How to Choose the Right Attorney: A Practical Guide to Finding Legal Counsel

When people fall ill, they want to see a doctor. Yet when people encounter legal disputes, they often fail to realize they are facing a series of intricate legal problems. Even if one wants to find a lawyer, where should they start looking?

Currently, there are over three thousand practicing attorneys in Taiwan. Aside from places like Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung, lawyers in most regions set up their offices near courts. While it is easy enough to "find" an office, finding a suitable lawyer is not necessarily easy—not to mention in a place like Taipei, where there are over two thousand lawyers, making the choice even more difficult.

Basically, there is no credible rating system for domestic attorneys, so choosing a lawyer still primarily relies on word of mouth. The public is encouraged to gather recommendations from various sources: friends who study law, friends who have been through lawsuits, or companies that retain legal counsel. Through these channels, you are more likely to find a good lawyer.

Secondly, when seeking legal assistance for a dispute, having a reasonable degree of understanding of your own issue makes it easier to discern a "good" lawyer from a "bad" one on the one hand, and facilitates better communication with the attorney on the other. To this end, the public can make more use of "legal service" resources. Many local governments, bar associations, university law departments, and the service offices of certain elected representatives offer free legal services for ordinary citizens. People are encouraged to make use of these resources—your problem might even be resolved without needing to hire a lawyer. At the very least, you will gain a better understanding of the issue, making it easier for the lawyer to get up to speed when you explain the situation to them.

Once you decide to seek a lawyer's help, it is strongly recommended that you make an appointment in advance, because a "good" lawyer is bound to be busy—much like how popular restaurants have long lines of waiting customers. If you show up abruptly without making an appointment ahead of time, you may fail to see the lawyer, or the lawyer may already have other commitments and brush you off with a few words, making it difficult to receive good service.

Secondly, try to avoid telephone consultations. Some might ask: why can't we consult over the phone when many radio stations offer call-in legal services? This is because many issues involve the interpretation of written documents, such as contracts or judgments. It is impossible for a lawyer to grasp the full picture of a problem over the phone. Therefore, try to avoid telephone consultations to prevent the lawyer from making misjudgments that could affect your legal rights and interests.

Furthermore, visiting a lawyer in person allows you to observe through conversation whether the lawyer is sincere and whether their assessment of the problem is precise. You can even gauge whether the lawyer engages in continuing education and diligently collects materials by looking at the extent of their book collection and computer equipment. After all, laws and regulations change with each passing day; can an attorney who uses the same Complete Book of Six Codes for ten or twenty years without replacing it truly be considered competent?

Another issue in finding a lawyer is the fee. Remuneration must be agreed upon in advance to avoid disputes. Some lawyers' fees do not include travel expenses, while others do. In Taipei, for instance, a round trip to the Shilin and Banqiao Courts costs over four hundred NT dollars in travel expenses, which adds up to a considerable amount. If there is a contingency fee (success fee), it must also be clearly stated; however, according to the law, contingency fees are prohibited in criminal and family law cases.

In addition, when handing over original documents, seals, etc., to a lawyer, it is best to ask the lawyer to issue a receipt. Conversely, when a lawyer returns original documents to a client, a receipt should also be requested to prevent subsequent disputes.

Finally, the most important thing when hiring a lawyer is to "diligently follow up." Because lawyers are usually very busy—and while being busy does not necessarily mean things will go wrong, mistakes are hard to avoid amidst a busy schedule. In severe cases, a lawyer might be too busy to attend a court session or even forget to file an appeal, which would have a massive impact on a client's rights. Even so, if the lawyer's written briefs can be shown to the client beforehand, it is more likely to prevent misunderstandings of the facts or legal arguments that differ from the client's wishes. In short, citizens must never assume that once everything is handed over to a lawyer, they no longer need to worry about anything. In fact, diligent communication is the only way to ensure the quality of the lawyer's service.