MEMBERSHIP
Benefits of Joining the Lawyer Referral and Information Service ( LRIS )
WALTER GABRIEL LRIS Board of Directors , Member-At-Large gabrielw @ waltergabriel . com
When I started practicing law 14 years ago at a big defense firm in New Orleans , I never imagined myself running a plaintiff ’ s personal injury firm out of Atlanta . I did not even know that ’ s what I wanted when I was fresh out of law school . I largely credit the Atlanta Bar Association ’ s LRIS program for jumpstarting my personal injury practice , and I ’ ll explain why my path , while unconventional , is repeatable for anyone reading this .
My legal career started in the commercial litigation practice area at Phelps Dunbar in New Orleans , and then in the Orleans Parish District Attorney ’ s Office as an assistant district attorney . In 2011 , I relocated to Atlanta and began largely representing court-appointed clients on a conflict basis . I enjoyed the constant appearances in court and discovered that I enjoyed representing people as opposed to corporations and agencies . But after a few years of handling indigent defense work , along the way discovered that I wanted to represent personal injury clients more than anything else .
Once I realized the practice area I enjoyed most was in personal injury , the challenge was trying to figure out how I would attract more personal injury clients in a market as competitive in Atlanta , without having a big advertising budget or any longstanding connections in the area . Of all the attempts I made at establishing referral networks , the biggest jump in landing consistent cases came from the Atlanta Bar Association ’ s Lawyer Referral and Information Service program . Over the past few years , I have had several six-figure settlements come from LRIS referrals and those happy clients have subsequently referred their friends and family to my firm , as well . With the support of clients who retained me from the Atlanta Bar ’ s LRIS program , I was able to make the transition from court-appointed cases to a full-time personal injury practice .
I will now address the two main objections people make when I discuss the benefits of joining LRIS :
( 1 ) |
I don ’ t want to pay LRIS ’ s 15 % referral fee |
( 2 ) |
Many callers have already been declined by |
other law firms |
Although a referral percentage comes with LRIS-referred cases , customary fee splits from referring attorneys is often 33 % -50 % of the total attorney fee . The second objection is that the callers have already been rejected by other firms when seeking representation – to that I say my firm has had multiple six-figure settlements that were LRIS referrals who were first rejected by other injury firms .
32 January / February 2024