30 September 2026 · 5 min read · Oscar Markham
The unreturned call is the profession's reputation
There is one criticism of solicitors that comes up more than every other criticism combined, and it is not about fees or competence. It is that nobody rings back. It is so widespread that it has become what people expect, which means a firm that simply does not do it stands out immediately.
The expectation is already low, so the bar is low
Clients arrive braced for poor communication. A firm that answers within a day and says what is happening exceeds expectations without doing anything remarkable.
That is an unusually cheap advantage. Most competitive advantages require investment; this one requires a decision.
Decide what happens to an enquiry, explicitly
Who sees it, how quickly, and what the holding response is if the relevant solicitor cannot reply immediately.
An acknowledgement within the hour saying when somebody will come back is enough to hold almost anyone. Silence is what loses them, not the delay itself.
Update clients before they chase
Most complaints are not about slow progress. They are about not knowing whether there has been progress.
A short note at agreed points — even one saying nothing has moved and here is why — prevents the frustration that produces both the chasing calls and the bad reviews.
It is where the referrals come from
Estate agents, brokers and accountants all recommend the firm that does not create problems for them. Responsiveness is the whole of that.
The firms with the steadiest referral flow are almost never the most brilliant lawyers in town. They are the ones who answer.
Measure it
Time from enquiry to first response, and the proportion answered the same day. Most firms have never looked.
Once it is a number somebody sees each week, it improves without any further intervention, and the instruction rate moves with it.
Written by Oscar Markham, founder of Dublin Growth Digital. We run lead generation for Irish estate agents and trades, reported every Friday in enquiries and booked work.