A law firm may be unable to consider or accept an injury matter because of conflicts, capacity, timing, subject, jurisdiction, prior involvement, available evidence, economics, or another reason. A referral or conversation with another firm can be useful, but it does not automatically transfer responsibility for a deadline or create representation.

A declined-matter and referral log should identify the firm, contact date, consultation status, information supplied, decision communicated, scope not accepted, deadline owner, referral source, permission to share, follow-up, and written confirmation.

Record the status of each contact

  • Lawyer and firm name, verified contact channel, date, person reached, role, intake method, matter description, and documents supplied
  • General inquiry, conflict check, preliminary intake, consultation, request for more information, pending decision, referral, non-engagement, or representation status
  • Question asked, answer received, person answering, next step, stated timing, and written confirmation
  • No assumption that an automated reply, intake form, document upload, consultation appointment, or referral means the firm accepted the matter

North Carolina State Bar Rule 1.18 defines a prospective client and addresses information learned during a consultation even when no representation follows. Whether a communication constitutes a consultation depends on the circumstances. The log should preserve what was actually communicated rather than assign a relationship label from a form or search result.

Document the decision and its limits

  • Date the decision was communicated, person communicating it, method, matter or task not accepted, reason if supplied, and attachments
  • Any limited task that was accepted kept separate from work that was not accepted
  • Known date, filing, notice, preservation issue, property issue, insurer request, or other time-sensitive item and the person currently responsible
  • No statement that a deadline is extended, protected, or assigned unless confirmed from the controlling source and relationship

Rule 1.16 addresses declining or terminating representation, including circumstances requiring withdrawal and steps associated with termination. The duties and procedural requirements can differ depending on whether representation began, a tribunal is involved, and what work or property is at issue. A reader should not treat a generic non-engagement checklist as a ruling on a specific relationship.

Treat a referral as a new verification task

  • Referring person or organization, referred lawyer or firm, contact information, date, subject, geographic or practice scope, and reason stated
  • Whether the receiving firm was contacted, responded, requested information, scheduled a consultation, made a decision, or supplied another referral
  • Permission to transmit information, exact files shared, recipient, date, secure method if used, receipt, and any information withheld
  • No endorsement, availability, conflict clearance, capacity, fee arrangement, or acceptance inferred merely from receiving a name

The North Carolina State Bar membership directory provides member and license-status information. Verify a lawyer’s identity and contact details independently before sending sensitive records or relying on a referral communication.

Maintain deadline ownership during the handoff

  • Potential deadline or time-sensitive task, event date, source, calculation status, current owner, next review date, and uncertainty
  • Records or evidence at risk of loss, custodian, retention issue, request status, and person assigned to follow up
  • Insurance, property, medical, employment, benefit, court, or agency communication that still requires a response
  • Responsibility changed only after the receiving firm confirms the relationship and accepted scope in writing

Close the loop in writing

  • Non-engagement or limited-engagement communication retained with date, sender, recipient, matter description, and attachments
  • Original records returned or transfer confirmed; copies and sensitive information handled according to the stated relationship and purpose
  • Referral result, next contact, current status, unanswered question, and responsible person updated after every response
  • No matter left in a vague “someone is reviewing it” status without an owner and review date

The related guide explaining what a non-engagement letter means after an injury consultation focuses on reading the letter itself. This page owns the multi-firm referral, status, permission, deadline-responsibility, and handoff log.

Rosensteel Fleishman Car Accident & Injury Lawyers provides general information about Charlotte personal-injury claims. Availability, conflicts, acceptance, scope, and deadline responsibility must be confirmed for the specific inquiry.

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