Working with Legal

Let me begin by stating the obvious, namely, that these are my personal views, and not those of any employer, past or present.  

First, some background, for those not familiar with me or this personal blog.  I have practiced law in various in-house and law firms settings for the past 20+ years.  As a result, it is impossible not to form views on the ideal lawyer-client relationship and in particular what works (and doesn’t).  To that end, consider the following as my personal rules of thumb, in developing a more fruitful and enjoyable engagement with your lawyer. 

• Legal is not monolithic.  In an organization, a call with legal is about as welcomed as a call with HR, perhaps even less. It is to be avoided. In the same vein, I would like to avoid the dentist, but there are consequences to that. That said, I do not mind visiting my sister’s dental office, if only to catch up with her.  Just as some doctors have good bedside manner, so do some attorneys succeed at fostering a positive and inclusive relationship.  Some attorneys are legal technicians, while others are more strategic. How to get the client from point A to point B as efficiently and painlessly as possibly, while not creating a bad precedent or mitigating legal risk to the extent possible, should be a priority.  A pragmatic approach is key.

• Do not draw legal conclusions. Provide the facts and give the attorney the chance to ask questions, determine relevance, and draw a legal conclusion. 

• Communicate clearly and crisply. Enough said (I think). 

• Pick up the phone. Yes, the phone.  Email, IM, etc. are great, but a proper, nuanced discussion usually requires a phone conversation. 

• Everyone is busy.  Give me a few days, and I will respond to your request. If I do not, ping me. There is a good chance your email is simply buried under all the other requests.  Some attorneys support organizations or groups with thousands of employees and a not insignificant number of executives. It is a balancing act, more of an art than a science, to properly organize and prioritize the work and to determine what can and cannot be delegated (assuming that option exists).  It is axiomatic that during the pandemic, the lines between work and the rest of our lives have blurred even further. 

• This is a team effort. I am here to help you. So is my team. 

• It’s complicated (sometimes). As I much as I would like to say yes or no (and I prefer to say yes), sometimes the answer is, it depends. There are myriad sources of complexity, including ambiguous or not enough facts, unsettled law, internal policies, organizational considerations, required alignments, and so forth. Pictured above is San Andreas Lake, from Sweeney Ridge, about 15 miles south of San Francisco. The fog is rolling in. To me, growing up near the Pacific, this is a beautiful sight, a study of contrasts, but to some this can be unsettling, with visibility worsening by the minute. We can work through this collaboratively to get the best and most definitive answer possible, under the circumstances.

• Enjoy a cup of coffee (even virtually) with your lawyer. Colombia Tolima (Liminal Coffee), pictured below, is a solid option. Get to know your lawyer (we are not automatons after all), and, conversely, this will give us a chance to get to know you, especially outside of your specific legal request. We may discover that we both enjoy hiking.

Comments welcomed.