The intake call is not a formality. It is the close.
Most law firms treat the first phone call as a data collection exercise. Name, incident date, insurance carrier, maybe a quick facts summary. Then “we’ll follow up.” That framing costs retained clients every single week.
The caller who reaches your office has already done something hard: they acknowledged they have a legal problem, they searched for help, and they picked up the phone. That is four steps most people never take. By the time they dial, they want someone to tell them they are in the right place and what happens next.
What they get instead, at most firms, is the person on the phone reading from a questionnaire while the caller wonders whether they actually need a lawyer.
This guide gives you five phone scripts built around the moments where intake calls typically break down. Each one is ready to use verbatim or adapt to your practice area. Use them to train whoever picks up at your firm, whether that is a dedicated intake coordinator, a paralegal covering the phones, or the attorney at a solo practice who answers their own calls.
Before the scripts: three things separate firms that convert 60 to 70 percent of inbound calls from firms converting 20 to 30 percent.
Speed over precision. A caller who waits more than 90 seconds on hold before speaking to a person has already mentally moved on. The data is consistent: lead-to-contact rates drop by more than 60 percent after the first five minutes from initial contact. The information you collect in the call matters less than the fact that you answered.
Empathy before qualification. Most intake questionnaires open with the date of the incident or the type of case. The caller does not experience that as helpful. They experience it as paperwork. A 10-second acknowledgment of what they are going through changes the emotional register of the entire call.
Clear next step before hanging up. Every intake call should end with a specific appointment booked or a specific callback time confirmed. “We’ll be in touch” is not a next step. It is a polite way to lose the case.
With those three principles in place, the following scripts handle the five situations where calls most commonly fall apart.
The first 30 seconds determine whether the caller stays engaged. Most openings front-load the firm name and then immediately launch into questions. This script leads with acknowledgment.
The script:
“Thank you for calling [Firm Name], this is [Name]. Before I ask you anything, I just want to say: calling an attorney after something like this is the right move, and I’m glad you reached out. Can you tell me in your own words what happened?”
[Let the caller speak without interrupting for at least 60 to 90 seconds. Take notes. Do not redirect until they pause naturally.]
“Okay, I have the basics. Based on what you just described, this is exactly the kind of situation our attorneys handle. I want to get you connected with someone today. Before I do that, I have a couple of quick questions to make sure we have everything ready for them. Is that okay?”
[Collect: date, location, injuries, insurance status, whether any other attorney has been contacted.]
“Perfect. We have a slot available [today at X / tomorrow morning at X]. Can we put you in for a free 20-minute consultation with [Attorney Name] at that time?”
Why it works: The open-ended “tell me what happened” surfaces the emotional core of the case before you introduce any structure. Callers who feel heard answer qualification questions without resistance. Callers who feel interrogated clam up or hang up.
Intake note: This script assumes the person answering does not know the outcome before the call ends. Coach whoever picks up to treat every call as retained until proven otherwise, not as a screening exercise.
Fee objections come up on intake calls at firms across every practice area. Most intake staff either deflect (“I can’t quote a fee without more information”) or overpromise (“Don’t worry, we don’t charge anything unless we win”). Neither approach works consistently.
The deflection leaves the caller with unanswered anxiety. The overpromise sounds too good and triggers skepticism.
This script addresses the cost question directly while keeping the call moving toward a consult.
The script (contingency fee PI):
“That is one of the most common questions we get, and it is a fair one. Here is exactly how it works: we handle personal injury cases on a contingency basis, which means you pay nothing upfront and nothing out of pocket at any point. Our fee comes out of the settlement or verdict at the end. If we do not win, you owe us nothing. Zero.
What I can tell you right now is that cases like yours are typically evaluated in a free 20-minute call with one of our attorneys. That call costs you nothing. They will tell you exactly what you are looking at and what the timeline would be. Would you like to book that now?”
The script (hourly or flat-fee matters):
“Good question. I want to be straight with you: I cannot give you an exact number on this call because the cost depends on the specifics of what you need. What I can do is get you on a 20-minute call with [Attorney Name], who will give you a clear fee estimate before you commit to anything. There is no obligation and no charge for that call. Does [time slot] work for you?”
The key principle: Answer the question, do not dodge it, and then immediately pivot to the consult as the mechanism for getting the real answer. The consult is the product you are booking. Treat it that way.
This is the highest-leverage script in intake. “I need to think about it” and “I’ll call you back” are the two most common exit lines before a case goes silent. Most intake staff accept those at face value and say “of course, take your time.” That is a mistake.
The hesitation is rarely about needing more time. It is almost always about an unanswered concern. This script surfaces the concern and handles it.
