Overview
Chen Family Law is a boutique 3-attorney family law practice in Seattle, Washington, handling divorce, child custody, spousal support, and prenuptial agreements. The firm is known for guiding clients through emotionally difficult transitions with professionalism and care.
Family law intake is uniquely challenging. Callers are often distressed, emotional, and sharing deeply personal details about failing marriages, custody fears, and financial concerns. The firm needed to screen and qualify these sensitive calls without making callers feel rushed or dismissed.
The Challenge
Family law calls require a delicate balance. Callers need to feel heard and validated while the firm gathers essential information: marriage duration, children involved, asset complexity, and whether a conflict exists with the opposing spouse. These conversations often take 20-30 minutes each.
Attorney Lisa Chen was spending 15+ hours weekly on initial screening calls, many of which turned out to be conflicts or cases outside the firm's practice areas. Time spent on unqualified leads meant less time for billable work and existing clients.
The firm tried traditional answering services but found they handled family law calls poorly. Generic scripts felt cold to emotional callers, and operators couldn't properly screen for conflicts or case fit. The firm needed something that could handle sensitive conversations intelligently.
The Solution
Chen Family Law implemented ClaireAI with custom training for family law intake. Claire approaches each call with empathy, acknowledging the difficulty of the caller's situation while professionally gathering case information. The AI asks about marriage details, children, primary concerns, and the opposing spouse's name for conflict checking.
Real-time conflict checking against PracticePanther ensures the firm never inadvertently takes on conflicted cases. When conflicts are detected, Claire professionally explains that the firm cannot help but offers referrals to other family law attorneys.
For qualified leads, ClaireAI collects detailed intake information and schedules consultations based on case complexity and attorney availability. Urgent matters like domestic violence situations trigger immediate alerts to the appropriate attorney.
"I was skeptical that AI could handle the emotional sensitivity our callers need. I was wrong. Claire treats every caller with the same compassion and patience I would, but she can do it 24/7 while I focus on my clients."
The Results
Within 4 months of implementing ClaireAI, Chen Family Law transformed their intake process and reclaimed valuable attorney time:
-
15 Hours Saved Weekly
Attorney time redirected from screening calls to billable client work.
-
$180K Additional Billings
Revenue from time previously spent on unqualified intake calls.
-
Zero Conflict Mistakes
100% accurate conflict screening through real-time CRM integration.
-
92% Caller Satisfaction
Post-call surveys show callers felt heard and professionally handled.
-
35% Better Lead Quality
Higher consultation-to-retention rate from pre-qualified leads.
Conclusion
ClaireAI proved that AI can handle even the most emotionally sensitive legal intake conversations with appropriate empathy and professionalism. Chen Family Law now provides 24/7 compassionate response to distressed callers while freeing attorneys from hours of repetitive screening work.
The combination of empathetic AI conversation, real-time conflict checking, and intelligent lead qualification has made Chen Family Law more efficient without sacrificing the personal touch that family law clients need. Attorneys spend their time on clients who need them most, while ClaireAI ensures no caller feels dismissed or unheard.
