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Law firms

Intake response time for law firms

For firms that suspect their answering speed, not their lead source, is deciding what an inquiry is worth.

For attorneys and firm administrators. Injured people should not use this page.

This page asks you to measure your own answering speed before spending anything on volume.

What this page is for

  • 01

    Measure the gap between an inquiry arriving and a person speaking.

  • 02

    Set named cover across the week, including weekends and court days.

  • 03

    Pace any delivery to the capacity the firm actually has.

What it costs you

What an unanswered hour actually costs

  • A person who has already spoken to someone else has no reason to return your call.

  • Volume bought at a pace intake cannot answer converts for whoever answers instead.

  • Slow answering looks identical to a bad lead source on a spreadsheet, so the wrong thing gets cancelled.

  • Staff who are behind start triaging by guesswork rather than by the written standard.

How it is handled

How response time is handled before a pilot

Pacing is set to the capacity you have, not to the volume you would like.

  1. 01

    01 - Measure the current gap

    Time from inquiry arriving to a human speaking, during the week and at the weekend, taken from your own records rather than an estimate.

  2. 02

    02 - Establish who answers

    Named cover for each part of the week, including lunch hours, court days and holidays, written down rather than assumed.

  3. 03

    03 - Set the pacing

    Weekly and daily delivery limits matched to that cover, so inquiries arrive at a rate the firm can answer.

  4. 04

    04 - Agree the escalation

    What happens when an inquiry is not reached on the first attempt, how many attempts follow, and when it is closed out.

  5. 05

    05 - Review against the record

    Response times recorded for the pilot and read back next to conversion, so the two are never confused.

What you hold

What you keep from this exercise

  1. 01

    Your real answering speed

    Measured across the week rather than the impression of it, and comparable month to month.

  2. 02

    A written cover schedule

    Who answers what, when, and what happens when they cannot.

  3. 03

    A pacing figure

    The volume your intake can absorb without dropping inquiries, useful regardless of source.

  4. 04

    A basis for judging any source

    Conversion figures that are not quietly measuring your own delay.

If you already know your answering speed, the call is about pacing and criteria rather than diagnosis.

Fit

Whether this subject is worth your time

This is for you if

  • Someone at the firm can be reached during the working day, reliably.
  • You are willing to measure the gap rather than estimate it.
  • You would rather pace delivery than take everything at once.
  • You want conversion figures that measure the source, not the delay.

This is not for you if

  • New inquiries wait until the end of the week.
  • You want maximum volume regardless of who is answering.
  • Nobody is accountable for the first call.
  • You are looking for guaranteed retained matters - we do not offer any.

Straight answers

The questions firms ask about this

We answer everything eventually. Is that not enough?
Eventually is a different product to promptly. Both are legitimate choices, but the economics differ, so the pilot is priced and paced against the one you actually run.
Can you deliver only during our office hours?
Pacing windows are part of the written scope. If you want nothing arriving after four o'clock or on a Friday, that is set before delivery starts.
What if an inquiry is unreachable?
The attempt sequence and the closing rule are written into the scope, and every attempt is recorded, so disputes are settled against the record.
Will you tell us how to run our intake?
No. We record what happens and pace delivery to it. How you staff the desk is your decision.

Your criteria

Send us your answering pattern

Tell us who answers, when, and what your criteria are. We come back with a pacing figure and a draft standard you can correct.

What happens after you send it

  1. 01A written reply on this subject, naming what you told us.
  2. 02The worksheet for this subject if you want it.
  3. 03A forty-five minute call on criteria and economics if it is useful.

We do not sell or share what you submit here, and we do not use it for anything other than responding to your enquiry.

Stark Meridian Croft is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Read our privacy notice.

Pick a time

Take a criteria and economics slot

Thirty minutes with our team. Picking a time sends the invite straight away.

Criteria and Pricing Call · 30 minutes

Discuss criteria, delivery needs, and pricing for MVA and workers’ compensation inquiries, live phone transfers, signed cases, signed commercial cases, and catastrophic commercial cases. No questionnaire is required before booking.

Book a Call

Book within the next four days. The calendar opens in a new tab. Complete your booking to receive your confirmation and calendar invite.

Next step

Pace the volume to the desk you actually have

Thirty to forty-five minutes on answering cover, pacing limits and the criteria that sit behind them.