Frequently Asked Questions

Does Answering Legal schedule appointments?

Yes we do! We schedule appointments for you to ensure that every client has the best chance of getting your help as soon as possible.

Does Answering Legal handle legal intake?

Yes! Answering Legal handles over 40,000 new client intakes every day! Our Legal Intake Receptionists are trained exclusively for the legal industry, so they are experts in getting the correct information when performing the legal intake.

Does Answering Legal offer fully bilingual receptionists?

Yes. At all hours of the day, there is a staff dedicated to Spanish speaking callers in 3 dialects of Spanish. Read more about our bilingual answering service here.

Does Answering Legal charge extra for each service?

No! Every premium service is included with an account at Answering Legal. We never charge you extra to provide our unmatched services.

Does Answering Legal have the ability to send messages to multiple people?

Yes. We can send out as many or as few messages as you would like. If specific people need to receive messages about different types of calls, we can easily set up the protocols that will deliver the right message to the right person in your office, every time.

Does Answering Legal have the ability to transfer new client callers to me?

Yes! If a new client is trying to call you, we will ask for his/her name, phone number, and the reason for their call, before placing them on a brief hold while we attempt to get you on the line. Visit How It Works or watch our videos to learn more about live call transferring.

What can Answering Legal do for me that my voicemail can not?

Answering Legal can perform all the duties of a legal receptionist, and captures new business exceedingly better than a voicemail system. Since new clients usually have urgent matters, forbes magazine has shown 80% of callers do not leave a voicemail, and will therefore hang up on your voicemail and look for representation elsewhere. Answering Legal can catch you new business even when you miss the call!

How is Answering Legal different from receiving an alert from a voicemail?

Answering Legal is only similar to a voicemail in that, we answer only after you have missed the call, and you get your messages instantly, as soon as the call has ended! Instead of your callers hanging up on a voicemail, which 80% do, they will be greeted by a live legal intake receptionist!

Why would I hire Answering Legal when I have staff?

Answering Legal provides support on the 3rd and 4th ring, after you miss the call in your office. This is great insurance for any law firm, as your receptionist might be out for the day, on a break, in the bathroom, or on another call! Answering Legal can help you on a rollover basis by answering only the calls that you miss, which can capture you new business at a fraction of the cost!

Is there a contract if I choose to sign up?

No. Answering Legal never puts any of their customers in a contract.

Why does Answering Legal only answer the phones for attorneys?

We learned at the inception of our business that we were excellent at answering the phones for law firms. Our founders decided that from then on, we would only cater to lawyers and attorneys, providing excellent customer service and call answering instead of letting our quality decline to gain a hold on a larger market share. Since we only answer for law firms and attorneys, we never had to sacrifice our quality of service.

Where are the operators located?

Our entire call center is located inside our office in New York. All of our receptionists are local to our office, and every legal intake receptionist is on site when they are working.

Where is Answering Legal located?

Answering Legal is located at 120 Lake Avenue in Nesconset, New York. Proudly from Long Island!

Does Answering Legal outsource to different countries?

No. While we are a diverse group of people, we all live close by the office, which enables us to be even more dedicated to serving our clients.

How long has Answering Legal been in business?

Answering Legal has been an answering service for attorneys for 6 years.

How does Answering Legal work?

Answering Legal uses conditional call forwarding in order to answer calls that you miss in your office. This means that 24/7, Answering Legal is fielding calls for your practice, since every phone call will ring 3-4 times in your office, and, if unanswered, forwards over to our service! If you would like to call forward with no delay, Answering Legal can easily accommodate as well. Learn more about how our live answering service works.

How do I forward my calls to Answering Legal?

Most call forwarding can be done directly from your phone. For example, straight call forwarding is usually activated by dialing *72, and the number to which you would like the calls forwarded. Each provider is different, and Answering Legal’s experts can help you establish your call forwarding protocols exactly the way you like it. Check out our call forwarding tutorials and see how easy forwarding your calls can be.

How are the calls answered?

The way that our legal intake receptionists answer your phone is entirely up to you, although our most preferred greetings usually sound like, “Good morning, the Law Office of Tom Lawyer, how may I help you?” This is a brief, polite way to exert professionalism and let the caller know that the person answering the phone is a part of your practice.

If I am on a call and receive another incoming call, will it go to Answering Legal?

Yes. Conditional call forwarding will allow you to still have call waiting, but if you let the call ring it will forward over to Answering Legal where it will be answered by our legal intake receptionists!

Will I still have the opportunity to answer my own phones?

Yes. With conditional call forwarding, you can establish a ring cycle where the first few rings go to your phone, and forward over to Answering Legal’s virtual receptionists if that call goes unanswered. We only want to help your current infrastructure flourish, and if this is how your practice works best, we are here to encourage!

Can I forward my calls to Answering Legal so that I never have to pick up my phone?

Yes. Straight call forwarding will send all of your inbound calls to our answering service. But good news! You can still make outbound calls from your phone. If you only want to receive messages after Answering Legal has answered the call and performed the intake, you can definitely do so.

