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Common Questions about Hiring a Lawyer
Contents
These are common questions about how to find and hire a lawyer, including finding and hiring a free or lower cost lawyer.
Questions about Finding a Lawyer
Use the Guide to Legal Help to get personalized lawyer referrals. If you might qualify for free or lower cost lawyers, they will be listed on the results page. The Guide also helps connect you with private lawyers through the State Bar of Michigan’s Lawyer Referral Service, and any local lawyer referral services in your area.
All lawyers practicing Michigan law need to be registered with the State Bar of Michigan. You can use the Member Directory Search to find out if a person is a lawyer in Michigan.
If your lawyer is representing you in federal court only they do not have to be licensed in Michigan, but must be licensed to practice in federal court. Some examples of federal court cases are bankruptcy and immigration.
Full representation is when a lawyer takes your entire case, from beginning to end. They do all of the paperwork, communicate with the other side of the case, appear in court, and do any other legal work related to the matter. The fees can be unpredictable, because you never know how long or how complicated a case might get.
In limited scope representation (LSR), the lawyer only handles some parts of your case. LSR is sometimes called unbundling or “a la carte” legal services. Your LSR lawyer will only charge you for the parts of your case they help you with. They may charge you one flat fee for all the work they do, or they may charge an hourly fee. Not all cases are a good fit for LSR, but it is a good way to get help on the parts of the case where you need it most, especially if you have limited funds for legal help. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer.
Retainer can mean two things: a retainer agreement, or a retainer fee.
A retainer agreement is also called an engagement letter. It is an agreement written by a lawyer who is going to represent you in all or part of your case. The engagement letter or retainer agreement is the contract you have with your lawyer that explains the representation. It will say how much of the case they will handle, and it will explain how much they will charge for their services.
A retainer fee is a type of fee some lawyers charge. It is like a down payment for the lawyer’s services. The fee is held in separate account, called a trust account. The lawyer is only allowed to take money from that account after they earn it by working on your case.
To learn more about retainer agreements and retainer fees, read Hiring a Lawyer.
Questions about Free and Lower Cost Lawyers
In some cases you have the right to a lawyer even if you can’t pay for one. For example, you have a right to a lawyer in criminal cases. You also have the right to a lawyer if you are a parent accused of abuse or neglect in a Child Protective Services case. If you are in either of these situations and can’t afford a lawyer, be sure to ask the judge for a lawyer at your first court date.
In other kinds of cases you do not have the right to a free lawyer. You may still be able to find free legal help if you have low income. Use the Guide to Legal Help to see if you qualify for free legal help from your local legal services office. Even if they can’t represent you, they may be able to give you advice and other help.
If you can’t find a free lawyer to help you, you can also look for lower cost legal help. You might consider hiring a lawyer only for parts of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called Limited Scope Representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer.
The State Bar of Michigan’s Modest Means Program is another way to find a lower cost lawyer. This program allows you to hire a lawyer for a reduced hourly rate if you qualify. Visit the Modest Means Program page to learn more about it. The Guide to Legal Help will give you information about this program if you qualify.
There are many reasons a legal aid or legal services office can’t take all of the cases that come to it. They could have a conflict of interest, or you could have a case that they are not allowed to handle because of rules related to their funding. Legal aid offices also have to turn away many cases because they just do not have enough lawyers to help every person who needs help. It is disappointing to find out you will not get representation, but you will need to make other plans to resolve your legal problem.
Use the Guide to Legal Help to get information about other organizations that might be able to help you, as well as lower cost lawyers.
You might consider hiring a lawyer for parts of your case instead of the whole thing. This is called Limited Scope Representation. To learn more, read Limited Scope Representation (LSR): A More Affordable Way to Hire a Lawyer.
The State Bar of Michigan’s Modest Means Program is another place to find a lower cost lawyer. This program allows you to hire a lawyer for a reduced hourly rate if you qualify. Visit the Modest Means Program page to learn more about it. The Guide to Legal Help will give you information about this program if you qualify.
Legal aid lawyers, public defenders, and pro bono lawyers are all lawyers who offer free legal services.
Legal aid lawyers are lawyers who work on civil cases. Sometimes they are called legal services lawyers. Civil cases are things like eviction, debt collection, divorce, and public benefits. Legal aid lawyers work for organizations that pay them. They do not charge fees to their clients. These organizations pay lawyers with money they get from government funding, private donations, and other places. There is no legal right to a lawyer in most civil cases. Getting a legal aid lawyer depends on your case, and how many lawyers are available in your area. To find out if you might qualify, use the Guide to Legal Help. Legal aid organizations will appear on the results page if you have the kind of case they will consider, and if you qualify based on your income and other factors.
Public defenders are lawyers who work on criminal cases. Criminal cases are things like a DUI, assault, or theft. Public defenders are paid by the government to take cases for people with low incomes. There is a constitutional right to a lawyer in criminal cases. If you have a criminal case and you have low income, ask the judge for a lawyer at your first court date.
Lawyers who work in private practice (a law firm) usually charge fees to their clients. Sometimes these lawyers choose to take cases without charging fees as a service to the community. This is called doing pro bono work. Finding a pro bono lawyer can be complicated. They do not belong to a single organization that you can call. Contacting private practice lawyers to ask if they will take a case for free is not likely to lead to much help. Most private lawyers charge fees for most of their cases. Sometimes legal aid organizations have connections to pro bono lawyers. If a legal aid organization can’t take your case, you can ask if they have referrals to pro bono lawyers that might take a case like yours.
All lawyers have similar education and training, and have to follow the same ethical rules. Your lawyer has to keep you informed about your case, including telling you about any settlement offers that arise. They have a general duty to be competent, which means they can’t take a case if they do not have the skills to handle it. Your lawyer must meet deadlines and explain your case to you in a way that allows you to make informed decisions. The rules are the same whether you are paying your lawyer or not.
Lawyers can be expensive, and some people with low income take out loans or enter into agreements they can’t afford in order to hire a private lawyer. If you have the chance to get a lawyer for free, consider taking the help they can give you.