Getting legal help is hard
Whether you’re hiring a lawyer for the first time or seeking a second opinion about your legal options, getting legal help in Singapore can be a daunting experience. Unless you have very close friends or family members who are lawyers, finding legal guidance can be agitating.
Introducing Quick Consult — now you can get advice from experienced lawyers for a transparent, flat fee starting at S$49. In this article, we discuss why finding legal help is hard and how it no longer is with Quick Consult.
| Challenges when seeking legal advice | How Quick Consult solves this |
| Unsure if you can rely on the legal advice you researched on Google / search engines | Reliable legal advice Speaking with an experienced lawyer can help verify any research you’ve done or you can immediately ask for advice |
| Difficult to find a lawyer with the specific and right expertise to advise you | Find the right lawyer with the right expertise We help highlight the most relevant lawyers with the right expertise for you to choose from; lawyers standing by to advise for many topics |
| Worried about how much it will cost to speak with a lawyer for a first consult | Transparent, flat and affordable fee Know exactly how much you are paying for legal advice and what you’re getting |
| Don’t want to get help or advice from friends for sensitive matters | Confidential All calls protected by legal privilege and completely confidential |
| Might need to pay via checks or cash for legal advice | Easy, fast and secure Pay securely and easily upfront with a credit card via PayPal |
Googling for legal advice is time-consuming and you’re never sure if you’re missing something
Attempting to research your legal options on the internet often leaves you feeling more confused than before, especially since the application of the law is a matter best left to lawyers themselves. Online research is also extremely time consuming if you do not have prior knowledge and experience dealing with your problem.
Personal recommendations is the gold standard to find legal help but…
Getting referrals from friends is often the most recommended and used way that people find legal help because there is a level of trust implied when someone you know, trust and respect recommends someone. This is the de facto and most common / trusted way to get access to legal advice.
Personal recommendations don’t work for many of us all the time for sensitive personal issues or when our network doesn’t have the same experience or have the right network
However, this is sometimes (in fact, often) not ideal or possible. Some of the issues we need legal advice for is too sensitive or personal to be shared amongst friends. Many of us may not have close friends who have had the same experience or friends in law. For those of us who are fortunate enough who have friends who are lawyers, problems may arise when the issue we are facing does not match their legal expertise. Most people also do not take the effort to seek a second legal opinion since it takes so much effort. Lastly, close friends may find it impolite to talk about cost.
Average Singaporean needs legal advice 4.8X in his / her life; likely to increase
Despite all these challenges that the average person will face when seeking legal help, demand for legal help has been on the rise. Divorce rates have risen 2.9 percent over the last year, with more people getting divorced than getting married.
Startups and SMBs in Singapore will need good and affordable legal advice
The startup scene in Singapore has burgeoned in the past several years as young graduates lean towards consulting and startup and away from banking & finance, a short step away from striking out on their own. More successful startups in Asia and Singapore, JTC’s Block 79 in Ayer Rajah, the rise co-working spaces, increase in venture cap and angel funding, Tech in Asia — these are all signs of many more Singaporeans pursuing their startup / entrepreneur ambitions.
They will all need legal advice as they all seek to disrupt existing businesses, especially regulated ones like Fintech, but as lean and cash-strapped startups they need advice that won’t break the bank. Small and medium businesses (SMBs) will need the same.
So why is it this challenging and frustrating to find legal advice?
It’s usually not sufficient Googling for your own legal advice from forums, government sites or blogs because the nature of legal advice is that it has to be tailored and customized. It is often not a one-answer-fits-all. In addition, the law continues to evolve and change (more quickly now with the increasing speed of innovation and influence of tech in our daily lives). We often want an expert who has experience in the specific area of law we need advice from to validate what we think we know and know other options that isn’t widely known knowledge. Seeking legitimate and reliable legal guidance can help us get peace of mind.
We also are reluctant to seek legal advice from a lawyer because many of us have the impression that talking to a lawyer is expensive. Lawyers also often do not share clear pricing for legal services because they are reluctant to give a clear pricing to an issue that may need less or more time than what they quote. This impasse has helped perpetuate the current situation.
Getting legal help shouldn’t be this difficult or expensive… and now it isn’t!
At AsiaLawNetwork, we strive to help make access to legal services easy and affordable. We are launching Quick Consult to help more people find the legal advice they need. The Asia Law Network team developed Quick Consult to help address the very challenges that they faced when they sought legal guidance for the first time in their lives.
