Preparing for Your Interview

Whether you are receiving free legal advice or paying for legal assistance, it is to your advantage to be prepared to make the best use of the time you spend with your lawyer or advocate. Here are four steps to take before you see a lawyer or advocate:

1. Complete the form below before speaking with a lawyer or advocate. This form is available to download in word processing format. Take the form with you to the interview.
2. In writing down what happened, put your story in chronological order, and include both the good information and the bad information; if you did something wrong, admit it to the lawyer.
3. Take all letters and documents about your legal problem with you to the interview.
4. Take some form of identification with you to the interview.

For more tips on preparing for the interview, see "A Guide to a Successful Interview with a Lawyer" and the video produced by Access Pro Bono and Justice Education Society of BC, "Preparing to Meet with a Lawyer."

Preparing for Your Interview Information Sheet

Information about you

What	Your information
Name:	Write the information requested about you here
Address:
Postal code:
Telephone:
Date of birth:
Social ins. no.:

What happened?

Write down what happened in order. Include dates, times, locations, names.

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Continue on more paper if necessary.

Other people involved

Write down the names, telephone numbers and addresses of the other party and any witnesses.

No.	Name	Telephone no.	Address
1	e.g., John Smith	e.g., 604-666-6666	e.g., 101 Main Street, Vancouver, BC
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Documents

On a separate piece of paper, list all of the documents you have relating to the incident. Use the following headings and bring the documents to your meeting:

No.	Date	Description of document	Received from	Addressed to
1	e.g., January 10, 2013	e.g., Letter	e.g., John Smith	e.g., Jane Jones
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A person licensed to practice law in a particular jurisdiction by that jurisdiction's law society. See "barrister and solicitor."

(1) A lawyer or a person other than a lawyer who helps clients with legal issues, or (2) to argue a position on behalf of someone.

In law, a person named as an applicant, claimant, respondent, or third party in a court proceeding; someone asserting a claim in a court proceeding or against whom a claim has been brought. See "action" and "litigant."