Learn Hardcore German: Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin bekomme ich eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail. - Before the appointment with the female lawyer I receive written advice by email.

Accusative: movement toward a place (spatial)
- Ich gehe vor das Haus. – I go in front of the house.
Dative: position / no movement, or when used for time
- Ich stehe vor dem Haus. – I’m standing in front of the house.
- Vor dem Termin – before the appointment (time)

In your sentence, vor is used in a temporal sense (“before the appointment”), so it takes the dative, hence dem Termin (not den Termin).

Why is it bei der Anwältin and not mit der Anwältin or von der Anwältin?

All three prepositions are possible in German, but they mean different things:

bei der Anwältin – literally “at the lawyer (female)”, usually means “at the lawyer’s office / with the lawyer (as a client)”. It focuses on location or context (your appointment “at” that professional).
mit der Anwältin – “with the lawyer”, focuses on accompaniment: doing something together with her.
von der Anwältin – “from the lawyer”, focuses on origin/source: you get something from her.

In Termin bei der Anwältin, German idiomatically uses bei to talk about appointments with professionals:

ein Termin bei der Ärztin – an appointment at / with the doctor (female)
ein Termin beim Zahnarzt – an appointment at / with the dentist (male)

So bei der Anwältin is the natural phrasing for “an appointment with the (female) lawyer.”

Why is it der Anwältin and not die Anwältin?

Die Anwältin is nominative singular (the female lawyer as the subject).
After bei, you must use the dative case, and the dative form of the feminine article die is der:

Nominative: die Anwältin
Dative: der Anwältin

Since bei always takes the dative, you get bei der Anwältin.

What’s the difference between Anwalt and Anwältin?

der Anwalt – male lawyer (or sometimes generic in older / less gender-sensitive usage)
die Anwältin – female lawyer

The ending -in is the regular way to form many feminine occupations from a masculine base:

der Lehrer → die Lehrerin
der Arzt → die Ärztin
der Anwalt → die Anwältin

In modern, inclusive language, you might also see generic forms like Anwalt/Anwältin, Anwält*innen, Anwält:innen, etc.

Why is the word order bekomme ich and not ich bekomme?

In a German main clause, the finite verb must be in second position (the “V2 rule”). The first position can be occupied by different elements, not only the subject.

Here, the time phrase Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin is put in first position for emphasis or natural flow. So the structure is:

Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin – first position (adverbial of time)
bekomme – second position (the conjugated verb)
ich – then the subject
rest of the information

So:

Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin bekomme ich eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail.

If you start with the subject, you get the more neutral:

Ich bekomme vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail.

Both are correct; word order here is mainly about emphasis and style, not grammar correctness.

Why is it eine schriftliche Beratung and not ein schriftliche Beratung?

Beratung is a feminine noun:

die Beratung – the consultation / advice

The indefinite article for feminine in nominative and accusative is eine, not ein:

Nominative: eine Beratung ist hilfreich. – A consultation is helpful.
Accusative: ich bekomme eine Beratung. – I receive a consultation.

In your sentence, eine schriftliche Beratung is the direct object (accusative), so you need eine, not ein.

Why is the adjective schriftliche and not schriftlichen in eine schriftliche Beratung?

Adjective endings in German depend on:

The gender of the noun
The case
The article in front of it

Here we have:

Noun: Beratung (feminine)
Case: accusative
Article: eine (indefinite, feminine)

The standard pattern for feminine singular, nominative/accusative with eine is -e on the adjective:

eine gute Beratung
eine schriftliche Beratung
eine interessante Beratung

So schriftliche is correct; schriftlichen would be wrong in this context.

What exactly does schriftliche Beratung mean? Is it “written consultation” or “written advice”?

Literally, schriftliche Beratung is “written consultation”, but in natural English we would normally say:

written advice
advice in writing

It means that the lawyer gives you her professional advice in written form (text), not orally in person or over the phone. That can be:

an email
a letter
a PDF report, etc.

The focus is that the consultation takes place via text, not spoken conversation.

Why do we say per E‑Mail? Could we say durch E‑Mail or via E‑Mail?

In German, per is a very common preposition for indicating the means or channel of communication or transfer:

per E‑Mail – by email
per Post – by mail
per Telefon – by phone
per Überweisung – by bank transfer

durch E‑Mail would sound wrong here; durch means “through” in a more literal, physical sense or “because of”.

via E‑Mail does exist in German (especially in more formal or technical language), but per E‑Mail is by far the most idiomatic everyday choice.

So per E‑Mail is the standard way to say “by email”.

What case does per use in German, and is it visible in per E‑Mail?

In modern German usage, per normally takes the accusative, but with many nouns the form looks identical in accusative and nominative, so you don’t “see” the case ending:

per E‑Mail – E‑Mail has the same form in nominative and accusative.
per Zug – the same form for nominative and accusative.

There is no article here (per die E‑Mail would sound unnatural), so no visible case marker appears. You just learn per + noun as a fixed pattern.

Can I move per E‑Mail earlier in the sentence, or must it be at the end?

You can move it; German word order is relatively flexible. All of these are grammatically correct:

Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin bekomme ich eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail.
Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin bekomme ich per E‑Mail eine schriftliche Beratung.
Ich bekomme vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail.

Normally, time – manner – place is a typical order for adverbials, and objects and prepositional phrases tend to cluster towards the end. That’s why the original order feels very natural. But moving per E‑Mail usually only changes the rhythm or emphasis, not the meaning.

What is the difference between Termin and Datum? Could I say vor dem Datum?

No, vor dem Datum wouldn’t be idiomatic here.

der Termin – an appointment / scheduled meeting / deadline
- ein Termin beim Arzt – a doctor’s appointment
- ein Gerichtstermin – a court date
das Datum – the calendar date (e.g., 26.01.2026)

In your sentence, you are talking about a lawyer’s appointment, not just an abstract calendar date, so Termin is the right word:

Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin … – Before the appointment with the lawyer …

You would only use Datum when you’re explicitly talking about the written date itself, e.g., on a form.

Could I also say this sentence using a future tense, like werde bekommen? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you could say:

Vor dem Termin bei der Anwältin werde ich eine schriftliche Beratung per E‑Mail bekommen.

Grammatically, that’s future tense (Futur I). In practice:

Present tense (bekomme) is very often used in German to talk about future events that are planned or certain.
Future tense (werde bekommen) can sound a bit more explicit or formal, but in this context, it doesn’t really change the meaning.

So both are correct. The original present tense bekomme is completely natural for talking about a scheduled future action.