I needs a lawyer

Hi,

As I tell everyone I speak with up front, I am not a lawyer. This however does not deter many people from going into great detail about why they think a lawyer can and WILL be able to take their case. Many people I speak with really do need legal representation of some sort. A good number also just need answers to simple legal questions like "should I file for bankruptcy?" I cannot answer these questions, it is simply my job to point them towards (and in many cases away from) an attorney who can answer their questions.

For example, at this moment there is a man on hold who wants to sue the local transit authorit because a bus driver did not stop him from getting beaten up on the bus. I'm not sure what a bus driver could have done for him or how the transit authority would be responsible for this. In my knowledge a bus drivers' responsibility is to drive the bus, not to monitor what the passengers are doing or act as a bus bouncer. So the question arises, where to point this guy? Do I refer him and his seemingly frivolous suit and have him call a working lawyer with limited time, thus piss of the attorney for refering a frivolous claim? What if his claim is legitimate? What else can I ask to figure out what to do with this guy?

"Ok sir, we'll be happy to refer you, I just need to ask you a couple of questions. What is your first and last name?"

"Cletus VonWinkenstein Wood"

"Ok, thank you. And you are here in the _____ area?"

"Yessir."

"Thank you again. Are you currently living on a fixed income such as social security or disability?" (This is the money question that will give me a way to get rid of him. I buried it with other "questions" so it wouldn't sound like I already knew he probably was on a fixed income given the nature of his desire to sue the local government. If he says no, then I'll give him a lawyer even if I do think he's an idiot. If he says yes, Pro Bono, hands down, done with the call, sorry dude, but no money no lawyer, it may be fucked up but thats the way this world works.

"Uh yessir, I'm on disability."

"Wonderful! I'm going to go ahead and refer you to an agency that is well equipped to handle this sort of case...."

Over and done with, a hash mark by Pro Bono on the calls not referred list and I'm back to finishing this blog entry.