If you already have a lawyer and you are happy with the legal work, this post does not apply to you. But if you have some doubts, here are some ideas that may help you decide what to do. In the next post I will list some thoughts on when you know you have a good relationship with your attorney.
You know you need a new lawyer when your lawyer is not being honest with you. This may seem like it is so obvious that it does not need to be said. Unfortunately, not all lawyers are particularly honest with their clients. Did you know that if your lawyer makes a mistake, your lawyer has an obligation as a fiduciary to tell you about it? If you find out your lawyer has made a mistake and did not tell you, you need a new lawyer. Lawyers often make false excuses for not getting work done. The reasons for not getting the work done may be that there are just a lot of things to do, but your lawyer makes up some excuse or blames it on the other side. That may seem innocent, but it can end up being embarrassing to you. For example, let’s suppose that you are working on a contract with a potential client. You have not heard from your lawyer in a few days, so you call and your lawyer says, “Well, I’m waiting on paperwork from the other side.” So you call your potential client and say, “Hey, your lawyer isn’t getting the paperwork to my lawyer.” Then you find out that in fact the paperwork was delivered to your lawyer two weeks ago. That makes you look bad to the other side. It makes the other side think that you are not on top of things and that you are not controlling what your lawyer is doing. You do not want that. You want a lawyer who has the guts to say, “I’m sorry, I just have not gotten it done yet.” That may make you unhappy, but it will not get you embarrassed. (Sometimes your lawyer IS waiting on the other side, so do not jump to conclusions too quickly.)
You know you need a new lawyer when your lawyer ignores you. Here is what I do, and every other lawyer should do. When you call my office, the person who answers the phone will do everything possible to answer any questions you have. However, if for some reason, you need to speak directly to me, such as you need some legal advice, I return all phone calls within 24 hours, or I have someone in my office return the call and tell you why I am not available. I specifically tell you at the time that we enter into an attorney-client relationship that if you have not received an answer within 24 hours, please call again. If you have not gotten a return call in 24 hours or a response, that means something has gone wrong at my end. I do not expect you to sit there hoping that I will remember to call you after 24 hours. I want you to call again. Lastly, if it is an emergency, I do everything I can to get in touch with you as soon as I am possibly available. Obviously, if I am in some sort of court proceeding when you call, I will not be able to call back immediately. Nevertheless, everyone in my office is instructed that when there is a very important message that comes in, everything that can be done is done to make sure that I get it as soon as possible.
You know you need a new lawyer when your lawyer fails to cooperate with you. A lawyer should either help you do what you want to do, or tell you why it cannot be done legally. If you give your lawyer an assignment, and your lawyer comes back with something that is significantly different from what you wanted, then it may be time to look for a new lawyer. There are sometimes simple misunderstandings of what you want. There are times I would tell you that there might be better ways based on my experience to do what you want to do. Otherwise, and ultimately, you should get what you have requested. Often the fact that you get something significantly different than the work product you requested means either your lawyer did not listen to your instructions or did not care enough to confirm details before doing the work.
You know you need a new lawyer when your lawyer does not have enough interest in what you need and want. I bet you know what I mean here. Have you ever gotten the feeling that your lawyer did not really care about you, but is only doing the work to get paid? Have you ever had a lawyer that seemed to not care about the kind of business you are in? If anything like that sort of rings a bell with you, here is the real important question: Is a lawyer that is not really interested in you and your business, going to give you advice to help you succeed or give you advice that is more likely to generate more legal fees?
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer just does not treat you right. Again, this is a feeling you will get in your gut. If you are frustrated with your relationship with your lawyer, then it is probably not a very good relationship.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer lets contact with you lapse. And you know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer uses your business as a training ground for young lawyers. I feel so strongly about these two items that I have designed my law practice in a way that makes me less money, but gives you better service. Let me explain. A lawyer can make a lot more money by bringing in business and then hiring other lawyers to handle it. That way, the lawyer can bring in more business than one lawyer can handle, and make a profit off of what is billed by the younger lawyers. I do not do that. I do not hire associates, but instead I bring in additional experts if more lawyer power is needed. Those experts (a patent lawyer might be an example) will be billing you directly, so I will not make a profit off them. The result is that I must limit the amount of business that I choose to take in. That also means that I must be more selective in the clients that I am willing to represent. For the clients that I am able to represent, however, it is a much better deal.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer does not keep you informed of changes in the laws that affect your business. A lawyer may be able to help you set up your business, and do everything you need to get it running from a legal standpoint. Likewise, a lawyer representing you in litigation may file the appropriate pleadings and give you good advice on what the risks of litigation are for your company. Nevertheless, the law is a very dynamic process, and it changes frequently. In the case of your business and transactions lawyer, your lawyer should have a mechanism in place so that your business can be reviewed on a periodic basis to make sure that any changes in the law are being dealt with or taken advantage of, such as my business protection plan that I outlined in Chapter Three. Your lawyer does not have to do it the way I do it, but your lawyer needs to do it. In the litigation context, it is a matter of your lawyer keeping you informed at every stage of what is going on in the lawsuit, so that you will be able to anticipate times when your personnel will have to be directly involved, and how much is going to be spent during a specific period.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer assumes you have technical knowledge of the law. And you know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer is unable to explain legal matters in plain language. You should not constantly have to ask your lawyer to explain things. You should not find out after the fact that you did something incorrectly because your lawyer assumed too much about your knowledge. You should also not ever be in a position of just having had a meeting with your lawyer and still not knowing what to do or what the law is in a specific area.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer does not give you good business advice. Again, this not only applies to your business and transactions lawyer, but also to your lawyer in a litigation situation. Your lawyer should always be able to give you a good assessment of the risks from a legal standpoint of what you are about to do. While the decision is yours, and a lawyer cannot guarantee results, any bad result should not be the result of incorrect or bad advice from the lawyer.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer has rotten interpersonal skills. Your lawyer not only meets with you, but also may meet with your personnel, and may negotiate with or litigate against others. It is always in your interest to have as few controversies as possible, and for any disputes to be resolved as quickly and as cheaply as possible. If your lawyer is so lacking in tact and diplomacy that he or she only aggravates everyone he or she talks to, you are not accomplishing that goal.
You know you need a new lawyer if your lawyer is not aggressive and energetic. Sometimes it is best to just wait and see what someone else does. At other times, it is important to take quick action and be proactive, to nip a situation in the bud, or to not seem like you are just responding to someone else’s accusations. Some lawyers can be too aggressive, but it is more likely that a lawyer will not be aggressive enough. Sometimes, being aggressive means trying to reach a speedy compromise. Sometimes, being aggressive means willing to take a case all the way, if necessary.
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