Into the Courtroom 103
of the New York attorneys surveyed agreed that more discovery
time is needed when representing women.
Your turn to question the lawyer. Your relationship with your
attorney can turn out to be both lengthy and intense. You’ll want
to be sure you get the right fit. Here are some key questions for
you as the client to ask your prospective lawyer:
• What is your overall plan for the case? Are you a settlement-
oriented attorney, or are we going straight to trial? Should
we posture my case for trial as a strategic ploy and then talk
settlement?
• What is your legal background? What law school did you
attend? How many years have you spent as a practicing
attorney? What percentage of your practice is matrimonial
work? How many cases have you actually tried?
• How do your office procedures work? Who will I be work-
ing with on your staff? Who do I deal with in your billing
department? What are your billing procedures? What will
I be charged for phone calls, faxes, photocopies? What are
your office hours? When can I reach you by phone? Who on
your staff (i.e., associate attorneys, paralegals, etc.) will be
assisting on my case? Can I meet them now?
• What is your best estimate for the eventual outcome of my
case? How much will it cost? What problems do you foresee
arising in my case? How long will it take? What will be the
result(s) on the specific legal issues in question?Lawyers are notoriously reluctant to be pinned down on answers
to these kinds of questions, but if you can get any sort of com-
mitments regarding projected outcomes, you can be sure that the
attorney’s feet will be held to the fire in trying to make the initial
projection match the resultant outcome.
Facts about legal fees. The retainer agreement that you initially
sign with your attorney will be the key document that governs
your financial relationship with that lawyer. The retainer itself is
the initial payment you make to retain the attorney’s services. You
must make sure that the fee agreement is in writing and provides
for a refund of any retainer fees that are not ultimately used up.