This is a forever problem. It’s difficult to judge the competency or skill of a professional without also being a professional in the same space. Word of mouth is the usual solution.
Another approach is to pick a few lawyers (read things they’ve written, online reviews, etc.) then do intro calls and pick the one who clicks best. Do a couple of low stakes projects with them to feel out their competency.
I’ll note that it can be worthwhile to match the professional to the task. No reason to pay top dollar to a specialist if all you need is some common boilerplate that any lawyer can do. You’ll also need to line up separate commercial and criminal lawyers.
Another approach is to pick a few lawyers (read things they’ve written, online reviews, etc.) then do intro calls and pick the one who clicks best. Do a couple of low stakes projects with them to feel out their competency.
I’ll note that it can be worthwhile to match the professional to the task. No reason to pay top dollar to a specialist if all you need is some common boilerplate that any lawyer can do. You’ll also need to line up separate commercial and criminal lawyers.