It’s hard to overstate how essential business lawyers are. For companies of all sizes, they oversee mergers and acquisitions, write and review contracts, file patents, buy and sell real estate, and handle tax planning. And that’s just for starters.
Moreover, these attorneys can resolve all kinds of legal conflicts, issues that could otherwise become extremely time-consuming and expensive. Such disputes could involve labor unions, disgruntled employees, the IRS, vendors, competitors, customers, or people claiming copyright infringement.
In any such case, a skilled business lawyer will defend your rights and assets while protecting your reputation from false charges and unfair allegations.
If your company is new or if you’ve parted ways with your last business attorney, you probably need a lawyer. The process of finding the right person comes down to two steps: making a list of candidates and comparing those options.
1. Getting Leads
How do you compile a list of potential business attorneys for your company?
To start with, simply ask friends, relatives, and those in your professional network for referrals. You can then call those lawyers’ offices to see if they’re accepting new clients.
You could also look at websites that review business attorneys. Some of those sites are less than reliable, and some might even post fake reviews, if unwittingly. Thus, while you can get good ideas from such sites, don’t merely rely on their recommendations. Instead, do your own investigation before hiring any lawyer.
2. Narrowing Down Your Options
Once you’ve compiled a list of several viable choices, contact your state bar association. You might be able to find out if any of those lawyers have ever been disciplined for misconduct.
From there, you’ll probably want to speak to the attorneys you’re considering. Therefore, schedule a meeting with each one.
It’s helpful to see those people in person. That way, you’ll get a sharper sense of their interpersonal skills and the work environment they foster. However, you could have a phone or video call conversation if you must.
3. After talking to these professionals, you can compare them directly.
Those comparisons should start with the basic facts. Look at how long they’ve practiced, when and where they attended law school, what their legal specialties are, and what types of businesses they typically represent.
Furthermore, at each firm, who will handle your legal work? Would it be the attorney you spoke with or a less experienced lawyer? For sure, the former situation is preferable.
Fees are another vital element here. Find out how much those lawyers charge as well as how they charge. Do you need to pay a retainer? How often will you be billed? Do these attorneys charge flat rates, by the hour, or in some other way? And, if multiple lawyers at a firm work on your case, are you charged extra?
In an initial meeting with a business attorney, you can also pick up on some intangibles. Do you feel comfortable with this lawyer? Is this person communicative, responding openly and fully to your questions and concerns? During your time together, do you feel respected?
You may be working with this attorney for a long time. Thus, you want someone you can feel comfortable talking to, a person who’ll be direct and honest with you.
Also, will this attorney personally take your calls and answer your texts and emails? Or will an office employee interact with you for the most part? After all, there will probably be times when you’ll want to speak to your lawyer right away.
On top of all that, ask each lawyer you talk to for references. And, while written recommendations are useful, it’s even more valuable to get references’ contact information. That way, you can ask those people the questions that are the most pertinent to you.
When it’s finally time to select an attorney, you might consider the lawyers of Parker Waichman LLC as role models. This firm — which represents clients in New York, New Jersey, and Florida — specializes in personal injury law. Nevertheless, its attributes are those that businesspeople so often seek in lawyers.
The attorneys of Parker Waichman LLC have practiced for decades. They’re extremely thorough, and they carefully accumulate evidence. They fight courageously. They have a long list of successes, including more than $2 billion earned for their clients. And the firm even offers free case evaluations.
When you find a business lawyer with the qualities that Parker Waichman LLC epitomizes, you’ll enjoy excellent legal representation and true peace of mind for a long time to come.
