A couple of lawyer bloggers, Stephanie West Allen of Idealawg and Julie Fleming Brown of Life at the Bar, came up with a terrific idea for an end-of-year chain post. The idea is to write a post beginning with the phrase, "Lawyers appreciate ..." After that, it's free form. The Blawg Review Editor, who appreciates link love, invited anyone who cared to be tagged for this chain post to consider themselves tagged. So here goes.
Lawyers appreciate appreciation. Several years ago, I represented a pro bono client with a civil claim and got her a settlement of a few thousand dollars. That Christmas, she gave me some hand-made gifts: a little flute made out of bamboo, which I can't play, and a basket decorated with sea shells. I still have those gifts.
Lawyers appreciate professionalism in other lawyers. One Saturday in January several years ago, I was in my New Orleans office, getting ready for a jury trial in Shreveport to begin the following Tuesday. I got a phone call from my opponent in Shreveport (also in his office that Saturday), who asked me whether I'd received the list of potential jurors from the court. I hadn't. Apparently the court had mailed them out the day before. He suspected that my copy had not yet have arrived in New Orleans, and assumed that I'd be in Shreveport when that piece of mail finally did arrive in New Orleans. He volunteered to fax it to me, and asked me for my fax number.
Lawyers appreciate good opponents. Two years ago, I was getting ready to try a case in a north Louisiana rural parish. On the other side were two lawyers, representing 30 plaintiffs with minor personal-injury claims related to an accidental release of natural gas and petroleum distillate. The day before trial, we managed to settle about half the claims. That evening, my opponents treated me to dinner, where we talked a little bit about the case but mainly just enjoyed each other's company. The next day, we settled a few more claims and tried the remainder. It was a bench trial, and the judge took the case under advisement. The next day, as I was getting ready to drive back to New Orleans, I got a phone call from my opponents, inviting me to lunch to discuss how we might settle the remaining cases. Folks like these prove that you can be being friendly with your opponent while doing a good job for your client.
If you're a lawyer who'd like to express appreciation, consider yourself tagged.
Lawyers appreciate getting the credit for their own work rather than having egomaniacal senior lawyers take credit for it.
Posted by: Lavelle | January 04, 2007 at 01:51 PM