AI receptionist for law firms.
People call a law firm when something has gone wrong, and the first firm that answers usually gets the case. An AI receptionist answers every call, runs your intake questions and books the consultation before the caller moves on to the next firm.
What can an AI receptionist do for a law firm?
It answers every call in your firm's name, gathers intake details by practice area, collects names for a conflict check and books consultations on the right attorney's calendar. It never gives legal advice, and it routes existing clients and urgent matters to your team.
Calls it handles
New client intake
Asks the questions your firm uses for each practice area, such as incident date, location and injuries for personal injury, or county and children for family law.
Consultation booking
Books paid or free consultations on the right attorney's calendar and texts the caller what to bring.
Conflict check details
Collects the names of every party involved before the consultation, so your team can run conflicts first.
Existing client calls
Takes a message for the assigned attorney or paralegal with the matter name and urgency, instead of a vague voicemail.
Opposing counsel and courts
Recognizes calls from other firms, courts and vendors and routes them straight to the right person.
After-hours emergencies
For criminal defense or other urgent practices, follows your rules for when to reach an on-call attorney.
How a call goes
- 1
Answers every call in your firm's name, including evenings and weekends when most firms go to voicemail.
- 2
Identifies the caller: potential new client, existing client, opposing counsel, court or vendor.
- 3
For new matters, runs your intake script for that practice area and collects names for a conflict check.
- 4
Books the consultation or flags the matter as one your firm does not take, with a referral message you approve.
- 5
Sends the intake summary and recording to your practice management system or CRM so the attorney is prepared.
Firms commonly run on practice management and intake tools like Clio, MyCase, PracticePanther or Lawmatics. Several of these publish APIs or connect through automation tools, so intake details and booked consultations can land where your team already works. Where a direct connection is not available, we route intake to email, a CRM like GoHighLevel, or a shared calendar.
- No legal advice
The agent is built to collect facts and book time, not to assess a case. If a caller asks whether they have a claim, it explains that an attorney will answer that in the consultation.
- Conflicts before consultations
Collecting every party's name up front means your team can run conflicts before anyone hears confidential details. The script stays brief until conflicts are cleared.
- Confidentiality and recording
Intake calls include sensitive facts, so we limit who can access recordings and transcripts. Some states require every party to consent to a recording, so the agent states that the call is recorded when that applies.
- Matters you do not take
The agent knows your practice areas and politely tells callers when the firm cannot help, with a referral message you write, so your attorneys only see qualified leads.
Questions law firms ask
Will an AI receptionist give legal advice?
No. It collects intake details and books consultations, and it tells callers that an attorney will answer legal questions. That keeps your firm on the right side of the line between intake and advice.
Can it run intake for different practice areas?
Yes. Each practice area gets its own question set, so a personal injury caller and a family law caller are asked different things. You approve every script before it goes live.
Does it work with Clio?
Clio offers an API that outside tools can use, so intake details and consultations can often be sent there. We confirm what your account allows during setup and use a CRM or email handoff where needed.
How does it handle existing clients?
It takes a structured message with the matter, urgency and best callback time and routes it to the assigned attorney or paralegal. During office hours it can transfer the call instead.
Why does answering the phone matter so much for law firms?
In Clio's 2024 secret shopper study, only 40% of firms answered the phone and 48% neither answered nor called back. A firm that answers every call stands out immediately.
Guides worth reading
All guidesTell us how your calls work today. We'll show you what a custom AI receptionist would handle, and what it shouldn't.