It will depend on your particular arrangement. You may be able to help by gathering papers and other evidence and by lining up witnesses. In any case, you should tell the lawyer everything you can about your problem and report any new developments immediately. To do a good job, the lawyer must know everything you know - including information that could be damaging to your case or that may seem unimportant to you.

Typically, legal fees are charged on an hourly rate or time basis. In determining the chargeable time for a matter, we include telephone calls, emails, meetings, preparation time, sending, receiving and reviewing correspondence, drafting documents, travel time, reviewing documents and files, research, court appearances and all time spent in providing legal services to you on the matter. We will provide you with regular statements of account which will detail the services provided to you.

You don't have to respond. There may even be some situations where it's better not to respond. Maybe the case can be settled without a response. But you should not make this decision without first speaking with an experienced attorney, preferably from Dover Johnson.