Client Relations

Lawyers aren’t the only ones starting to focus on the importance of client relations (as evidenced by the proliferation of blogs like What About Clients and In Search of Perfect Client Service).  Peter Salgo, a professor of medicine at Columbia University, has this op-ed piece The Doctor Will See You Now for Seven Minutes in…

Dan Hull of What About the Clients speads some good cheer for us solo and small firm lawyers with this post referencing a recent study that only 30 percent of clients would recommend their law firm and that poor client service is driving clients away.  As Dan recaps: it’s what I’ve been telling you for…

In this recent post at More Partner Income, Tom Collins asks whether an attorney who has a one day turn-around to respond to email and phone calls is being responsive.  Tom Collins says no, as does Ed Poll.  As a practicing attorney, however, I don’t completely agree. Some days, I might return late to my…

If you’re going solo and can’t afford an office, don’t feel badly.  In fact, celebrate – because the lack of an office will enable you to follow in the tradition of Thomas Hall, the subject of this article, He house calls; attorney breaks free from tradition (Journal Times, 1/27/06).    As the article describes: Since…

Though it comes in number 5 on this list of law firm questions, client relations tops the blog charts for this week.  Allison Shields’ Legalease offers a great round up.  Of course, one of the best essays I’ve ever seen on how to get to know your client is this one (though I can’t find…

Are lawyers rocket scientists or what?  According to these survey results, just released by Robert Half (1/11/06), attorneys identify client service as key to long term career success. Most of us solo and small firm lawyers have always known that client service counts, because that’s what allows us to compete with large firms.  Even now…

I’ve posted quite a bit on the importance of retainer letters, here and here, but not as much on a declination letter which informs prospective clients that you’ve declined to take their case.  This post from Day on Torts discusses the perils of misinforming clients about the applicable statute of limitations in a declination letter. …

This piece, Tri-Cities Lawyer Arrested for Contempt (November 30, 2005), reports on a lawyer arrested for contempt for pressuring his client to lie at trial.  The laywyer was caught when the client presented the judge with the email exchanges documenting the lawyer’s advice to the client to lie – and her response that “I understand…