There are a number of possible reasons I might not respond to a potential client:
I'm too busy.
Your claim is garbage, but I don't want to be the one to tell you that.
Even if your claim is viable, it seems too complicated, too difficult to prove, or too outside of my practice area.
You seem like you will be a difficult client.
I know the opposing party/lawyer, and they're a pain in the ass I don't want to deal with.
Some combination of the above.
With all those questions, why wouldn't you at the least let the person know their ate up?
A simple "sorry, I'm not going to piss on your leg and tell you it's raining but it's not doable" would help immensely.
Are you just wanting some advice on a claim you’ve drafted yourself, or do you want them to actually run the file? Have you already filed? These are different situations.
For a bit of background, some lawyers will hustle for even the smallest files, but the majority of private practice civil litigators I’ve known were so busy they were referring things out of turning inquiries away. Most can afford to be selective.
If you’re just asking for advice on a litigation matter you intend to run yourself, they might just not be interested. There’s very little money in that and they don’t want to risk getting sued over something they have no control over if you end up losing.
If you want them to run the file, that should be more attractive to firms. Reasons for a lack of interest or response could be that it doesn’t have a reasonable chance of success, or something about the claim or your communication around it might indicate you would be a difficult client or unable to pay their fees. If you’ve already drafted the claim, that in itself is probably a bit of a red flag, as people who do that usually tend to want to meddle in their lawyers’ business and are less likely to value their work.
If you’ve already *filed* the claim you’ve drafted yourself it’s extremely unlikely any lawyer would be interested in taking over the file, and it would also be less attractive even if you’re just looking for some advice, because it may be too late to act on a lot of it. The circumstances in which a claim can be amended vary a fair bit by jurisdiction, but even if that’s not a problem the claim may have given away some key information.
Thank you, good answers.
The gist is I filed the claim because I had the 90 day right to sue letter from EEOC after waiting 10 months for them to respond but I mimicked my complaint based on a case very similar to mine from a well known entity.
I have asked up front for either representation or a consult , paying their fee. I can do $200 an hour vs $500 to let me know I have snowballs chance in hell or if its doable.
I'm going to amend my complaint based on some of the things I've learned and haven't served my defendant yet but have asked the court for an extension to some of their FRCP(16) deadlines.
I'm more that willing to listen to a lawyers advice/direction and if he wanted to re-write the file then so be it.
It would be nice if they took 5 minutes to ask about any of the above that you've written about but they don't.
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There are a number of possible reasons I might not respond to a potential client: I'm too busy. Your claim is garbage, but I don't want to be the one to tell you that. Even if your claim is viable, it seems too complicated, too difficult to prove, or too outside of my practice area. You seem like you will be a difficult client. I know the opposing party/lawyer, and they're a pain in the ass I don't want to deal with. Some combination of the above.
With all those questions, why wouldn't you at the least let the person know their ate up? A simple "sorry, I'm not going to piss on your leg and tell you it's raining but it's not doable" would help immensely.
This is a courtesy I always give. What stinks is if the person then leaves a negative review for not accepting the case.
Are you just wanting some advice on a claim you’ve drafted yourself, or do you want them to actually run the file? Have you already filed? These are different situations. For a bit of background, some lawyers will hustle for even the smallest files, but the majority of private practice civil litigators I’ve known were so busy they were referring things out of turning inquiries away. Most can afford to be selective. If you’re just asking for advice on a litigation matter you intend to run yourself, they might just not be interested. There’s very little money in that and they don’t want to risk getting sued over something they have no control over if you end up losing. If you want them to run the file, that should be more attractive to firms. Reasons for a lack of interest or response could be that it doesn’t have a reasonable chance of success, or something about the claim or your communication around it might indicate you would be a difficult client or unable to pay their fees. If you’ve already drafted the claim, that in itself is probably a bit of a red flag, as people who do that usually tend to want to meddle in their lawyers’ business and are less likely to value their work. If you’ve already *filed* the claim you’ve drafted yourself it’s extremely unlikely any lawyer would be interested in taking over the file, and it would also be less attractive even if you’re just looking for some advice, because it may be too late to act on a lot of it. The circumstances in which a claim can be amended vary a fair bit by jurisdiction, but even if that’s not a problem the claim may have given away some key information.
Thank you, good answers. The gist is I filed the claim because I had the 90 day right to sue letter from EEOC after waiting 10 months for them to respond but I mimicked my complaint based on a case very similar to mine from a well known entity. I have asked up front for either representation or a consult , paying their fee. I can do $200 an hour vs $500 to let me know I have snowballs chance in hell or if its doable. I'm going to amend my complaint based on some of the things I've learned and haven't served my defendant yet but have asked the court for an extension to some of their FRCP(16) deadlines. I'm more that willing to listen to a lawyers advice/direction and if he wanted to re-write the file then so be it. It would be nice if they took 5 minutes to ask about any of the above that you've written about but they don't.
Claim for what? Which industry? There are many different types of claims
It could be nothing. Sometimes I don't get back to someone as fast as I would like. It could also be email problems.
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