Ours is a service profession and one with a special obligation to the public and to justice — do not forget that even when so many do. But we can still have fun. Indeed, we should have fun, since we are better litigators when we do so.
Don’t complain. That’s a rule at our firm. The reason is simple and goes beyond some positive attitude, “don’t worry, be happy” nonsense. Instead it is a very practical rule to get you to focus and be easy to work with. We’re litigators and if we didn’t stop ourselves, we could complain all day – and do a bad job.
While we may caution our clients to avoid litigation, the fact is that most of our work involves helping people fight and, in the ideal, beat someone else, sometimes beat the other guy really bad. That means that you see people and situations not at their best but at their worst (something that frankly makes this a pretty damned interesting job much of the time). Our clients and, frequently, the parties on the other side of a litigation are vulnerable, out of sorts, and frequently understandably confused. This means they may not always be in the best of moods.
Added to that is that while many, many litigators in my primary field of business litigation are decent people trying to do the right thing (I’m a little uncertain if I can replace “many, many” with “most,” so I decided to play it safe), some litigators are straight-up liars. Indeed, if a trial lawyer is unencumbered by adherence to morality it is somewhat remarkable how effective he can be in a matter, especially on the defense side. I’ve seen it, almost marveled at it, many times, and it can be immensely frustrating. Continue reading “Serve The Client. Do Justice. But Have Fun. – JOHN G. BALESTRIERE” →
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