Attorney (real estate, insurance, lawyers)

[Hazel W]

Is there a way to find an attorney in St Louis County (South County, perhaps) and know you are getting someone reliable? I'm not sure I'm wording that right but just picking out one from the Yellow Pages isn't the best way. There has to be some way to know which are reliable but don't charge two arms and a leg. Any ideas on how to know who I am getting?

[silibran]

You can call a local attorney and ask what their specialties are. And you also ask about their rates for the services you require. You might be able to find a website for specific attorneys as well, which would provide insight.

If you trust your insurance agent or realtor, you might ask one of then who they use. If you don't have a good relationship with either of them, then I wouldn't bother though.

[cyrano]

For what purpose do you need an attorney? The attorney your realtor or insurance agent might recommend might be great for real estate or insurance/personal injury purposes, but not for what you need. It's considered foolish and even risky for an attorney to try to practice multiple areas of law because of the need to stay on top of the law in any particular area. You still see general practitioners in small towns but even there more and more attorneys specialize.

Don't use the yellow pages-- most of the ones who advertise are plaintiff's personal injury firms that need a big volume of calls to weed through them to take on the few that fit their business model. Most other lawyers have turned to the internet for their marketing, so start by googling "st louis criminal attorney" for attorneys who have self-identified as doing that.

Also contact the metropolitan st louis bar association about their attorney referral service. google them to find them.

[Hazel W]

Originally Posted by silibran

You can call a local attorney and ask what their specialties are. And you also ask about their rates for the services you require. You might be able to find a website for specific attorneys as well, which would provide insight.

If you trust your insurance agent or realtor, you might ask one of then who they use. If you don't have a good relationship with either of them, then I wouldn't bother though.

I should have done that a couple of weeks ago when I tried one. Turned out her specialty was fixing traffic tickets (big sign out front) and she wanted $500 plus hourly charges to draw up a document.

Insurance agent or realtor I do not have. I may just start telephoning around and see what they say.

[Hazel W]

Originally Posted by cyrano

For what purpose do you need an attorney? The attorney your realtor or insurance agent might recommend might be great for real estate or insurance/personal injury purposes, but not for what you need. It's considered foolish and even risky for an attorney to try to practice multiple areas of law because of the need to stay on top of the law in any particular area. You still see general practitioners in small towns but even there more and more attorneys specialize.

Don't use the yellow pages-- most of the ones who advertise are plaintiff's personal injury firms that need a big volume of calls to weed through them to take on the few that fit their business model. Most other lawyers have turned to the internet for their marketing, so start by googling "st louis criminal attorney" for attorneys who have self-identified as doing that.

Also contact the metropolitan st louis bar association about their attorney referral service. google them to find them.

That's it! St Louis Bar Association. That sound like the kind of organization I was thinking about. I'll try to find them.

Thanks.