What if I work off a landline and a cell phone?

Simple! We forward both your landline and your cell phone however you want to the same dedicated telephone number in our system. When calls come through on that line, we know that they came from your phone! Check out this video for a demonstration of what happens if you work off a landline and a cell phone!

What if I have multiple offices?

Answering Legal easily accommodates. We can answer the calls and even help clients trying to find your office! We just denote where your offices are and take care of the rest. Utilizing call forwarding, we can figure out which office your callers are attempting to visit.

How do I start my free trial?

Fill out the form here, and we’ll contact you in order to customize everything about your account. Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

Can I use all of Answering Legal’s features during my trial?

Yes, but the only caveat is that, since setting up calendaring for clients can take time, we leave that service out during the free trial. When and if you become a customer, we will set up your calendaring and appointment scheduling services, for which there is never an additional charge. Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

How much does the trial cost?

Nothing! It’s completely free, and we don’t even make you give us a credit card down to try. Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

What happens during the free trial?

During the free trial, we will handle your calls exactly how you have determined with your customer success representative. You get to decide if you feel that our service is beneficial to your firm, make any changes and customizations you would like, and make sure that everything is working properly. Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

Can I make changes to my account during the trial?

Absolutely. You can always make changes to your account on the fly. Contact us at 631-778-7010 or email us at [email protected]. Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

What happens at the end of the free trial?

We’ll call you up, go over your minute usage, and offer you a customized quote at a competitive price. Once we’ve given you the price, you can decide whether you want to continue using Answering Legal as a paying customer! Watch this video that explains our entire free trial!

How much does Answering Legal cost?

Check out our pricing plans or get a custom quote here!

What are the pricing plans based on?

Our pricing is monthly, and is on a per-minute basis, meaning you only pay for the time a phone call occupies your dedicated phone number. Once that call is ended, or as soon as it is transferred to you, you no longer pay for the minutes! Answering Legal does not charge for telemarketers, automated dialers, and “family/friend calls” that are calling for you, meaning you only pay for the calls that are relevant to your business. Check out our pricing plans here.

Does Answering Legal charge by the minute or by the call?

Answering Legal charges by the minute, so that you only pay for the actual time a call occupies your dedicated telephone number. Check out our pricing plans here.

Is there a monthly minimum?

Yes. Our monthly minimum is $150. Since we include all premium features with every account, we expect that you will catch enough new business in the first 2 months in order to pay for the service for the year. Check out our pricing plans here.

What features does Answering Legal charge for?

We at Answering Legal don’t charge extra when you use any of our premium features. That’s right, every single service and feature we offer is available to you automatically. We only use the time that our legal intake receptionists spend on the phone with your callers as the basis for your monthly rate.

How do I make adjustments to my account?

Easily. Our 24 hour support team is always here to help you make changes to your account. Call in at 631-778-7010, send an email to [email protected], or chat with a live representative (bottom right corner of your window) to have your matter handled in minutes. Visit our support Page to make adjustments to your account now.

Can I change how my calls are answered?

Yes. Your greetings and protocol are always customizable, and can be changed instantly when you call in, submit a support ticket, or send an email to our support team. Simply let them know how you would like your calls handled going forward, and they will ensure that your request is fulfilled. Visit our support Page to make adjustments to your account now.

My landline calls are not being picked up at all!

Your phone provider may have dropped your call forwarding feature. This sometimes happens when your phone provider experiences outages, or upgrades their system. This also happens when you add/remove features from your account. In order to re-activate service, our customer success team will place a ticket with your carrier or log into your portal. This change may be instantaneous or may take up to 48 hours.

My cell phone calls are not being picked up at all!

If you’ve changed/upgraded your cell phone, your call forwarding may no longer be active. You must enter a code and your dedicated ten digit phone number to reactivate your service. This code depends on your phone carrier. Here are some of our quick tutorials on forwarding your cell phone to Answering Legal. Call forwarding tutorials

My cell phone rings too many times before Answering Legal picks up the call! What is wrong?

This may have been caused by an update your cell phone provider has implemented, but the default amount of rings on a cell phone before forwarding is 6. If attempts to decrease the amount of rings is unsuccessful, dialing 611 from the cell phone and speaking to a representative usually helps. If a representative claims they can not make this fix, ask for a supervisor.

My landline rings too many times before Answering Legal picks up the call! What is wrong?

Normally, this is an issue with your phone provider. Just let us know that you are hearing too many rings before the calls are answered and we still start running diagnostics on your lines. We will also get in contact with your provider to remedy the issue. Depending on your phone provider, this can be an instant fix or can take up to 48 hours.

I’m receiving voicemails, are my calls not forwarding?

Normally, this is an issue with your phone provider. Our technical support will run diagnostics on your line and contact your provider to reinstate your call forwarding features.

Where can I find the caller ID for all patched and missed calls?

The caller ID of the person who called is automatically attached at the bottom of every email that is sent to you from the answering service. The number that the person leaves as a callback number is always sent to you via text as well.