Updated October 13, 2026 · Published by WKA Advocates
Define the Decision Before Choosing the Work
List the business functions, entities and document sets the audit is expected to cover. A limited contract sample and a full operational legal assessment answer different questions. Agree the information supplied, testing approach and form of the report before comparing fees.
Questions That Change the Legal Scope
Ask whether findings will be prioritised and whether implementation support is included. Legal, tax, financial and technical reviews can overlap while remaining separate disciplines. A useful proposal makes exclusions and reliance on supplied records clear.
Build a Comparable Factual Brief
State the objective, legal parties, current stage and important dates in a short summary. Identify the documents available and any question that remains disputed. Include earlier advice or steps already taken so the advocate can understand the existing position rather than assess an incomplete version of the matter.
The principal agreement, notice, application or record connected with the decision.
A dated chronology and the correspondence that explains material events.
The proposed outcome, unresolved questions and any deadline requiring attention.
Who can approve instructions, supply records and make the underlying business or personal decision.
Ask What the Proposal Will Deliver
Request a scope that distinguishes advice, document work, negotiation, filing or representation. Ask which facts and records are assumed, what further investigation is included and whether another specialist needs to be involved. A broad label such as legal support may conceal work that is excluded from a short proposal.
Compare professional fees with the same deliverables and assumptions. Separate disbursements and third-party costs, and agree how they are approved. If the situation changes, confirm how additional work will be quoted and instructed. Price alone cannot explain whether the proposed engagement addresses the decision you need to make.
Keep Responsibilities and Communication Clear
Identify the advocate handling the matter and your own authorised contact. Agree who monitors dates, reviews drafts and reports material developments. Keep a record of accepted instructions and tell the team promptly about a new notice, agreement or deadline. An initial enquiry is not the same as an accepted retainer or a completed official process.
Identify the named advocate, deliverables, assumptions, fees and responsibility for deadlines. Explain your objective and provide the main records so the proposed legal work fits the actual matter.
