It would be easy if you could simply type in ‘lawyers near me’ and opt for the first one that comes up in the search results. However, doing so is never a good idea, especially since it is extremely important to do a lot of digging before choosing a legal representative. After all, you’ll need to trust him or her with information about your case, which means that you must build a certain level of trust.
In order for you to find and determine whether or not a lawyer is legitimate, there are a few steps that you’ll need to go through first. And, if you found yourself in this situation, this article might help you. Let’s take a look at some quick methods for determining if a lawyer can be trusted:
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1. First Things First – Make a List of Potential Lawyers
Source: The Balance Careers
The very first thing that you’ll want to do is to make a list of potential lawyers in your hometown. This will allow you to make the entire process easier as you go through the step below, especially since you’ll be able to cross some names from your list if you determine that they are not good enough for representing you in court.
2. Next, Check Whether They Passed The Bar
Source: Lawyer Monthly
Although this seems quite obvious, it is still worth mentioning, especially since someone might be looking for an attorney for the very first time. The lawyer needs to have a license in the state where they are practicing law, which means that an amazing attorney from Florida cannot be your legal representative if you live in New York.
There are various websites that will verify whether or not they have passed the bar. Of course, you’ll need some basic information such as the name of the attorney, the size of their company, what they specialize in, as well as where he or she went to school. This will help you with making your list of potential lawyers shorter because you’ll know if they can actually represent you in court.
3. Checking The Testimonials And Reviews is Crucial
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Yet another thing that can help you determine if the attorney is legit is checking the testimonials and reviews other clients posted online. Of course, the first place you should look at is the official website, however, the reviews posted there might not be as honest as they look.
This is why you must read the testimonials and reviews posted on independent websites as well. Now, you might be wondering – why should I do this? Well, people who posted on such sites often tend to be more honest, hence, you can determine if people had a positive or negative experience with a particular lawyer.
Keep in mind that if there are more negative than positive reviews on all websites that you look at, it might be best to cross that name from the list and opt for a different representative. You do not someone dealing with your case that has absolutely no idea what they are doing.
4. Utilize Specialized Platforms
Source: medium
There is a wide range of online platforms such as Qredible that allows you to find a licensed lawyer in a manner of minutes. They all work in a similar way – you’ll need to choose the legal issue that you have, as well as your location. You’ll get a list of lawyers in a manner of minutes.
Once you do get the results, you can then go through all the steps mentioned above and below in this article and ensure that you get the best attorney for the legal issue or issues that you have. Such platforms can allow you to go through the entire choosing process faster.
5. Googling Their Names is Wise
Source: Fstoppers
We already mentioned that you should read the reviews and testimonials, however, you should also choose to google their names. Once you do this, look for any info about the cases they have worked on and check if you can find any info on the current or previous clients that they had.
If their name comes up in videos, news articles, or online magazines, ensure that you watch the videos and read all the news articles that you can find. This can help you understand how they work on their cases, as well as how they handled specific cases. Additionally, you’ll be able to learn how they represent themselves in public – which is an important factor to consider.
6. Check Their Websites For Basic Contact Information
Source: business2community.com
Another clear method of determining if an attorney is legit is to check if they have posted their basic information on their official website. You should look for a telephone number, email address, name of the company, as well as the physical address of their company.
This information is usually placed at the bottom of the site, at the top, or in some cases in the “About Us” category. If you are unable to find such info, you might want to choose a different lawyer, mostly because you won’t be able to ensure that they are actually legitimate and real.
7. Ask Family Members or Friends For Help
Source: Scripbox
Another thing that you can try is to ask your family members, friends, or colleagues for a recommendation. Of course, an ideal situation is that they have used their services before, but, they still might know someone who has helped someone else win their case. Hence, if nothing else works or if you are not sure about your decision, choose to ask around.
Conclusion
If you choose to follow the tips mentioned in the article above, you’ll be able to determine whether or not a particular lawyer or law firm is legitimate. Doing this will not only ensure that you have someone who will represent you in court but, it will also ensure that you get the best possible lawyer for your case.
So, now that you know what you need to consider and look for when choosing a legal representative, you should not waste any more time. Instead, go back to the beginning of this article, create a list of potential lawyers, and then go through the rest of the steps that will ensure that you make the right decision.
