This practical guide by attorney Ken Greene outlines ten essential rules for building a productive, cost-effective relationship with legal counsel. By emphasizing honesty, organization and clear communication, it helps clients navigate the legal process smoothly while avoiding costly surprises.
Everyone, at one time or another, needs legal counsel. Some attorney-client relationships are quite easy. Others are outright impossible. This article provides my personal perspective as an attorney on the best way to manage those relationships for the best results with the least amount of headaches and hassles.
Here are the top ten keys to success:
- HONESTY: This may seem obvious and simple, but it doesn’t always work that way. I can’t tell you how many times I have found out information for the first time during trial preparation (or even worse, during trial). There is no benefit to withholding information because it will invariably surface in discovery or trial preparation. It makes no sense to hold back information. It’s like telling you oncologist that you don’t smoke. Be brutally honest and complete. Anything less is dangerous mistake.
- ORGANIZATION: Like many attorneys, I bill by the hour. If you want to keep the fees down (and who doesn’t?) you should consider doing as much on your own as possible. Obvious examples include organizing emails chronologically and providing complete sets of relevant documents. If the matter is litigation, chances are you will have to produce all of those documents in discovery, so why not do it at the outset? This will provide me with the opportunity to deal with weaknesses in your case before getting too deep into the lawsuit. It also minimizes the chances of surprise, hardly ever a good thing in litigation.
- EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION: Consolidate your questions. Provide context and all supporting documents, emails, photos, witness names and contact information, etc. Please keep texting to a bare minimum(“are you available for a call in 15 minutes?” is acceptable). I am always reluctant to engage in legal communications by text as they are too prone to misunderstandings and they leave a difficult paper trail.
- CLARITY AND CONCISION: Keep your emails and your phone calls as short as possible. Prepare for your phone calls by doing the necessary research to discuss the subject matter of the call. Keep the calls and emails on point.
- ASK QUESTIONS: Never assume anything. As Carl Sagan wrote, “There’s no such thing as a dumb question.” The only dumb question is the one you don’t ask.
- BE RESPONSIVE: My best clients stay in touch. If you are unable to deal with a legal matter, please let me know. It is simple to send an email (or even a text) to say you’re tied up and will respond at a later time or day.
- FOLLOW THROUGH ON YOUR TASKS: Please don’t make me follow up incessantly about tasks assigned to you. It’s a waste of time and money.
- BE REALISTIC: Do not artificially limit me. Please don’t tell me not to do something important if I feel it will jeopardize your rights. We can discuss the reasons, pros and cons, for undertaking any particular task, but please don’t put your rights at risk by instructing me not to do something if I feel is important and/or necessary.
- BE PROACTIVE: If circumstances change, or you change your mind about something, whether it’s the facts, your position on a settlement offer or you concern over fees, address these issues as soon as they arise.
- FEE ISSUES: Fee disputes happen. I’ve been lucky to have had only a handful of real problems over a period of forty-five years, hundreds of clients and thousands of matters. If you have a question about an invoice or have any money issues that preclude you from paying on time, please let me know right away. I’m very flexible.
Legal representation can be tricky, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. You can make it easier by following these simple rules of thumb.
The Law Offices of Kenneth Charles Greene present this article. All copyrightable text, the selection, arrangement, and presentation of all materials (including information in the public domain), and the overall design of this presentation are the property of the Law Offices of Kenneth Charles Greene. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to download and reprint materials from this article for the purpose of viewing, reading, and retaining for reference. Any other copying, distribution, retransmission, or modification of information or materials from this article, whether in electronic or hard copy form, without the express prior written permission of Kenneth C. Greene is prohibited. The materials available from this article are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any issue or problem. Use of and access to these materials does not create an attorney-client relationship between the Law Office of Kenneth Charles Greene and the user or viewer. The opinions expressed herein are the opinions of the individual author.