The script:
“Of course, I completely understand. Before you go, can I ask you one quick question? Is there something specific that is holding you back, or something I have not answered that is making you hesitate? I ask because I talk to a lot of people in situations like yours, and I want to make sure you have everything you need to make a good decision.”
[Pause. Let them answer. Do not fill the silence.]
Concern: “I don’t know if I have a strong enough case.”
“That is exactly what the free consultation is for. Our attorney will tell you honestly whether you have a case worth pursuing. If you do not, they will tell you that too. There is no cost for that conversation.”Concern: “I need to talk to my spouse or family first.”
“That makes total sense. What if we booked the consult for two days from now, so you have time to talk it over? That way you have a slot held and you are not starting from scratch when you are ready.”Concern: “I have already talked to another attorney.”
“Good, you should talk to more than one. Can I ask what your experience was? Sometimes a second opinion changes things. Our consultation is free and there is no pressure.”
The goal: Surface the real objection. Handle it with honesty. Rebook before hanging up. Most people who say they will call back do not. If you can book the consult before they hang up, your follow-through rate doubles.
After-hours voicemails from callers who reach the machine are almost never returned, because the voicemail greeting does nothing to motivate a callback. The standard “you have reached [Firm Name], our office hours are…” greeting is a retention dead end.
This script is designed for the outgoing greeting that plays after hours. It is also the framework for callback messages left when your intake team calls back a missed lead.
The after-hours outgoing message:
“You have reached [Firm Name]. Our team steps away at [time] but we check messages first thing every morning and will call you back before [time]. If this is a time-sensitive matter, you can also text this number and we will respond by morning.
Please leave your name, the best number to reach you, and a brief description of your situation. We look forward to speaking with you.”
The callback voicemail when following up on a missed lead:
“Hi [Name], this is [Your Name] calling from [Firm Name]. You called us [this morning / yesterday] about a potential legal situation. I want to make sure you got connected with someone who can help.
I will try you again [tomorrow morning / this afternoon], but you are also welcome to call us back directly at [number] and ask for me. We have appointments available this week and I would love to get you set up. Talk soon.”
What makes these work: Specificity and commitment. The outgoing message gives a concrete callback window and an alternative channel (text). The callback voicemail references the original call and announces a second attempt. Callers who get a second-attempt voicemail convert at roughly twice the rate of callers who get a single generic message.
An incomplete intake is a case that started but did not finish: the caller answered initial questions, expressed interest, but did not book a consultation before hanging up. This is among the most recoverable lead type in your pipeline and among the most ignored.
The script (24-hour follow-up call):
“Hi [Name], this is [Your Name] from [Firm Name]. We spoke [yesterday / this morning] and I wanted to follow up because I was not able to get you fully connected with one of our attorneys before we finished the call.
I just wanted to make sure you did not fall through the cracks on our end. Is now an okay time for two quick minutes?”
[If yes:]
“Great. Based on what you told me, [Attorney Name] is actually available [this afternoon / tomorrow morning] for a free 20-minute call. I can book that for you right now while I have you. Would that work?”
[If voicemail:]
“Hi [Name], this is [Your Name] from [Firm Name], following up on our conversation [yesterday / this morning]. I want to make sure we got you connected properly. Please give us a call back at [number] when you have a chance. We still have availability this week and I would love to get you scheduled. Thanks, talk soon.”
Timing matters: Send the follow-up within 24 hours, not 72 hours. Conversion rates on incomplete intakes fall significantly after the second day. At 48 hours, the caller has typically either resolved their situation elsewhere or mentally moved on.
Scripts are only useful if you track whether they work. Three metrics tell you whether your intake call process is converting:
Contact-to-consult rate: Of every caller who speaks to a live person, what percentage books a consultation before the call ends? Benchmark: 50 to 65 percent for high-performing firms. Below 30 percent means the opening or qualification is losing people.
Consult-to-retained rate: Of every consultation that happens, what percentage signs a retainer? Benchmark varies by practice area but 40 to 60 percent is achievable for PI firms. Below 25 percent points to a problem in how consultations are run, not intake.
Incomplete intake recovery rate: Of all incomplete intakes in your system, what percentage do you recover with a follow-up call within 24 hours? Most firms track this at zero because they have no follow-up protocol. Firms with a follow-up script recover 15 to 25 percent of incomplete intakes. That number alone, in a high-volume PI practice, can represent five to ten cases per month.
For supporting data on why these numbers matter financially, see our analysis of law firm lead response time and the real cost of a missed intake call. The scripts in this guide are the operational answer to the problems those articles describe.
These scripts do not require a dedicated intake coordinator to implement. They work with whoever picks up the phone today.
The intake call is where cases are won and lost before the attorney ever says a word. These scripts give whoever picks up the phone the framework to close more of the right cases, on the first call, every time.
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