Houston Legal Staffing and Recruiting

Why Hire a Legal Staffing and Recruiting Company for Temporary Lawyers?

Budding entrepreneurs have staked claims in Houston for many reasons. It's a city aided by strong health care and energy sectors, plus it is home to various Fortune 500 company headquarters. Thanks to Texas' relatively low cost of living, Houston cultivates startups with tight budgets and limited resources, giving dedicated entrepreneurs the best chance at success.

If you're like most Houston small businesses owners, you don't yet have the time or resources to hire an in-house attorney for your legal needs. Turning to a legal staffing and recruiting company can help you find the city's top temporary attorneys. With a legal staffing company, you outsource the entire selection process and choose the legal help that best matches your particular legal need, all at a more affordable price than hiring a full-time representative.

Legal staffing companies in Houston offer the best talent pool of qualified lawyers with educations from Harvard Law, Yale Law, and other prestigious universities. Candidates are already vetted and proven to offer the experience your business needs, saving you time.

What Can a Temporary Lawyer Do for an In-House Legal Department or Law Firm?

Does your business already have an in-house legal department? You can still take advantage of temporary legal help. For instance, if your company needs to pursue an intellectual property (IP) infringer over a copied trademark, turning to a legal staffing and recruiting company boosts your existing legal team without straining your business finances. The temporary lawyer can help your legal team prepare for trademark prosecution during the trial.

Of course, temporary lawyers can do more for your small business and in-house legal team. Here are just a few examples of what a temp attorney can do:

• Offer litigation support
• Supplement your in-house legal team's knowledge, such as in real estate law
• Handle workload increases
• Review and draft documents
• Lower the company's overhead costs by allowing you to reduce full-time employees
• Assist with IP licensing
• Oversee labor and employment compliance and regulation
• Help with corporate governance and restructuring
• Minimize employment liability and payroll costs
• Ensure mergers and acquisitions (M&A) due diligence
• Allow you to take on large-scale projects without hiring more full-time staff

Essentially, turning to a temporary attorney helps you fill any gaps in your existing legal team's knowledge and abilities, helping you get things done quickly and effectively.

How to Interview and Hire a Temporary Lawyer?

One of the best things about turning to a legal staffing and recruiting company is that someone else has done all the legwork for you. All the best candidates for your particular assignment have been thoroughly vetted, so you know you're considering the best.

Still, you're responsible for the actual interview, and it's important to keep a few things in mind. Kick off the interview by asking how the lawyer came to be working on a temporary basis? Was it the result of a relocation? Does he or she work somewhere else part-time? Has he or she ever worked as a temporary attorney before?

You should also ask about the attorney's experience in the specific need you're looking to fill. Also, ask about the candidate's broader experience. If you're looking for someone with intellectual property experience, ask if the candidate has experience in your company's type of intellectual property. Also, it's good to ask if he or she has ever represented one of your competitors.

Finally, ask about the lawyer's expected rates, which law school they attended, and whether he or she is a member of the Houston Bar Association or the State Bar of Texas.