The nature of legal work means lawyers often come into contact with people during especially stressful or difficult times in their lives. A difficult client can turn even a simple issue into a much more complicated matter, and the impetus is often on the lawyer to handle the client without creating further problems, and while maintaining your professionalism. So what’s the best way to deal with problematic and difficult clients?
Firstly, realize that you’re dealing with people – and people who may well be in situations they’re unfamiliar with. Acknowledging your client’s feelings and staying positive and open is one of the most basic ways to diffuse a tense situation. At the same time, your relationship with clients should have clearly marked parameters and boundaries. You are employed to fulfill services and provide advice and assistance, but decision making is, in the end, the client’s prerogative.
You are also employed as a lawyer, not a counselor, and when you first take on a client the nature of your work and counsel should be clearly laid out on both sides. Being explicit in the details you give clients, so that they know as much as possible, is vital. Asking questions to ensure they’ve fully understood what you’ve told them can help, and managing their expectations – keeping them realistic and up to date – is very much a lawyer’s job.
If a problem has arisen, keeping open communication and working towards a resolution is important. Letting a client know that they’re not alone and that you want to work out a solution as much as they do often helps enormously.
On a practical level, dealing with difficult clients is made much, much simpler by keeping full records from the beginning. You should be keeping and organizing all communication – whether electronic or physical. Full records of what has been said, promised and delivered are vital should you be called upon to explain actions later on, or even to jog your own memory if time has passed. A very basic amount of information for every client should always be kept by you, including:
Records of duration and hours worked are important for billing. A client’s query over your billing should be responded to, and unless you have accurate records to explain costs, you’re asking for trouble.
Delivering bad news to clients is never fun, and a particularly obtrusive client may well react negatively. Again, basic people-skills can come in handy. Rather than rushing to the point and delivering the news coldly, laying some groundwork – recognizing their goals, explaining multiple strategies – can soften a blow and help build a more open professional relationship.
If a client continues to be demanding, intrusive or unreasonable, warn your staff so that they can respond accordingly when they communicate. At the same time, it is never acceptable to be verbally or physically abused and a lawyer-client relationship is a two-way agreement. Ending your work with a client may seem extreme but the same expectations of safety and respect in the workplace apply within legal firms as with anywhere else. Having clear guidelines from the very beginning about the nature of the work to be undertaken is important, but a client who refuses to accept the limitation and who expects far more than can be given is unlikely to simply walk away. Be firm in defining the nature of your work and making sure clients are told in writing what will and what will not be carried out as part of your services.
Solid records of the nature of your work and what you are billing for, alongside timely responses to client communication, should ensure that all problems can be answered and, hopefully, overcome. Dealing with individuals remains a large part of a lawyer’s job, and so even difficult clients may be able to teach you something about how you or your firm has been working. If in the future problems can be avoided by preempting difficulties, then your practice can continue to grow.
James W. Slater has worked as a lawyer for more than 40 years, handling personal injury, accidents, and medical malpractice. He is a member of The American Association for Justice, The American Bar Association, and The Ohio Bar Association, and is a graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center. Learn more about his law firm Slater & Zurz, LLP .
Originally published on LawyerCentral by James Slater on April 26, 2013 Read the original (Internet Archive).