Family Law: Questions to ask when hiring an attorney
1. What percentage of their practice is family law? Some attorneys do not specialize in family law, but take the occasional case when their primary area of law is slow. Carrie Luelling specializes in family law and is a graduate of the prestigious National Family Law Trial Institute.
2. No one wants to go to trial, but can your attorney take your case to trial if negotiation and mediation fail?
3. Does the attorney give you an idea of how quickly they are processing cases? Ask them how often they will work on your case and how often they will hear from you.
4. How quickly are phone calls returned and emails responded to? Carrie returns phone calls the same day and emails within 48 hours.
5. Who will be making decisions? Carrie allows the client to decide the objectives of representation (sole custody, joint custody, etc.), and she consults with the client regarding the means of pursuing those objectives.
6. At the initial consult does the attorney give you an honest assessment of your case, including the possible bad outcomes?
7. Will the attorney you are seeing be working on your case or an associate?
8. Will the attorney allow the client to perform some tasks to reduce legal fees (review discovery, make notes, build summary documents for trial or mediation)?
9. Do you feel that the attorney is going to give your matter the serious attention it deserves?
10. Can the attorney professionally stand up to your spouse? Difficult people tend to hire difficult attorneys.
11. Does the attorney work with custody and financial experts (custody evaluation, attorney for the children, CPA’s to find hidden assets, etc.)?
12. Do you LIKE the attorney? It’s going to be a potentially long-term relationship. Can you work with this person collaboratively on dividing your assets and determining the custody of your children?
13. What does your gut tell you? TRUST IT!