Comments on: Why Do Some Crappy Lawyers Have Happy Clients?

By: Lee Rosen

Lee Rosen — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 01:57:26 +0000

Carolyn,

I love your post. Thanks for linking to it and for advancing the conversation.

Lee

By: Carolyn Elefant

Carolyn Elefant — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 16:52:28 +0000

I think that you can be both, especially when your clients love you. Most of my clients like me because I provide excellent service. I take the time to explain legal points at length and respond to emails and try where ever possible to take my clients’ views into account. Because I do all of that, when it’s time to toe the line – for example, to reject a requested way of doing things because it’s unethical or will unnecessarily aggravate opposing counsel – they listen to me. Just as I tell my daughters (who love me), I am supposed to be a parent, not a friend. So too with clients – we are advocates and counsel, not their friends. I’ve blogged before about what happens when you get too close to clients to the point of being an irresponsible advocate: http://www.myshingle.com/2006/04/articles/client-relations/clients-as-pals-almost-as-bad-as-the-client-from-hell/

By: Lee Rosen

Lee Rosen — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:39:36 +0000

Kimberly,

Thanks for your kind words. I appreciate your input.

Lee

By: Kimberly Graham

Kimberly Graham — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:20:25 +0000

Lee,
Excellent post. I’ve seen exactly what you’re talking about. The balance between subjective advisor and zealous advocate is always a challenging one.

By: Lee Rosen

Lee Rosen — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:57:39 +0000

Great questions. I’d love to know the answers.

For lots of us I think it comes down to whether we want to be respected by our peers or our clients. Most lawyers, I think, worry more about peers. We explain that we’ll have to deal with them forever and clients come and go.

In an ideal world we’d do the job well enough to gain the respect of both. I know you’re doing the work day in and day out and you know it’s tough to meet that standard.

Lee

By: Emmanuel Dockter

Emmanuel Dockter — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:41:19 +0000

Interesting post Lee. It raises the question of how much of a lawyer’s job is getting the client a favorable outcome from the legal system and how much is keeping the client happy. When a client wants to explain to the Judge all the reasons the marriage failed, and you know from experience that such an approach is immaterial and could potentially even hurt their case, what do you do? How much of your role is as an objective advisor and how much is as a subjective advocate or personal legal tool?