Why Intake Decides Whether a New Practice Survives
Law school teaches you to win the matter. Nobody teaches you how the matter arrives.
A new practice rarely fails because the lawyer could not do the work. It fails because the work never reached the lawyer: the call went to voicemail during a hearing, the web form sat until Monday, the consult happened and nobody followed up, the person who wanted to hire you signed with the firm that called back first.
That gap between "someone needs a lawyer" and "a signed engagement agreement" is intake. It is a system, it can be designed, and it is the cheapest growth you will ever buy, because you already paid for the inquiry.
This playbook treats intake the way a founder treats a product: find the riskiest gaps first, fix them with the least effort, measure, and repeat. It borrows its structure from the LeanPivot.ai founder playbooks and its rules from the Florida Bar.
The core idea: you do not need more inquiries yet. You need to stop losing the ones you already get. Fix the leaks, then buy more water.
What you'll learn
| Chapter | What it covers | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pick the Matters You Want | The Matter Fit Scorecard; choosing your first three practice areas |
| 2 | Know the Rules Before You Market | Response versus solicitation, content rules, AI disclosure, reviews, quiet hours |
| 3 | The First Reply Wins | Speed to lead, after-hours coverage, the Response Time Audit |
| 4 | Intake That Protects You | Conflict checks, prospective-client duties, the Intake Minimum |
| 5 | From Consult to Signed | The consult, the Deciding stage, follow-up pacing, the engagement agreement |
| 6 | Serve Spanish Speakers Well | Written, not translated; the language field; who answers |
| 7 | Measure What Signs | Five numbers, the Leak Score, the weekly 20 minutes |
| 8 | Conclusion: Your First 90 Days | A week-by-week plan |
| 9 | Tools and Resources | LegalCRM features, coach prompts, Bar resources, reading |
Core components
- Matter Fit Scorecard. Decide what to say yes to before the phone rings.
- Response, not solicitation. Every message goes to someone who contacted you first.
- The Intake Minimum. Ask for what a conflict check and a booking need, and nothing more.
- The Deciding stage. Most people do not decide at the consult. Plan for the weeks after.
- The Leak Score. Find the one stage losing the most matters and fix that first.