McGee: Take an attorney's advice

So I'm kickin' back in my recliner at The Stucco Hacienda, watching the TV, when one of those ads comes on for a lawyer. You know the ones: "CALL ME IF YOU NEED SOMEONE TO 'KICK REAR AND TAKE NAMES IN COURT FOR YOU." Well, it doesn't actually say that, but you get the idea.

How do you know this lawyer is all that and a bag of chips just based on a TV ad?

I thought back over the years about trying to find a good lawyer. There's always a family friend if you still live in the home town. But there was this one time I thought I came up with a pretty good way to choose an attorney.

It was when I was a stranger in a strange land; I had just landed in West Virginia. I had taken a new job and didn't know a soul in town. Then lo and behold I needed an attorney for a small civil matter.

I did what any media person would do: I decided to do an on-the-street survey.

I took to the streets of the small town and stopped folks as walked along: "Excuse me, could you tell me who you think is the best attorney in town?"

I must've asked about 20 folks. Some people shied away from me, others answered me with a question like, "Why do you want to know?"

But I got about 12 recommendations and of those seven or so were the same guy. I had my attorney. Nice guy too — all I needed was a lawyer-type letter sent off and he didn't charge me a thing.

Of course nowadays I know nice guys aren't what you want in some cases. You want the successful ones. How do you find the successful ones?

What was that line I heard? "Get the one with the most toys."

Grant McGee is a long-time broadcaster and former truck driver who rides bicycles and likes to talk about his many adventures on the road of life.

Contact him at: [email protected]