A lateral hiring scorecard that is wide-ranging and specific will help you accurately grade candidates and discover red flags like those below.

1. The candidate is looking to leave a firm when his or her current firm is growing by size, reach and financial metrics. This can indicate that the candidate's own performance is going in the opposite direction.

2. The candidate claims that the move is motivated by client conflicts, but offers little or no evidence that he or she worked with partners to mitigate or resolve conflicts as a preferred alternative to leaving.