You may be a fantastic plumber or a brilliant interior designer, but don’t tackle legal business matters on your own. Get a lawyer.

At startup, a business attorney can advise you about choosing the best legal business structure to protect you and your business. She can help you get the right paperwork in order. She can also help you identify permits and licenses and that you need to legally operate your business.

As your small business matures, a savvy attorney can provide advice on operational and management issues, such as contracts between your business and customers, suppliers, contractors and employees. That same attorney can help resolve disputes that might arise between you and partners, customers, suppliers and employees.

The attorney you choose to handle general business matters should specialize in small businesses and have knowledge of your industry. For more specific legal needs, it may pay to hire a specialist rather than a general practitioner.

Specialists often have a deeper understanding of and more experience in their area of expertise. Where a general business attorney may need to spend hours researching a specific issue, a specialist will already be up to speed. And that can save you money in the long run.

You can find attorneys that specialize in business issues such as:

• Patents and intellectual property

• Taxes

• Litigation

• Real estate purchases and sales

• Partnership agreements

• Estate planning

• Debt collection

• Workers’ compensation

• Employment law

An experienced collections attorney, for example, has the technology, know-how and staff to locate the assets of a deadbeat client. Estate attorneys can help you find ways to take wealth out of your business to plan for retirement. An experienced bankruptcy attorney can help you identify and protect your business assets in case the worst should happen.

Whether you’re looking to hire a general business attorney or a specialist, get referrals. You can also consult with your county, regional or state bar association. They often provide information about attorneys and their specialties.

Interview potential candidates during an initial meeting. Find out how your attorney likes to communicate. If you’re an e-mail fan, but your lawyer loves phones calls, you might not make a good match. Also get specifics about the attorney’s billing and fee structure.

Attorney fees vary, depending upon the size of the firm, region of the country and the attorney’s expertise. Some charge by the hour and will work for you on an as-needed basis. Collections attorneys often charge a contingency, or percent of the recovered debt. Other attorneys work on retainer. In all cases, fees are usually negotiable.

Regardless of how fees are charged, the billing method should be clear and specific. Know exactly how billing is handled before you strike a deal. If you choose an attorney to work on retainer, have the attorney draw up a letter that spells out the terms of the retainer, including fees, length of retainer, what projects or work is included and how you’ll be expected to pay the fees.

At your initial meeting, ask for references, looking for clients of similar size and preferably in the same industry as you. Then make the calls to check those references. If an attorney hesitates to give you references, citing confidentiality or other reasons, move on.