nicky flowers

If you aren't referred to one, you'll have to contact them and see. They'll take some information, maybe set up a meeting, and then you'll talk about your case. You don't have to bring them everything all at once, just tell them your situation, and they'll use their law knowledge to try and figure out how to help. If they think you have a case, and it's one they're up to winning, they'll let you know, and you proceed from there.

Hypothetically, you can also shop around, talk to a few lawyers and pick the one you feel most confident in, like getting a second opinion on a medical problem.

It's not so bad.

The regulatory body governing lawyers in your jurisdiction likely has some kind of referral service to get a brief free consultation, at least to the extent of “Okay so to pursue this for you, I need a retainer of $X, and information Y; I can also just write you a vaguely threatening letter on my letterhead for $Z.”

Also try looking up any nearby law schools, as most will operate some kind of community legal clinic, where students (supervised by a licensed lawyer) can help with things like getting civil documents, simple small claims or family law matters, etc. Either of these would be good places to start, to at least get an opinion on what kind of claim you might have and whether it’s worth pursuing.