The Common Law

The Common Law regularly gets questions from people that need specific advice for specific situations. Often the folks that make these requests need an initial, low-cost evaluation of their rights before deciding how they want to proceed.

We often refer these requests to the Lawyer Referral Service of Central Texas (LRS). LRS is a nonprofit public service established more than 40 years ago. LRS refers about 12,000 callers to Central Texas attorneys each year. The program was designed to assist persons who are able to pay normal attorney fees but whose ability to locate legal representation is frustrated by a lack of experience with the legal system, a lack of information about the type of services needed, or a fear of the potential costs of seeing a lawyer.

LRS offers two important services to the public. First, LRS helps the client determine if the problem is truly of a legal nature by screening inquiries and referring the client to other service agencies when appropriate. Second, and most importantly, it provides the client with an unbiased referral to an attorney who has experience in the area of law appropriate to the client's needs.

Using LRS is easy. Contact LRS by telephone (512/472-8303) or email (referrals@austinlrs.org), and give them a brief explanation of your situation and what kind of help you are looking for. After screening your information to determine what type of legal help you need, LRS will refer you to an attorney that practices in that area of law or to a community service agency that might be able to assist you. Referrals are based on the type of help you need, your geographic location, and the language you speak. LRS does not provide free legal services. All information received is strictly confidential.

After you are put in contact with the lawyer, you will typically receive a half-hour consultation for a nominal amount (usually around $25). Then you can decide if you want to hire that attorney or if you would prefer to continue looking for another attorney. LRS has been doing great work in Central Texas for years, and it serves as an important resource to Central Texans searching for quality lawyers.