5 Ways to Find Quality Legal Advice for Less

Most lawyers have a bad rep, but regardless, there comes a time where we might need one or even count on one. A good, qualified lawyer can help us out of a number of jams, like car accident suits, late payments, disputes with landlord, occupational injuries and so on. Yet, good lawyers don’t usually come cheap. It can be incredibly expensive to find quality council and most of the time, if you are the plaintiff and lose your suit, you will be left with a hefty bill from your lawyer or their firm. The question then becomes: how do I find quality legal advice for less? Here are 5 ways that you can.

1. If you qualify or meet a certain income bracket there are many firms where you can find volunteer lawyers. Government grants or private institutions subsidize many of these firms in order to meet the demand of low-income people and families. This can be a great way to seek quality legal advice that doesn’t cost an arm and leg. At most, you might be paying up to $50 an hour, which is still $500 to $600 less than the typical hourly rate for lawyers.
2. You can also ask you lawyer for some sort of financial plan. While you don’t want to bury yourself further in debt or further into some sort of financial hole, many law firms, especially the bigger ones, can and will agree to payment plans if you can prove that your income is at a certain monthly level. This can be a great way to seek great council and pay monthly so that a large one-time lump sum bill doesn’t overburden you at the end of your trial or suit.
3. In some cases, if the lawsuit meets a certain criteria, you can ask a lawyer to work pro bono. This just means that a lawyer will take on a case for the better good of the people. While there might not be many car accident lawyers in Michigan that would take on some of these cases, there are some lawyers who might see the greater benefit if they offered their services for free. Lawyers will also work pro bono if there is a large defendant like a multinational corporation and a large class action lawsuit, just to have it on their CV.
4. Also, you can see if anyone in your family is a lawyer or if you have any friends whose family members might be lawyers. Often times a family member or a friend of a friend might be more inclined to offer you legal advice if they know you on a personal level.
5. Lastly, a great way to find quality legal advice for less is to offer your services or a product in exchange. Lets say you are a massage therapist or you run a web design firm, you can trade a massage or a free website in exchange. Sometimes a bartering system can work better than a cash exchange and it looks better on your next tax filing.