What Are You Hiring An Attorney For?

There are three main reasons to hire an attorney:

1) For instructions that have legal consequences (Document Creation)

2) Comply with laws and procedures in place (Rule Compliance); or

3) Right a perceived wrong/defend your actions (Dispute Resolution)

Document Creation

A contract is a legal promise to do something. There are all kinds of legal promises in the form of agreements -– a lease, sale, partnership, LLC, loan, nondisclosure, confidentiality, licensing, prenup, independent contractor, and so on.

If a contract is written clearly and each party understands what they're supposed to do and what might happen if they don't, it's less likely there will be a dispute later. An agreement makes sure everyone is clear on their responsibilities.

A will or trust addresses transferring ownership of property. It’s not a contract. It’s instructions for giving out gifts. If it’s done correctly, property will go to who you want it to go to. And the way that it’s done can provide tax benefits. And it plans for different eventualities.

Rule Compliance

Compliance means following the rules in an area where you have implicitly or explicitly agreed to those rules. For example, you have a responsibility to the government to pay taxes. If you run a company, there are human resources and workplace safety rules to follow. If your company is public, there are investor rules to follow.

Not complying with these rules can result in a lawsuit. An attorney can offer assistance when compliance is complicated.

Dispute Resolution

Things can go wrong in a either of the above areas. Or you might suffer a physical, mental or financial injury. If that happens, you potentially have a dispute, and you will have to take some legal steps to resolve it.

The goal in handling disputes is to maximize compensation or minimize damage for some specific situation or set of facts. Nothing good usually comes from disputes. They are stressful, they cost a lot, they go on forever, and you never really get that victory lap.

However, there's no way to completely avoid disputes. You can reduce the risk by doing a good job with your document creation and compliance.

The Cost of Hiring an Attorney

Law itself is a business. Hiring an attorney is expensive. Hourly rates are hundreds of dollars. And nothing takes just a few hours. Is the outcome is worth the cost? Even when you don’t pay an attorney unless you win, your attorney collects a large share – 30-50% of what you recover in a lawsuit.

These are just some of the considerations when hiring an attorney. Many attorneys offer a free consultation to assess your situation, and you can ask questions. No harm in taking that step.