About the author: Dr Jing (William) Guo is a qualified Dutch lawyer (advocaat) and the founder of Jing Law Firm. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Amsterdam, a Magister Juris (Master of Laws) from the University of Oxford and an LL.B. and LL.M. from Leiden University. His key areas of practice include Dutch employment law, contract law, corporate law and criminal law.
An intake meeting with a lawyer in the Netherlands is usually free, but typically, you only get up to 30 minutes. That means every minute counts. Preparing well for this meeting can help you get the legal support you need more effectively. In this blog, I will share three tips to help you prepare for an intake meeting with a lawyer.
Tip 1: Focus on Two Main Purposes
The obvious purpose of an intake meeting is to decide whether you want to hire the lawyer. However, what many people don’t realise is that the lawyer is also assessing you and your case. The lawyer needs to determine whether to take you on as a client.
Good lawyers are often approached by many potential clients, which means you may need to compete for their professional services. To increase your chances of securing the lawyer’s assistance, you should aim to show that you’re a client worth working for. But how do you do that? That brings us to the next tip.
Tip 2: Prepare for Two Key Questions
During an intake meeting, a lawyer is typically trying to answer two main questions:
1. What has happened?
2. What does this client want?
Based on these answers, the lawyer can make an initial assessment of your case.
The second question is usually easier to answer. However, the first one (“What has happened?”) can be more challenging, as it requires you to summarise the key facts of your case in a clear and structured way.
To assist with this, I have drafted a template case summary table that you can use to create a clear, chronological overview of your case and the available evidence. You can download this template here: https://eng.jinglawfirm.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Template-Case-Summary-Table.docx.
For illustration purposes and to help you fill out the table, I have also created a case summary example, which can be downloaded here: https://eng.jinglawfirm.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Case-Summary-Example-1.pdf.
If your case is very complicated, the case summary table can become quite lengthy. You may not have enough time to tell the lawyer everything during the intake meeting. In that case, you will need to select the key events in the timeline and explain the essence of your case to the lawyer. If you find this difficult to do on your own, you may consider using a good AI tool such as ChatGPT to summarise the key points of your case based on the table you’ve completed.
By preparing this way, you’ll make it much easier for the lawyer to understand your case. Moreover, you’ll make a strong first impression, which can set you apart from other potential clients.
Tip 3: Ask the Right Questions
During an intake meeting, you may—and should—ask questions. To assist with this, I have drafted a list of questions commonly asked by clients during an intake meeting. You can download the list here: https://eng.jinglawfirm.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Intake-Questions.pdf.
Depending on your situation, you may want to adjust or add to these questions. I hope this list will serve as a useful guide to help you prepare more effectively and ask the right questions during your meeting.
Conclusion
Taking the time to prepare for an intake meeting can make a significant difference in the outcome of your legal matter. By focusing on the right objectives, preparing key information in advance and asking the right questions, you’ll be in a much stronger position to secure the legal support you need.
