# Clinic Cold Start Interview

> Prepare for and conduct a first client interview with little prior information, gathering facts without drawing premature legal conclusions.

- Skill: `matrixx0070/clinic-cold-start-interview` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add matrixx0070/clinic-cold-start-interview`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/matrixx0070/clinic-cold-start-interview/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: Matrixx0070 (https://skillmd.com/u/matrixx0070)
- Updated: 2026-09-08
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/matrixx0070/clinic-cold-start-interview

---


## When to use
Use this when a new matter has landed on your desk and you have almost nothing — a name, a one-line grievance, maybe a form — and you need to walk into a first interview ready to listen, build rapport, and capture facts systematically. It helps you turn a blank page into a structured question plan and a clean fact record.

**Not for:** deciding the client's legal strategy or telling them what their claim is worth — you gather facts, you do not opine. For adapting a form to the facts you collect, use clinic-customize; for calendaring anything the interview surfaces, use clinic-deadlines; for writing anything, use clinic-draft.

## Method
1. Read whatever intake exists and list what you do NOT know. Group unknowns into people, timeline, documents, harm, and goals.
2. Draft an open-to-closed question plan: start broad ("tell me what brought you here"), then narrow to dates, names, and amounts.
3. Confirm scope and the clinic relationship at the top — you are a supervised student, not their independent lawyer.
   **Decision point:** if the client asks "what should I do?" or "do I have a case?", do NOT answer; note it, say your supervising attorney will advise, and move on. Independent advice is UPL under Model Rule 5.5.
4. Capture facts verbatim where possible; separate what the client said from what you infer.
5. Flag issue-spotting notes for your supervisor rather than resolving them live.
6. Close by confirming next steps, deadlines to investigate, and documents to send.

## Example
> Housing clinic, first meeting: tenant says "landlord's trying to kick me out." You resist concluding "this is a retaliatory eviction." Instead you capture: notice date, notice type, rent-payment history, any repair complaints, and prior communications — then flag "possible retaliation timeline — confirm with supervisor" in your notes.

## Pitfalls
- Announcing a legal conclusion ("you have a strong case") — premature and potentially UPL.
- Leading questions that plant facts the client then adopts.
- Typing a client's name or identifying details into any external or GenAI tool — Rule 1.6 confidentiality; ABA Op. 512 requires you keep client info out of tools that may retain or expose it.
- Leaving the interview without a documents list and follow-up plan.

## Output format
```
MATTER: <clinic / matter id>
CLIENT GOALS (in their words): ...
KNOWN FACTS: ...
TIMELINE: <date> - <event>
DOCUMENTS TO OBTAIN: ...
ISSUES TO RAISE WITH SUPERVISOR: ...
OPEN QUESTIONS / NEXT STEPS: ...
SUPERVISOR REVIEW: [ ] pending
```

## Reference
- Model Rule 1.1 (competence), 1.4 (communication), 5.5 (UPL — student practice only under supervision).
- Rule 1.6 (confidentiality); ABA Formal Opinion 512 — competence, confidentiality, and candor when using GenAI.
- Clinic norm: no fact record or advice goes to the client until the supervising attorney reviews it.