Live Chat with a Utah Attorney

Attorneys across the country and in Utah are increasingly using "live chat" features on their websites to promote themselves and their law firms, and to create the impression of immediate access to legal help. Before you start a chat session on a Utah criminal defense website, here are a few questions to consider. If you are looking for real help with a criminal case in Utah, contact us directly now to see what the right attorney can do for you.

Before Starting a Live Chat for Legal Help

Who am I really chatting with?

Many attorney websites now feature a live chat feature suggesting that legal help and advice is immediately available. In reality, many of these chat features are initiated, implemented, and operated by marketing companies who promise attorneys that using their chat program will bring them new clients. Often, when you start a live chat session on an attorney website, you will actually be chatting with a marketing professional who has been trained in how to bring in potential clients and screen out individuals who do not fit a particular marketing profile.

Can I get legal advice from a live chat on an attorney's website?

If you are chatting with a marketer who is not a lawyer, that person cannot give you legal advice. A marketer is not trained in analyzing the specific facts of your situation and determining how the law should be applied to those facts. State rules governing ethics and professional responsibility expressly prohibit non-lawyers who may be associated with a law firm (such as marketers) from giving any legal advice. The Utah Criminal Code also establishes criminal penalties for non-lawyers who practice law without a license.

These safeguards and restrictions have been put in place to try to ensure that individuals do not rely on legal advice from those who are not trained and qualified to give legal advice. If you were ill and getting ready for an important medical procedure, you would not ask the hospital's marketing department to perform the surgery. You would want the best doctor you could have. Legal matters can have significant and lasting effects on your life. You should want the best legal advice you can get - not a quick chat with a marketer.

Can I provide confidential information online?

Depending on how the chat system is designed, the information you provide online may or may not be considered confidential. As a general rule, you should not give any confidential information or provide any information that has a potential to be incriminating in any way until you are certain that your communications are covered by the attorney-client privilege.

What if the chat session is directly with an attorney?

Even if an online chat session is conducted directly with an attorney, and even if it is covered under the attorney-client privilege, a chat session is not the ideal way to get good legal advice. Chat sessions tend to be less detailed and less specific in the information provided as compared with a face-to-face legal consultation or even with a telephonic attorney consultation. Taking the time to talk directly with an attorney, to give the attorney an opportunity to review documents related to your case, to let the attorney ask you questions and then listen to your answers - this is what is most likely to get you the best legal advice and the best outcome for your case.

Finding a Criminal Defense Lawyer in Utah

A criminal conviction in Utah can have serious and lasting consequences. Defending your case right the first time is critical. Whether you are facing felony or misdemeanor charges, having the right criminal lawyer on your side can make a real difference. Contact us today to see how we can help you.