Why Some Lawyers Give Free Consultations
Gift Free Consultation Tax Lawyer, IRS Tax Attorney (Naperville IL)
Tax lawyers often offer free legal consultations to potential clients. This practice is more than a gift of free advice to the potential client. These consultations are helpful to everyone involved, serving several key purposes and benefiting both the lawyer and the potential client.
The free consultation is more like a shared gift, between the potential client and the lawyer.
The free legal consultation is an opportunity. It helps:
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Build client trust beyond just the lawyer’s reputation.
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Educate the potential client.
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Allow the lawyer to screen the potential client and evaluate the case.
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Ensure the case, the client, and the attorney are a good match.
No-Obligation Discussions Build Trust
Free consultations provide an early opportunity for lawyers to earn the trust of their potential clients. Because tax problems and other legal matters are usually sensitive, clients must feel comfortable with their attorney or legal representation.
Equally important, most people would not seek the same information in a paid consultation. Potential clients are uncomfortable with paying a lawyer before knowing whether that lawyer is knowledgeable or trustworthy. Simply researching a lawyer’s reputation is often not enough to build a personal sense of trust. Clients typically want to make a genuine connection before hiring.
By offering a no-cost meeting, lawyers allow clients to get a sense of their approach, demeanor, competence, and communication style. These qualities help potential clients determine whether they can trust the attorney to handle their case.
Trust is critical in lawyer-client relationships, especially in sensitive or complex tax matters.
Tax-Free Consultation, IRS Tax Attorney (Naperville IL)
Free Consults Help to Educate the Client
The free consultation provides an opportunity to better educate potential clients about their legal situation. People usually know most of the facts of their situation. So often though, they do not fully understand the extent of their legal problem, the processes involved, the consequences, and their legal rights.
In the free consultation, expect to discuss:
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Your understanding of the facts.
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The lawyer’s outlook on the case, and the likelihood of your desired result.
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The lawyer’s approach to handling that matter.
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A reasonable case timeline and the attorney’s reasonable fee estimate.
For example, we spoke with a restaurant owner who had fallen behind with reporting (and paying over) her employees’ payroll taxes. Money was short. Other bills seemed to be her more immediate priority. So instead of immediately paying the tax, this restauranteur decided to use the available funds to pay the past due rent and the next payroll. She was not aware of the multiple legal problems (including civil penalties and possible misdemeanor criminal tax charges) created by that financial decision. The consultation helped this business owner see the full picture of her business tax legal problem. The talk helped to manage her expectations of the problem and the solution, the time it should take until completion, and her estimated cost.
By offering some guidance and early advice, a lawyer can help clarify the issue, plus outline possible legal strategies. Even more, the attorney can suggest the potential outcomes of different approaches to the problem. This education benefits potential clients, empowering them to make a better-informed decision about how to proceed.
Lawyers, Clients, and Case Are Pre-Screened
From the lawyer’s perspective, any consultation provides a chance to evaluate the potential client’s case. It allows the attorney to understand the facts, determine whether the case is viable, and assess whether it matches with their expertise. Lawyers also need to know whether they have the resources and skills to handle the case effectively.
The free consultation is a way to make this assessment without commitment. It also avoids the expectation that the attorney has already been hired for representation because there was no exchange of fees.
Free consultations also serve as a no-obligation way for lawyers and clients to screen each other. The attorney can gauge whether a client is serious about hiring legal representation and cooperating with the lawyer. That conversation also helps to assess what is the client’s financial ability to proceed with the case. This helps avoid situations where time is wasted on cases or clients that are not a good fit.
Even if the individual doesn’t hire the lawyer immediately, the positive experience of a free consultation can lead to referrals or future business relationships.