What to bring to a first consultation — and what to expect

Client Guide · 6 March 2026 · 5 min read

Clients often postpone a first consultation until they have “all the papers”. The papers are rarely complete, and the delay usually costs more than the gap in the file. Come with what exists.

Bring every document that bears a date: notices and summons, the FIR or charge sheet if one exists, agreements and deeds, revenue extracts, bank statements relevant to payments, and the whole correspondence — including messages, printed in order. Bring copies of any order already passed, however routine it looks.

Write out a chronology before you come. Five lines of dated events is more useful than an hour of recollection, and it prevents the two failures of memory that matter most: the wrong sequence and the missing letter.

Expect the first meeting to be mostly questions. Counsel is establishing what the record supports, not what the outcome will be. You should leave knowing the forum your matter belongs in, the immediate step and its deadline, and an honest range of duration and cost. If a guaranteed outcome is offered to you — anywhere — treat it as a reason to leave.

Everything discussed is confidential whether or not you go on to instruct the firm. Say the inconvenient facts first; they are the ones the other side will lead with.