If you’re contemplating legal action, or have been sued, it’s generally a good idea to get legal advice. First off, an experienced lawyer knows the law. Second, and perhaps more importantly, good lawyers are both detached and objective. It’s important to remember that in any legal dispute, there are at least two parties (both of whom will presumably seek legal advice), only one of whom will ultimately be ‘right.’ At best, you’re facing 50/50 odds.
Why are you calling a Lawyer?
Like a visit to an emergency room, the central question is essentially why have you come to see me (i.e. from a big picture perspective, what is the problem you’ve called my office about)? Generally, this has a short explanation, i.e. a borrower failed to repay a loan, a supplier failed to deliver, you are being sued etc. Let’s start there before getting into all of the details, documents and backstory. To the extent possible, please skip the legal terminology, and I will try to do likewise.
What is the typical format of a Consultation?
At the start of a consultation, it’s important that I understand the big picture reason for your call. Once I understand that, we can then drill down into some of the details, backstory and documents. In some cases, specifically small ones, it may be possible to find a resolution to your issue. However, in most larger cases, an initial consultation will only provide sufficient time for me to get a general overview, along with an idea as to the next steps required to advance your claim or defence.
In many cases, this means that we will begin our consultation with a discussion. Thereafter, I will review documents and/or do some brief legal research. We will then speak again, and I will provide you with my advice in terms of moving forward.
How should documents be provided?
In many legal cases, especially contract based cases, documents are key. However, within the time limits of an initial consult, I’m only going to have a chance to briefly review several documents, so while you can send me 50 documents, I will not have a chance to review all of them within the time provided. Generally speaking, documents should be provided, where possible, in pdf format. For an overview of how best to provide us with documents, please see https://www.michaelsfirm.ca/how-to-provide-documents-to-your-lawyer/.
How do I schedule an initial consultation?
As our office hears from a lot of people, to separate those interested in proceeding with initial consultations from the rest, we have adopted a simple two step process as follows:
- Send an e-transfer for the current consult fee ($400.00) to Michael’s email, michael@michaelsfirm.ca.
- Send an email to Michael (michael@michaelsfirm.ca) with your contact information, after which he will touch base to schedule a mutually convenient time.
For more information, please contact Michael Lesage of Michael’s Law Firm in Hamilton and Toronto ON at 647-495-8995.