Preparation for the first appointment with the legal adviser legal adviser:

Professional competences

It is important to know that nowadays a legal adviser can only work competently in a maximum of two to three specialisations due to the density of the law and also because of the issuing of new laws and court decisions all the time. Therefore, if you are looking for a legal adviser in the area of separation/divorce etc., you should look for a professional with a specialisation in family law (preferably for a specialist legal adviser in family law, cf. https://www.sav-fsa.ch/de/anwaltssuche.html). Moreover, family law is very extensive and also an emotional subject, so I strongly recommend looking for a legal adviser who has this specialisation in family law and who has also worked often and continuously in this field in the past.

When checking the training, and ask for a specialisation or look in the register of specialist legal advisers.

Education/training

Has the person attended advanced training in the area of family law and onward-going further advanced training/specialist seminars and conferences?

Personal references

Ask your friends and acquaintances for references; at best look for someone, who can give you a personal recommendation or provide a contact.

Initial contact

Briefly describe the situation to the professional: e.g. "My husband and I have been married for 10 years and have two children aged 5 and 7. For some time there have been problems in our marriage."
Describe your request: For example, "I would like to know my rights in our specific situation. For example, my husband says that he will not pay me any maintenance/only CHF 1,000.00 , and that I am not allowed to move out of home with the children".
Queries : Write down your (most important) questions in advance, because they are often forgotten in the excitement. And if they are written down, you can ask them at the end of the interview if they have not already been answered. With your notes, you can check at the end of the interview whether you have received all the necessary responses you need to know.
Needs and expectations: Think in advance about what exactly you need. For example, "working out a divorce agreement with both spouses" or "mediation to find an agreement on the care of the children".

Working method

How does the professional work? What makes him or her m stand out from others? How does the communication with the clients take place? Ask the professional about this.

Documents

Bring all documents that are relevant to your situation to the meeting. You do not need any explicit documents for a general separation consultation, but it makes sense to note down important key points on a sheet of paper for your preparation (key data of the marriage/cohabitation, children, monthly income situation, monthly items of expenses, such as various insurances, housing costs, labour costs, etc.). You can then send all other documents to the legal adviser or prepare them for the second meeting in consultation and take them with you to the meeting.

Costs

Clarify which hourly rate is used by this legal adviser and how it is invoiced and whether you already have to pay an advance fee . Also discuss the agreement of a cost ceiling (this means that a cost limit is agreed and the legal adviser may only provide services up to this amount for the time being). In this way you avoid an unpleasant surprise, and at the same time have control over the legal fees incurred. This way you can decide in steps how much you are willing to invest. The cost ceiling can subsequently be extended at any time by mutual agreement.

If you have legal expenses insurance, ask your insurance company about possible coverage of legal fees .

After the first meeting to get to know each other

Make a note of your first impression on a personal and professional level. Did you feel welcome and taken seriously with your concerns? Were your most urgent questions dealt with and answered professionally/expertly? After the first interview, do you have a fundamentally positive impression and a good feeling about the idea that this person will represent you externally and advise you in the future?

Checklist