1. Get a consultation
A good legal consultation is essential and well worth the cost. This 30 -60 minute block of time is going to help you decide the course of your entire legal situation. This is your chance to ask me questions, get information, and evaluate your case. The purpose of this consultation is to provide you with all the necessary information so you can make an informed and intelligent decision.
2. Organize yourself
Prepare a summary of the event. Begin the summary with the first instance that an event occured, indicate the date, time, place, who was present, what happened, who said what and what documents or other evidence is available. Label the documents numerically to coincide with the summary. Separate the documents, photos, etc. into folders. Also, the more information that you condense, the better our chances of success. Your intelligent summary will help save you legal fees.
3. Don’t give tons of unnecessary information
Very often you may want to give reams of paper or stacks of disks that are irrelevant and unrequested. This will result in me having to spend many hours reviewing information that isn’t necessary. The same goes for repetitive information given by email or phone.
4. Do for yourself when you can
I always prefer that my clients keep in touch with potential witnesses rather than relying on myself and my staff to have to continually keep in touch with them. Also, try to complete paperwork on your own first, rather than spending billable hours reading it for the first time while I sit and watch you. Make a “working copy” for yourself, and a “clean copy” that you can use in instances when we need to meet in person.
5. Utilize email efficiently
Rather than always meeting in person or talking on the phone, communicate via email. Email enables me the ability to answer you when I have the opportunity.
Following these few guidelines can significantly reduce the amount of money spent in legal fees!