Finding the right solicitor
Whether you're facing a personal injury claim, drafting a will, or dealing with a business dispute, it is essential to ensure that you are working with a solicitor who is qualified, experienced, and who you can trust.
Choosing a solicitor is an important decision
When you engage a solicitor, you are engaging a trusted advisor. Someone you can rely on to explain what your rights are under the circumstances, provide you with information about your legal options and potential outcomes, and empower you to make informed decisions.
But a simple internet search will show you that there are thousands of solicitors out there who could potentially represent you. So how can you make sure the one you choose is the right for you?
Following the steps below can help you to find a solicitor who is qualified, experienced, and compatible with your needs.
Know what type of solicitor you need
The type of solicitor that will best be able to help you will depend on the type of legal issue you have. Use the Legal Issues Guide to find out what area of law your legal issue falls under. The you can narrow your search to solicitors that work in that area of law.
Legal issues guideCreate a shortlist
Did you know there are over 14,000 practising solicitors in Queensland? This means you have plenty of choice – but it can also be difficult to know where to start.
The first thing you’ll need to do is work out what type of law relates most closely to your issue. Here are a few examples:
- if you are separating from your spouse, you'll need a family law solicitor
- if you are buying a home, you'll need a property solicitor
- if you've been injured at work, you'll need a personal injuries solicitor
Next you should create a shortlist of potential firms or solicitors to contact for an initial discussion.
While you could head straight to Google to start looking for solicitors, we recommend using the Find a Solicitor search for a few reasons:
- it can help you identify the area of practice your issue relates to
- you can search by location to find solicitors and firms close to where you live
- if your issue is complex you can refine your search for accredited specialists who have done extra training and are experts in their specific area of law
- all the solicitors in the search are full members of the Queensland Law Society – which means you can be assured they are licensed to practice law in Queensland
Referrals from family, friends, or colleagues are also a great place to start, especially if they have provided assistance with a similar issue to the one you have. Online reviews can also provide some insight from real-world clients into the kind of service a firm provides.
Do your research
Once you’ve got your shortlist of firms or solicitors it’s time to do some more in-depth research.
Ideally you should look for firms or solicitors that have significant experience in the type of law your issues relates to, and their website should be able to provide you with more information about their ability to handles issues similar to yours. It’s also a good idea to look at the profiles of the individual solicitors in the firm, as this will provide you with insight into their educational and professional achievements.
If you are looking for firms that employ accredited specialist solicitors, you should also look for the accredited specialist symbol on their website. 
NOTE: This will only apply to an individual solicitor – so seeing the symbol on the website does not mean all the solicitors that work for that firm are accredited specialists.
Top tip
Meeting your solicitor for the first time is a great opportunity to see whether they are a good fit for you. Find out more about how you be can prepared for your first meeting.
Find out more
