Every law firm encounters cases they can't handle directly - whether due to jurisdiction, practice area, or litigation needs. Rather than simply turning these cases away, you can generate significant referral revenue by connecting potential clients with qualified attorneys in your referral network.
Running a great referral practice is very doable. This article will walk you through the four steps to activating your referral business.
Step 1: Revise Your Turndown Script
The referral process starts the moment a potential client calls or submits a lead form. To begin screening for referrals you will change your standard rejection into a referral consent.
❌ "I'm sorry, but we aren't able to help with your case."
✅ "While we can't handle your case directly, we work with a nationwide network of experienced attorneys who specialize in cases like yours. Would you like me to have one of them review your case?"
Step 2: Identify Referrable Cases
Train your intake team to flag these common referral opportunities.
1. Out-of-State and Unqualified Claims
Any claim that your firm would typically handle but is either:
In a different jurisdiction. These are some of the best claims as they are often qualified but are only turned down because they are outside your licensed states.
Not quite what you want (2nd look). If the claim is potentially valid but you don't want to handle it because of low damages, uncertain liability, this is another great category to refer out.
2. Different Practice Areas
The next large bucket to refer out is all the contingency case types that your firm doesn't handle in house. Lexamica firms handle the below practice areas nationwide. These are all great claims to run a standard referral intake on.
Medical malpractice
Product liability
Employment law
Mass torts
Premises liability / slip and fall
Consumer protection
Probate
Dog bite (coverage varies)
Nursing home (coverage varies)
3. Litigation-Stage Cases
If you firm doesn't have a trial team, finding co-counsel for pre-trial litigation cases can add significant value. Below are criteria for cases that can be maximized through referrals.
Cases approaching trial that need experienced trial counsel
Matters requiring specialized litigation expertise
4. Mass Action Opportunities
Finally, there are specific claims that can be marketed for that will generate referral fees. This is a more advanced practice as it involves running new marketing campaign to generate cases strictly on a referral basis. Ethics on this vary state to state so consult with counsel as you look to move in this direction.
Injury claims
Mass tort claims
Mass arbitrations
Class action eligible cases
Step 3: Run Referral Screenings
A referral intake is unlike your main intake script. It's a shorter, simpler version that answer the basic who, what, when, where, and why in 5 minutes so that a handling firm can pick up the evaluation. Here
Document basic case information
Obtain client consent for referral
Do a "referral intake"
For an in-depth guide to creating great referrals, read this article.
Step 4: Track Referrals
From your Lexamica dashboard you can:
Monitor case progress
View partner performance
Track referral fees
Maintain compliance documentation
Remember: Every turned-down case is a potential referral opportunity. By implementing this process, you can transform rejections into revenue while helping clients find the right representation for their needs