Legal marketing
Law firm lead
generation.
The enquiries that become good matters usually come from referrals, past clients and people who searched for a lawyer for their exact problem. The step most firms rush is the first contact. The Law Society of NSW says someone who gave you confidential information while checking whether you could act can be treated as a former client for conflict purposes, even if you never act. So a good enquiry form asks for names first and the story later.
Written by Dan Picken, a marketer who checks the sources. Last checked 6 November 2026.Where law firm
enquiries come from.
Most firms get their best matters from people who were sent: past clients, other lawyers who can't act, accountants, financial advisers and community organisations. Search is next, and it matters most for urgent matters like criminal charges, family breakdowns and injuries.
Each source brings a different risk. Referrals bring trust and sometimes a referral fee to disclose. Search brings strangers who may tell you everything in the first message. Bought leads, in NSW injury work, can bring a criminal offence.
| Source | Matters it usually brings | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Past clients | Repeat and related matters | Conflicts with matters you've acted on since |
| Professional referrers: lawyers, accountants, advisers | Matters outside their scope | Referral fees and who's told |
| Google search and Maps | Urgent and local matters | Long first messages before a conflict check |
| Directories and legal marketplaces | Price-sensitive enquiries | Shared leads, consistent details |
| Bought injury leads | Personal injury | Banned for many claims in NSW since 2025 |
The first enquiry
is a conflict risk.
In June 2026 the Law Society of NSW answered a question many firms don't ask: can someone who only made an enquiry become a former client? Its answer was yes, if they disclosed confidential information during that conversation. The conduct rules' glossary includes a person who has provided confidential information to a solicitor even where no retainer was established. So a person who consults you to see whether you can act can be treated as a former client for rule 10.
That has a marketing consequence. A web form with a big 'tell us what happened' box invites exactly that disclosure from someone you haven't checked. If the other party already instructed the firm, or does next week, you have a problem the marketing created.
The Law Society's guidance points to a conflict register that covers more than opened files, written records of discussions with prospective clients, and training for all staff, including admin. Family law shows why: in one NSW case a solicitor who acted for a mother in parenting proceedings and then for the grandmother against her was found to have engaged in professional misconduct.
Is your enquiry form
conflict-safe?
Tick what your website form and first-call process do today. The score is weighted towards the steps that stop confidential detail arriving before the conflict check.
Enquiry form conflict check
Is your enquiry form
conflict-safe?
Tick what your website form and first-contact process do today, and pick the matter type. It scores the risk of taking confidential detail before a conflict check and flags the rules for that matter type. A framework, not legal advice.
Your form and first contact
Enquiry-stage safety
-
Fix first
For this matter type
From Law Society of NSW guidance, checked 6 November 2026. Nothing you tick leaves this page.
Different matters,
different rules.
AML checks: from 1 July 2026, some legal work is regulated by AUSTRAC. The Law Society of NSW says conveyancing is likely a designated service, as is creating or restructuring companies and trusts, and buying or selling entities. Litigation is generally out, and drafting a will is likely out, though a trust deed is likely in. For those matters, identity checks come before you act, so the enquiry page should say what you'll ask for.
Personal injury in NSW: the Claim Farming Practices Prohibition Act 2025 bans paying or receiving money for referrals of many personal injury claims, buying or selling claims, and approaching people to solicit claims. Penalties go up to 500 penalty units. A conviction can stop the firm recovering its costs on the claim. So a lead seller offering 'pre-qualified injury leads' is offering you a problem. Other states have their own rules, covered in lawyer advertising rules by state.
Referral fees in other areas: the LSJ says that under rule 12 of the conduct rules, a solicitor who receives a referral fee is generally not in breach if it was disclosed to the client first. Write the disclosure into the referral arrangement, so nobody has to remember it.
Quality and
speed, in order.
Speed still wins matters. People with a legal problem often contact more than one firm, and the first one that calls back with a clear next step usually gets the meeting. But the order is: names, conflict check, then the conversation. A ten-minute check that saves a disqualification is worth more than a ten-minute head start.
Judge sources by matters opened in the areas you want, not enquiries. A firm that wants more estate planning and gets mostly traffic fines from its ads has a targeting problem. To put a value on each matter type, see what a matter is worth.
Contacting
enquiries later.
Following up an enquiry that went quiet is fine. Adding every enquiry to a newsletter is a commercial message under the Spam Act, so it needs consent, the firm's details and a working unsubscribe.
Many small firms sit under the Privacy Act's $3 million turnover threshold. But AML/CTF reporting entities are on the OAIC's list of small businesses the Act covers whatever their size, which may change things for a small conveyancing practice since 1 July 2026. Your confidentiality duties to clients apply either way.
What I see most often
What I'd check first
on a law firm's enquiry flow.
- 1
A big free-text box and an upload field
Enquiry forms that invite the whole story and documents before anyone checks who the other party is.
- 2
Enquiries that never reach the conflict register
Web forms and chat messages that go to an inbox, get a reply, and are never logged because no file was opened.
- 3
One form for every practice area
The same form for conveyancing, family law and injury, so the different rules for each never show up at the start.
The honest bit. A safer enquiry form can mean slightly fewer enquiries, because asking for names first adds a step. I'd take that trade. An enquiry that puts the firm in a conflict was never a good lead.
Questions
people ask.
How do law firms get leads?
Mostly through referrals from past clients and professionals, then Google search and Maps, directories and legal marketplaces. Urgent matters such as criminal, family and injury lean more on search. Judge each source by matters opened in the areas you want, not by enquiries.
Can a prospective client create a conflict of interest?
Yes. The Law Society of NSW says a person who disclosed confidential information while consulting you about whether you could act can be treated as a former client for rule 10, even if you never act for them.
Can law firms buy personal injury leads in NSW?
For many claims, no. The Claim Farming Practices Prohibition Act 2025 bans paying or receiving money for referrals of many personal injury claims, and buying or selling claims, with penalties up to 500 penalty units.
Do law firms need to do AML checks on new clients?
Since 1 July 2026, yes, for matters that are designated services. The Law Society of NSW says conveyancing and creating or restructuring companies and trusts are likely designated services. Litigation is generally out.
Can a law firm pay a referral fee?
For NSW injury claims caught by the claim farming ban, no. Outside those, the LSJ says a solicitor who receives a referral fee is generally not in breach of rule 12 if it was disclosed to the client first. Paying for referrals raises its own conduct questions, so check with the Law Society before you set one up, and put any disclosure in writing.
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