Client Relations

OK, maybe this Engagement Agreement sample, extracted from a Start Up Law Firm Toolkit published by Lawyers Mutual North Carolina isn’t as outdated as the Pony Express.  Still, the engagement letter provision below, which seeks express client authorization for use of any modern day method of communication is so antiquated and short-sighted made me seriously…

Increasingly, consumers are exploring client reviews on sites like Avvo  as part of the process of hiring a lawyer.  Though it’s hardly scientific evidence, over the past few weeks alone, I’ve heard several examples of lawyers who attracted fairly decent cases as a result of their presence on Avvo or Yelp and the positive feedback…

During the last week of my dad’s life, my sisters, mom and I experienced the best and worst of the medical profession. The lowest point came mid-way through my father’s last week, when my mother and I were accosted in the public lounge outside the intensive care unit (ICU) by one of the doctors who…

Earlier this week, I dropped a few hundred dollars to attend one day of an industry conference.  I didn’t do it for the CLE.  Rather, I  had to guard against other lawyers poaching my client.  Even with my oversight, at least one consultant made an overt, brazen play for my client as I stood by.…

Professional courtesy. When is the last time you’ve used that phrase, or heard it as anything other than the punchline of a lawyer joke? For me, professional courtesy is one of the aspects of being a lawyer that I most enjoy. Like giving a free consultation to a client sent my way by a colleague.…

Dr. Brest Rosenblum runs a solo family practice in  Aspinwall, Pennsylvania, that hearkens back to the days before healthcare, like law, became a business.   When Dr. Rosenblum’s patients arrive at the office, he greets them in the waiting room and takes down their intake information himself. After hours, when Dr. Rosenblum isn’t available, his patients…

I may not be a contract aficionado like Ken Adams, but I love a good retainer agreement.  Though  clean, crisp language and brevity makes me swoon as much as any other lawyer, my affinity for retainer agreements reaches far deeper than the surface:  quite simply, I’m a sucker for the stories behind the the whereas…

There’s a small law firm in South Carolina with a Client Expectations policy that’s made a big splash online.  The policy, which bluntly states, “We do not work weekends and do not provide emergency numbers for weekends….We make mistakes…” attracted notice from the ABA Journal and generated discussion at several blogs, including Jim Calloway’s Practice…