Legal Help Should Fit Real Life.
Legal problems do not always arrive when your schedule or finances are ready for them. The Skeen Firm has built its practice around reducing some of the ordinary barriers that can make getting legal help more difficult.
Depending on the matter, clients may have access to virtual meetings, financing and payment options, flat-fee services, defined legal work, and traditional full representation.
Ways We Make Legal Help Easier
- Virtual client meetings
- Financing options for eligible matters
- Payment options where available
- Flat fees for certain legal services
- Defined scopes of work where appropriate
- Technology-driven communication
- Regional West Virginia service
Modern legal services should remove unnecessary barriers. Virtual meetings, flexible payment options, predictable pricing where appropriate, and efficient technology can make it easier to get legal advice when you need it.
Virtual Meetings
Meet with your legal team from home, work, or another convenient location when appropriate.
Financing & Payment Options
Eligible clients and matters may have options that allow legal costs to be spread over time.
Predictable Fees
Flat fees and defined pricing are available for certain services where the scope can reasonably be established.
Practical Legal Services
We focus on matching the level of legal service to the problem rather than assuming every matter requires the same representation.
Need Legal Help?
You do not need to know exactly what kind of representation you need before you contact us.
Book a Consultation Call 724-250-8841You May Need a Lawyer Before You Need Full Representation
People sometimes delay contacting an attorney because they assume hiring a lawyer means immediately committing to expensive, full-scale representation. That is not always the case.
Sometimes the first thing you need is to understand the problem. An initial legal conversation may help you determine what you are facing, what options are available, how urgent the situation is, what may happen if you do nothing, and what level of legal representation may actually be appropriate.
The first question does not always have to be “Can I afford a lawyer for everything?” Sometimes the better question is “What legal help do I need right now?”
Getting answers earlier can help clients make better-informed decisions before a manageable legal issue becomes a more complicated one.
Virtual Client Meetings
You should not always have to drive to a law office to talk with your attorney.
The Skeen Firm offers virtual client meetings, allowing many consultations, strategy discussions, document reviews, and client conferences to take place remotely when appropriate.
Virtual meetings can be especially useful for people who live in rural communities, work demanding schedules, have children at home, operate businesses, have transportation limitations, or simply prefer the convenience of meeting from home or work.
Technology cannot replace the attorney-client relationship. It can, however, remove unnecessary barriers to having that relationship in the first place.
Financing and Payment Options
Legal problems rarely wait until someone has extra money available. A family-law dispute, criminal charge, lawsuit, or unexpected business problem can arise with little warning.
The Skeen Firm offers financing and payment options for eligible matters and clients. These options may allow some clients to spread the cost of legal services over time instead of treating legal representation as one large immediate expense.
Availability and terms depend on the type of matter, the legal services requested, eligibility requirements, and any applicable financing or payment program.
Needing legal help and having the entire legal fee available today are not necessarily the same thing.
Flat Fees and Predictable Pricing Where Appropriate
One of the biggest barriers to hiring an attorney is uncertainty. Clients frequently wonder what a legal problem will ultimately cost.
Some matters are inherently unpredictable and require hourly or other traditional billing arrangements. Litigation, contested proceedings, and complex cases can change significantly as they develop.
Other services can be defined more clearly. Where appropriate, The Skeen Firm uses flat fees and defined scopes of work so clients can better understand what they are purchasing and what the service will cost before the work begins.
Flat fees do not necessarily mean inexpensive legal services. They provide something different and valuable: greater certainty.
Legal Help Without an Unnecessary Trip to the Office
West Virginia faces a significant access-to-justice challenge because many communities have relatively few private-practice attorneys.
In 2026, the Commission on the Future of the Practice of Law in West Virginia reported that 46 of West Virginia's 55 counties qualify as legal deserts under its measure of fewer than one private-practice attorney for every 1,000 residents.
For someone living in an underserved community, finding an appropriate attorney may require looking beyond the nearest town or county. Virtual meetings, electronic documents, secure communications, online scheduling, and modern legal technology can reduce some of that geographic burden.
Where you live should not determine whether you can have a meaningful conversation with a lawyer.
Read more about West Virginia's legal deserts and lawyer shortage .
Legal Help for Working Families
A person can make a reasonable income and still struggle with an unexpected legal expense.
Some people qualify for free or subsidized legal services. Others can comfortably afford traditional private representation. Between those groups are working families who may earn too much to qualify for certain assistance programs but still find a substantial legal bill difficult to manage.
The goal should not simply be to make legal services “cheap.” Qualified representation requires attorney time, professional judgment, staff, technology, insurance, continuing education, and substantial resources.
A better objective is to make legal services more understandable, efficient, predictable, and financially manageable where possible.
Read more about West Virginia's hidden justice gap .
Legal Services for Individuals, Families, and Businesses
Business Law
Contracts, transactions, business planning, and legal risks are often easier to address before a dispute develops.
Learn About West Virginia Business Law Services →Family Law
Divorce, custody, support, and other family matters can have significant effects on finances, children, property, and everyday life.
Learn About West Virginia Family Law Services →Estate Planning
Planning ahead can reduce uncertainty when illness, incapacity, or death creates difficult decisions for a family.
Learn About West Virginia Estate Planning →Civil Litigation
Business disputes, contract disputes, and other civil claims may become more expensive as litigation progresses.
Learn About West Virginia Civil Litigation →Criminal Defense
Criminal charges can require prompt attention and a clear understanding of the charges, potential consequences, and available defenses.
Learn About Criminal Defense Services →What Does Accessible Legal Service Look Like?
For us, access to justice means examining the ordinary barriers that keep people from talking with lawyers and finding practical ways to reduce them.
Can this meeting happen virtually?
Can this service be offered for a defined fee?
Is financing or a payment option available?
Does the client need full representation, or do they first need advice?
Can technology make the process easier?
Can we explain the next step more clearly?
Can we address the problem before it becomes bigger?
Not every barrier can be removed. Not every legal matter can be handled remotely. Not every matter qualifies for a flat fee, financing, payment arrangements, or a defined scope of work.
But law firms should continually ask whether the way legal services have traditionally been delivered is the only way they can be delivered.
We believe the answer is no.
Everyday Legal Advice®
The legal profession often becomes involved at the worst moment: after the lawsuit is filed, after the relationship has collapsed, after the contract has been signed, after someone has been charged, or after a family is dealing with an unexpected death.
We want legal advice to be useful before that point whenever possible.
That means building a law firm that is easier to reach, easier to understand, and more flexible about how appropriate legal services are delivered and paid for.
Everyday Legal Advice®.
Clear answers. Practical options. Modern access to legal help.
Tell Us What Is Happening.
You do not need to know exactly what legal service you need before contacting us.
Book a Consultation Call 724-250-8841 Contact The Skeen FirmThis page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The availability of virtual services, flat fees, financing, payment arrangements, limited-scope services, or other service options depends on the nature of the matter, applicable law and professional rules, eligibility requirements, and the terms of any applicable financing or payment program. Contacting The Skeen Firm does not create an attorney-client relationship.