Before you start looking for a lawyer, it is important to figure out what type of legal help you need says William D King. If this is the first time that you are beginning to look for a lawyer for your small business, then there are other questions that should be asked. This article will provide tips on how to identify top-notch lawyers and information on other things you should know before hiring one.
So you’re thinking about hiring a lawyer but aren’t sure if your business is big enough to justify it? Think again. Although bigger companies can afford to hire entire teams of lawyers, the truth is that many smaller businesses could benefit greatly from legal representation as well. If you think your company might need an outside perspective on anything from copyright infringement to intellectual property rights, you should strongly consider finding a lawyer for your business.
Here’s some advice on how to go about hiring a top-notch attorney:
1. Trust the process.
When you’re looking for a good lawyer, don’t just hire the first one that comes along. You’ll want to find someone with whom you feel comfortable and who has the appropriate experience to handle your case, but this is particularly true when you’re dealing with small businesses. Because many of these cases require more human interaction than some other types of litigation, it’s important to be able to communicate effectively and get along personally as well as professionally.
2. Check their references and credentials.
Any honest lawyer will willingly provide references of previous clients, and that’s exactly what you should do. Call some of them up and ask them about their experience working with the lawyer. If possible, speak with a few who had a similar type of business or legal issue as your own, but if not, find out why they decided to hire this particular lawyer instead of someone else explains William D King. In addition, make sure your prospective attorney has all the necessary credentials to handle your case. In many cases, it may be wise to hire an attorney from outside your local area just to ensure that she has sufficient experience with the laws in another state or jurisdiction.
3. Evaluate her track record for smaller businesses.
It can be difficult to get honest feedback on how well a certain lawyer is doing because most people won’t want to provide negative feedback for fear of getting sued, so you’ll need to tread carefully when asking about past cases. One way around this is by asking the lawyer herself what type of businesses she typically works with. If her answer includes words like “small” or “startup,” then that’s probably a good sign that she has experience working with small businesses.
4. Determine the total cost of the project.
You should never hire an attorney without first determining exactly how much it will cost you, regardless of whether your business can afford it or not. For example, if your lawyer charges $200 per hour and expects to work 60 hours on your case, you’re looking at anywhere from $12000 to $24000 in total fees. If you can’t afford that, try to negotiate a higher cap on the hourly rate so your costs will be limited to a specific maximum amount instead of being open-ended.
5. Get it in writing!
Lastly, make sure everything is set out expressly in writing before signing any agreements or contracts with your lawyer, and be certain that she has a cancellation clause if for some reason you need to terminate your agreement with her partway through the project. Many small business owners don’t have much experience dealing with lawyers. But by following these steps when hiring one for their company they’ll be able to feel confident. About putting their trust in legal representation from beginning to end.
Conclusion:
If you ever need to hire a lawyer, make sure to use the 5 tips above. In order to get the most out of your experience says, William D King. These steps will help ensure that you find the attorney that’s right for you and your company. At a price that makes sense.
David Baffa is the CEO of Dish-It, an online resource for start-ups.