Why the free consultation is breaking your funnel

Tell me how you came up with this unique business model. 

During the pandemic, two things happened. One, I became concerned that people wouldn't have enough money to come up with a lump sum to retain me. Two, there were just so many more people bugging each other; there were a lot more protection order cases.

Protection order cases are very time-intensive and become very expensive quickly. I don't get into a protection order case for less than $10,000 to start. The last one I did was $65,000.

Because of this, most people involved with these cases end up appearing without a lawyer. I started thinking about how I could help people behind the scenes. They do the heavy lifting, but I could help them do an exponentially better job themselves with one hour of advice. 

I set a price of $500 an hour, and I’ve been booked solid basically from the start.

There’s definitely a demand for this, then.

I like to compare it to Drybar. At the time it started, the economy was down, so the idea was not everyone can pay to have their hair cut and colored and styled all the time, but a lot of people are willing to pay $35 to have a spa experience. What's the equivalent of that in legal? It's a one-hour paid consult.

I love that analogy because it really speaks to the sort of gap you’ve identified. But I’m curious how you seek out potential clients and convince them that paying for an hour of your time is better than scheduling a free consultation with another attorney?

I have many people say, "Screw you, other attorneys will talk to me for free." And I go, “good luck.”

What they don’t realize is that there is a mismatch between what a free consult actually is and what people need. The free consult is not to sit around for an hour answering substantive questions. The free consult is for the lawyer to determine: is this in the scope of my practice, what would be the scope of representation, and does this client have money to retain me? They're not interested in giving free legal advice. They're interested in vetting the client.

What the client wants from a free consult and what the lawyer is willing to give is not a match. And I found that people are just desperate for an hour of a lawyer's time to talk about whatever their issue is.

So, paying is itself a filter?

Yes, and I want it to be. I don't want to capture the people who are resentful that they have to pay me. I want to capture the people who are grateful that I will, on short notice, carve out an hour. And they are incredibly grateful. 

It's actually more than an hour. I read up to 20 pages of material to prepare, and there's administrative work on the front and back end.

What kinds of situations are people actually calling you about?

Protection order cases are a big one. They've either just been served, or they're thinking about petitioning for a protection order, or they're in a harassment or stalking situation and don't know what to do. By the time they're done with one hour with me, they're at least in a landscape they understand. I can then hand them template documents and excerpts of the statute and things like that to help them take the next steps.

I also write a fair number of cease and desist letters. That's sort of a middle ground between doing nothing and going to court. I can put an end to a lot of conduct with a cease and desist letter.

Other big categories: a detective just knocked on my door and wants to talk to me. The FBI just reached out. I'm talking to a lot of parents whose kid has done something at school. The school initiated an investigation, but the allegation is criminal. 

What sort of engagement letter or contract are you using to shape expectations and define the attorney-client relationship?

Go to my homepage and press the "Schedule Your Consultation” button. That takes you to a form I've created that is the fee agreement, and also a weed-out form. It helps me understand who the adverse party is so I can do a conflict check, and it gives me enough information to decide whether I can actually help this person. 

I only consult with people where I feel I can really bring something to the table.

The form is a constant work in progress. Every time a new problem comes up, I change it. When somebody spent the entire hour with me but didn't like what I was telling them and wanted their money back, I added: You're paying whether you like my advice or not. When somebody used 45 minutes and wanted a partial refund for the remaining 15, I added: You're paying for an hour, no matter how much time you use.

Do you think this is something other attorneys could, or should want, to replicate?

I've been a criminal defense lawyer for over 30 years. In the trenches, doing trials. This is my sunset plan.

But what I’m doing is also making legal advice more accessible to people. Not everybody has $10,000 to plunk down before they can actually sit and talk to a lawyer. And many problems can be thought through, or even addressed, with one or two hours of advice. 

There are a lot of barriers to access to lawyers and the legal system, and this is one way to knock some of them down.

Bonus Round: If someone wanted to learn more about the nuts and bolts of criminal defense practice, what should they check out? 

Everybody's already seen it, but the first thing I thought of was Making a Murderer. I think it opens people's eyes up to the fact that things can be a lot more complicated than they seem.

(Photo credit Shannon Carpenter)

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