BEYOND LEGAL SKILLS: WHAT SHOULD YOU EXPECT FROM YOUR ATTORNEY?

When you hire an attorney, it is understood that he or she will have the skills, competence and ability to perform the services you require. But is that enough? Or should you expect more than basic legal skill? In this article we will consider some of the factors that distinguish superior attorneys from average attorneys, and, we will provide you with a template for what intangible traits you should expect from counsel. 

Confidentiality: Your attorney must be trusted to keep your confidences, and your documents protected from third parties.  They should not be discussing your case casually with other colleagues at the water cooler, or bragging about how they handled your case with pals at the local bar.  Their internal systems and collaborative vendors must contain security aimed at keeping your information protected. Your privacy, your dignity and your personal information must be guarded with care. 

Prompt Responsiveness and timely updates about developments:  A reasonable turnaround for responding to client queries in today’s fast paced world is arguably no more than 24 hours (though at Lebensohn Law, we rarely let that much time lapse before responding). Unless your email query gets an “out of office” reply, you should expect a prompt reply to your inquiry, even if it is simply for the purpose of advising you that a substantive response will be provided at a later (designated) date.  Ideally, an attorney who is unavailable should identify an alternate individual who can field your inquiry.  By the same token, when there is a development in your case, your attorney is obliged to relay it to you promptly; a client of mine recently complained that her prior attorney failed to relay financial information to her by opposing counsel which led to her being unaware that her ex-husband intended to deplete their joint bank account. The client learned the information a full week after counsel was advised, and only after the account was depleted, and after incurring fees for payments that could not be processed.  This level of responsiveness is not simply professional courtesy, it is an ethical obligation that your attorney owes you. 

Delays: If your attorney is unable to meet a predetermined goal for project completion, or finds that progress has been delayed due to unexpected “fires” that had to be quashed, you are entitled to be advised as soon as the delay becomes apparent so that you can adjust your expectation and modify your own plans. You should never be put in a position of having to ask why a project was not timely completed. It is reasonable for an attorney to change expectations when necessary, but not to disregard them.

Challenges: While it may feel nice, you don’t want a “yes ma’am” or “yes sir” attorney; you want someone who will listen to your objectives and challenge you where appropriate. As the professional, your attorney should be able to identify problems with a course of action, and should guide you away from risky approaches to issue solving. If your attorney does not present you with scenarios of likely or potential outcomes, but rather, just follows your lead, you should at a minimum ask them what, if any, possible negative consequences could come from the course of action you are requesting. 

Relationship: You should feel comfortable enough with your attorney that you would want to return to him or her for continued services in the future; if you are secretly thinking “I would never return to this person”, it may be time to change course and terminate the professional relationship. As with any relationship, your instincts can be relied upon to guide you in whether or not the connection is a good fit. Even if some investment of resources has been expended, it is better to move on to new counsel than to stay with a professional that you do not trust. And, if the services retained were not provided, you have a right to request reimbursement.