Selecting the ideal lawyer with AHP based Waspas and CoCoSo methods: Istanbul province example

For societies to maintain order, establish rights and responsibilities among individuals, and ensure justice, certain rules are necessary. Lawyers, as experts in resolving legal disputes, defending rights, and ensuring a fair judicial process, play a crucial role in this regard. In this study, criteria obtained through a literature review were determined with the assistance of experts. Based on these criteria, the factors influencing lawyer selection were identified, and their relative importance weights were calculated using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. The determined criteria were then utilized to rank alternatives using the CoCoSo and Waspas methods. To collect data related to the criteria, surveys were conducted with clients who had previously engaged in legal relationships with alternative lawyers. The survey results were used to assign scores to the alternative lawyers based on the specified criteria, with the arithmetic mean of the scores taken into account. The findings indicate that the most significant criteria in the selection of a lawyer are expertise and communication skills, whereas the least important criteria are the physical location of the office and the lawyer's personality. In both the CoCoSo and Waspas ranking methods, the top three and the bottom two alternatives remained consistent. Analyzing the characteristics of these alternatives revealed that the expertise criterion played a decisive role in the final rankings. This study provides guidance for both lawyers offering legal services to clients and individuals in the process of selecting a lawyer. While the criteria valued by clients shape the service delivery of lawyers, individuals seeking legal assistance will gain insight into the key factors that contribute to success in legal proceedings.