1. Pick your lawyer the same way you pick your laundry detergent.

You’ve seen those ads on television, hawking lawyers like laundry soap. Chances are your first reaction was to think: “Well, they’re on t.v., they must be good.” Not so fast. The truth is that buying an ad on television is as easy for lawyers as it is for used car salesmen. Slick ads and boastful claims don’t win lawsuits, good lawyers do.

At Kirk, Kirk, Howell, Cutler & Thomas, we’re proud of our reputation in the North Carolina legal community for first-rate, ethical representation. You won’t find us on t.v. or the back of your phone book. Where you will find us is in courtrooms and boardrooms across this state, working hard for our clients and letting our results, not a t.v. spokesman, speak for us.

2. Neglect to ask your friends, relatives, or co-workers for referrals.

If you had a serious medical problem and needed an operation, chances are you would ask people you trusted for a recommendation of a competent surgeon. You should choose your lawyer the same way. Ask the people you know who have had the same kind of legal matter for recommendations. Ask them what they did and didn’t like about their legal representation. Then look for a law firm that has the experience and qualifications to handle your case.

The majority of new clients of Kirk, Kirk, Howell, Cutler & Thomas are referred to us by our past clients and by other lawyers. We never forget that our success depends upon client satisfaction, not clever marketing. We’re confident that proper investigation of your choices in law firms will be beneficial to you and may very well lead you to us.

3. Neglect to ask your lawyer hard questions.

When a lawyer sits down to interview you about your case, you should also interview the lawyer and the lawyer’s firm. Don’t be afraid to ask pertinent questions about the firm’s experience with your type of case. The lawyer should be prepared to answer the following questions to your satisfaction:

• How familiar is the lawyer with this type of case?

• How long has the lawyer been handling this type of case?

• Has the lawyer been successful in handling this type of case?

• When was the last time the lawyer handled this type of case?

• Has the lawyer tried this type of case to a jury verdict?

• Is the lawyer familiar with expert witnesses who might testify in this type of case?

At Kirk, Kirk, Howell, Cutler & Thomas, we welcome questions like these and are glad to answer them. We want you to feel completely at ease that we can competently handle your legal matter.

4. Believe that your case is just like everybody else’s.

No two legal cases are exactly the same. A high volume, cookie cutter approach to service may be okay for fast food restaurants, but not law practice. You have a right to expect a law firm to take the time to listen to you and then make informed decisions regarding how to best represent your interests.

Kirk, Kirk, Howell, Cutler and Thomas does not aspire to be a high volume legal factory and never will. We don’t take on every case that comes through our door. We have to be selective about the cases we take because we intend to give those cases the time and attention they deserve. Our lawyers take a hands-on approach to the individual matters they handle and pride themselves on regular communication with their clients. We never forget that the most important legal matter to you is your own.

5. Believe that you can’t afford quality legal representation.

The “keys to the courthouse” should be available to everyone, regardless of their economic circumstances. Unfortunately, all too often government and corporations who possess large pocketbooks try to use their ability to spend money on legal representation to gain advantage over individuals and small businesses. That’s wrong.

At Kirk, Kirk, Howell, Cutler & Thomas we make every effort to structure our fee arrangements in a way that’s affordable to our clients. Many of our cases are taken on the basis of a percentage of recovery in which our clients pay no attorney fee unless we make a recovery in their favor. We always remember that individual and small business clients are what built this law firm and we are honored to represent them.