Short answer
A good after-hours intake captures the practice area, the matter, the other parties for a conflict check, key dates, urgency and the caller's consent. It never gives legal advice, and it escalates arrests, protection orders and close deadlines to an on-call lawyer.People don't get arrested, separated or fired during office hours. They call your firm at 11 PM on a Saturday, and whoever picks up first usually gets the retainer. A typical one runs $2k to $10k or more, so after-hours legal intake matters.
Here's a checklist we use when we set up intake for firms around Vancouver and Surrey.
What to capture on every call
- Name and best number. Confirm the number by reading it back.
- Practice area. Family, criminal, employment, wills and estates, real estate.
- What happened, in their words. Two or three sentences is plenty.
- The other parties. Full names, so your team can run the conflict check before the consult.
- Key dates. A court date, a hearing, a deadline, the day they were let go.
- How urgent it feels. Ask, don't guess.
- Consent. Ask before you take notes on their matter, and offer a callback if they'd rather not.
That's it. Resist the urge to turn intake into a full interview. A caller in a crisis will give you five good minutes, not twenty. Get enough to run the conflict check and book the right lawyer, and let the consult do the rest.
What never to say
The person or system answering is doing intake, not giving advice. Lawyers in this province are regulated by the Law Society of British Columbia, and only a lawyer should give legal advice. So the intake should never comment on whether they have a case, guess what a matter will cost beyond your approved consult fee, or promise that a lawyer will take the file. "A lawyer will review this and call you" is enough.
When to wake someone up
Most calls can wait until morning. A few can't. Write your list down so nobody has to guess at 2 AM. Common ones:
- Someone was just arrested or is being held.
- A protection order or a safety concern.
- A deadline in the next day or two.
- A caller who sounds distressed or unsafe.
For those, transfer to the on-call lawyer, or text them the details right away with a backup if they don't answer.
Screening without being rude
If you don't do immigration or personal injury, say so kindly and point them somewhere useful, like the Lawyer Referral Service. Callers remember the firm that helped them even when it couldn't take the file.
The same goes for price shoppers. Give your approved consult fee plainly, then offer a time. People who hear a straight answer book more often than people who hear "someone will call you."
Who answers at night
Options are an on-call rota, a human answering service, or an AI receptionist that runs your exact script and hands off on your rules. We compare them in this guide, and our law firm page shows the intake in action. Whichever you pick, test it yourself: call your own line at 10 PM and see what happens. If you're collecting sensitive details, read our note on privacy and AI phone answering in BC too.
Quick questions
Can after-hours intake give legal advice?
No. Intake captures the details and books a consultation, and advice comes only from a lawyer.
What do I need for a conflict check?
Collect the full names of the other parties in the matter. Your team checks them before the consultation.
Which calls should go to an on-call lawyer?
Arrests, protection orders, deadlines within a day or two, and distressed callers are the usual ones. Write your own list so the rules are clear.