Answering service for law firms: live intake and message taking for small practices, priced by the minute

Special Interest Answering Service (SIAS) answers for attorneys and small law firms 24 hours a day with live, US-based operators who follow your intake script, take messages, transfer calls to the attorney on duty, and send everything to you by text, email or fax. Plans start at $159 every 4 weeks for 100 operator minutes with no setup fee and no contract. These are the questions solo practitioners and small firms ask before they sign up.

Can the operators do legal intake, or only take messages?

Both. Lead capture and intake are part of every plan: you give us the questions a new caller should be asked (name, callback number, type of matter, how they found you, anything else you want screened), and the operator collects the answers and sends them to you right away. Message taking for existing clients, court clerks and opposing counsel works the same way, with the details you want captured. Operators follow your script; they do not give legal advice or quote fees unless you tell them exactly what to say.

What happens when a potential client calls at night or on the weekend?

A live operator answers in your firm's name, takes the intake, and delivers it the way you choose: a message for the morning, a text to the attorney on duty, or a call patched straight through if you want to speak with new callers immediately. Talk time after a patch is not billed. You set the rules for what reaches you at once and what waits.

What does a law firm answering service cost per month?

SIAS prices, as of October 26, 2026: Starter, $159 every 4 weeks for 100 operator minutes ($0.99 per extra minute); Growth, $219 for 200 minutes ($0.89); Business, $379 for 400 minutes ($0.85); volume tiers from $515 for 560 minutes to $960 for 1,200 minutes. SIAS bills every 4 weeks, 13 times a year, so $159 every 4 weeks is about $172 per calendar month. There is no setup fee, no contract, and a 14-day money-back guarantee for new accounts. Six months of real invoice data, including how often customers actually go over their minutes, is on Pricing and Plans Explained.

Why per-minute billing instead of per-call for a law firm?

Because a law firm's calls vary a lot in length. A 40-second message from a clerk and a 10-minute intake with a new client cost the same under per-call pricing; under per-minute pricing you pay for the time actually used. SIAS adds up operator seconds for the whole 4-week cycle and rounds the total down, never rounding individual calls up, and does not bill ring time, time in your greeting, or talk time after a call is patched to you. Our 2026 average across all accounts is 82 to 90 seconds of operator time per handled call, so 100 minutes covers about 65 to 75 calls; intake-heavy firms with longer calls should expect fewer calls per plan and can size up at any cycle boundary.

How are confidential messages handled?

Messages go to you by text, email or fax, and are visible in your online account portal. For messages that should not travel by plain text or email, SIAS offers a Secure Delivery app for browser, Android and iPhone. Operators capture what your script asks for and nothing more. If your firm has a specific confidentiality requirement, tell us at sign-up so it is written into your account instructions.

Can callers be transferred to a specific attorney?

Yes. Call transfer is part of every plan. You give us the contact tree: which attorney or staff member takes which kind of call, in what order, and at what hours. The operator sets up the patch, which is billed as operator time only until the connection is made.

Do you have Spanish-speaking operators?

Yes. Bilingual English and Spanish answering is included in every plan at no extra charge, around the clock.

Can the operators book consultations?

Yes. Appointment scheduling is included and billed as ordinary operator minutes, not as a per-booking fee. You tell us the consultation slots you offer and what the caller needs to provide, and the operator books it on the call.

How quickly can a firm start?

Your account is live within 24 hours of sign-up. You forward your office line to the number we give you, all the time or only when busy or unanswered (instructions for every major carrier are on our How to forward page). You can cancel at any time by calling or writing in; there is no contract and no cancellation fee.

Further reading

Per-minute vs per-call answering service pricing.