FIVE WAYS TO GET FREE LEGAL ADVICE

1. FIVE WAYS TO GET FREE LEGAL ADVICE Free legal advice (free legal consultation) is an opportunity extended by some lawyers to speak and understand with a new client about his/ her new legal matter and develop a comfort level before formalizing the attorney client relationship. The initial free consultation can sometimes provide sufficient information to resolve a legal problem if it is used prudently. Free legal advice also gives a chance to a prospective client to understand the professional capability of a lawyer, his capacity to understand the client’s new legal matter and mentally decide whether to hire a lawyer or not before reducing the attorney client relationship in writing. The concept of free legal advice is prevalent in the U.S. and followed by most of the licensed attorneys in current times owing to fierce competitions among legal professionals. Besides, in the matters of pro bono activities, several attorneys render valuable legal service free of cost which they are under no obligation to do. The State Bar Associations require lawyers to participate in free legal aid and pro bono hours and workshops for regulating their licensing. Various public organisations such as libraries, non- profits, courts or even law schools host free legal aid clinics where basic legal advice are imparted by volunteer attorneys. In toe, many attorneys also prefer No Win-No Fee procedure or a contingency fees structure wherein attorney fees are payable if and only if, a client wins the lawsuit and not otherwise. This procedure is well accepted in the U.S. and works fine for solo practitioners and small law firms. For a clients, it is a kind of risk-free way to obtain legal representation and incentivizes the attorney to work harder on the lawsuit for the due payment of attorney fees. In the U.S., No Win-No Fee procedure generally works in personal injury lawsuits. However, some of the sole practitioners and small law firms can opt for Fixed Fee or Task Based pricing concept wherein, instead of hourly charges,they will charge a fixed, pre- determined, lump sum fee for routine projects like reviewing for contracts and so on. With the emergence of Information Technology, Free Legal Aid Online services have significantly developed in recent years. Online legal service providers, consisting of a pool of attorneys, offer legal information and advice on simple and straightforward legal matters for free, or at extremely low hourly rates.

2. However, it is prudent to consult an attorney offline, if a complicated legal situation arises that has the potential to become a full-blown critical lawsuit. A stitch in time saves nine. ********************************************************************