marcos-based law firm of Testa & Associates, LLP and may be reached at 760-891-0490

[1] This document describes a proprietary FindLaw® development process.