Introducing Quick Consult — speak with a lawyer for 15 minutes for a flat fee
Quick Consult lets you speak with a verified lawyer with the right expertise and experience for 15 minutes on the phone to give you guidance on your legal dilemma. It is designed to be fast, easy and affordable. A Quick Consult costs just S$49 for your 15-minute call (transparent and flat fee) and is completely confidential (protected by legal privilege). You can pay securely via credit card or Paypal.
Is a Quick Consult really a good deal?
A key feature of Quick Consult is the transparent and flat fee. People and businesses seeking legal advice no longer have to worry about worrying about how much legal fees you will pay, something that has discouraged so many from getting legal advice that they should get.
To put the Quick Consult’s S$49 fee into perspective — the average consultation rates from S$250 – S$450 per hour on average and higher depending on the experience of the lawyer. This translates to an average of S$65 – S$115 for a 15-minute block. Some of our lawyers accepting Quick Consults have billings in excess of S$800/hour! A Quick Consult is not only price competitive but we help take the effort out of the traditional lawyer search. At the same time, many of our lawyers want to do Quick Consult because they get to speak to people with legal dilemmas that they have the most experience in advising on.
While some law firms do provide free first-hour consults, it is often a hassle to research, find, contact and schedule a meeting (sometimes in 1-2 weeks). You might also speak with a more junior lawyer for your first consult when you want to speak to a more experienced lawyer.
Company research indicated that more than 80% of Singaporeans aged 30 to 45 years old would be interested in getting legal guidance for a low, flat fee from credible lawyers and in doing so not have to go through the typical process of finding a lawyer.
Don’t know friends in law? That’s OK!
With Quick Consult, it is now also no longer necessary to have friends or family in law. Anyone looking to get a Quick Consult can use our website which will help guide you to the most relevant lawyers for you to choose from based on your legal issue.
Second and third opinions are now easy and affordable
Second opinions can also be very valuable but nearly all people and business we polled said that they do not seek a second opinion primarily because of the effort and cost it takes to get another perspective. Quick Consults make it easy and affordable enough to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion for your legal dilemma which may also lead to several quotations for follow-on services, which can help you better compare and select a lawyer / law firm that suits your needs best.
Lawyers standing by to share legal advice on wide range of topics
It is deceptively simple to think that it’s easy to find a right lawyer for your question easily. A Quick Consult will help guide you along with a few simple questions and highlight the most relevant lawyers with pertinent information to help you choose the right lawyer so you get the best advice and save time.
Can I really get the advice I need within 15 minutes?
Most of our Quick Consult clients get their answers within the 15 minutes of the call. This is partly because you are prompted to share the main facts of your case just before you check out. Lawyers will read this info and prep so that the call will be productive, and you won’t have to spend the first 5 minutes explaining your situation. The lawyer is likely to spend the first 5 minutes clarifying the situation and then the rest of the call answering your questions and highlighting your options and their recommendations.
It’s important to note that Quick Consults is not meant as a substitute for a full legal consult for everyone. For some people with basic legal questions, it’s all that they would need to get a quick answer. If you have a more complex, thorny legal issue, this is a great first way to get started but it may be necessary to engage a lawyer for more in-depth legal advice after the Quick Consult.
The kind of legal questions you should ask in a Quick Consult include:
- “Do I have a legitimate case?”
- “What are my options for my legal dilemma?”
- “What should I know about each option?”
- “What is the best way to structure my new business / partnership?”
- “What can I navigate the regulations for my startup?”
- “How can you help me after this call? How much will it cost?”
What happens after a Quick Consult?
A Quick Consult also does not include other legal services such as reviewing or creating documents such as employment contracts, shareholders’ agreements, or wills. Your lawyer on the Quick Consult might suggest additional services during the call (and send you a quotation after the call in email), but you are NOT obligated to accept any services. This will give you more options to help you make better decisions.
Save time, money and effort, make better decisions and get peace of mind
Asia Law Network’s mission is to make access to good legal advice accessible and affordable and Quick Consult is one of the ways we are striving to fulfill our mission.
We invite you to get a Quick Consult the next time you or your business should require legal advice!
www.AsiaLawNetwork.com/quick-consult
If you should like to share feedback or would like to reach out to us, please email us at [email protected]
This article is written by Ong Kheng Hian from Asia Law Network.
This article does not constitute legal advice or a legal opinion on any matter discussed and, accordingly, it should not be relied upon. It should not be regarded as a comprehensive statement of the law and practice in this area. If you require any advice or information, please speak to practicing lawyer in your jurisdiction. No individual who is a member, partner, shareholder or consultant of, in or to any constituent part of Interstellar Group Pte. Ltd. accepts or assumes responsibility, or has any liability, to any person in respect of this article.
