From the first contact with the attorney’s office, conduct yourself best in a manner that is professional, organized, and courteous. For your first meeting, you want to make a good first impression, so be punctual and appropriately dressed. After all, no matter how personal or emotional your legal issue is, you are embarking on a business relationship with your attorney.
Organize your thoughts, concerns, and legal goals in advance; consider writing a brief summary of the legal issue and possible questions you may have.
Ask the attorney how you can best be involved in information or document gathering, evidence preservation, and goal setting. Ask the attorney how they typically handle communication with clients (phone or email) and how quickly you can expect responses to questions and issues as they come up.
Ask the attorney how busy their workload is presently, when they will have time to begin work on your matter, and how long they think it may take to resolve your legal issue.