The only reason why a lawyer or law firm is hired is to render legal help to the client, either by way of advice, or legal representation.
There are a thousand and one lawyers in Nigeria today, and the same goes for law firms. Because of this large pool, a client can be at a loss with deciding on the particular lawyer to settle for when he stands in need of legal assistance.
Let us go over a number of factors that should primarily play on a client’s mind in his quest for hiring a lawyer.
1. Be certain about your need
As a client, one thing is certain: you know what you want from the lawyer. You know the service you need the lawyer to render; whether it be land-related, breach of contract, or infringement of a fundamental right, you are sure to have a clear idea of why you need a lawyer. Write it down, as this is the first step in selection.
2. Put together a list of prospective lawyers
Having known the clear nature of the reason for which you need legal help, you are now ready to move on to the next step. You know the field of specialty to watch out for. Now it is time to draw up a list of all lawyers you can find within that field. You can either find a lawyer for your list through referrals, or through a search of the internet. When you are searching over the internet, your area of interest would be what you input into the search engine. The search is complete. You have found a number of prospective lawyers in the desired field. make them into a list.
3. Reaching out to your prospects
You have put together the list of prospective lawyers, it is now time to reach out to them. You can do this by a phone call, an email or a short message. Where the lawyer is within proximity, a physical visit to the lawyer in the office might be a great idea. Reach out to the lawyer, and interact with him/her. Don’t forget to take notes from the conversation with each prospective lawyer and write the same against each lawyer’s name and details on your earlier list.
4. Confirm the Authenticity of Lawyer
When you reach out to the lawyer, you want to be sure the person you have reached out to is genuinely a lawyer. How do you do this? All lawyers in Nigeria are licensed to practice by the Supreme Court of Nigeria. A good way to confirm the authenticity of a lawyer and to know if he is qualified to practice is to visit the website of the Nigerian Bar Association and search for that lawyer’s name. if genuine, the name would be found on that database.
5. Cues from the conversation
You have finally had that conversation and it is time to decide on which lawyer best suits your need. Among the things to consider are a number of cues which I will be sharing with you:
- How well does that lawyer understand and address your issue?
For a lawyer to help you out, he/she must first understand your situation, establish your need, and then draw out a plan to satisfy that need of yours. Does the lawyer understand your situation? You do not want to hire a lawyer who is not very clear with what you want done.
- How are the lawyer’s communication skills?
A lawyer’s primary job is to represent you as his client. How well does he communicate with you? This will be the yardstick with which you measure how well he will communicate with others when he takes up the job of representing you.
- What is the lawyer’s level of expertise in that field?
You may want to query “What is the lawyer’s level of experience?” You have had a conversation. What is your assessment of the lawyer’s experience on the subject matter? Does the lawyer have the needed zest to render the service?
- The lawyer’s fees; are the fees within your budget?
It will be most unfair to engage a lawyer, get him to render his services to you, and then fail to pay him his due in the end.
These are some of the factors to consider when hiring a lawyer. They are not by any way exhaustive, but to keep it short, we will take these are primary conditions and draw the curtain here. Till we meet again on the next edition.