Hi everyone! I'm feeling great so I thought I would share some really nice news (for a Saturday). The 2014 edition of Super Lawyers Magazine is out and I have been privileged enough to be named for the 5th year in a row, as an Illinois Rising Star standout in Business Litigation.
Check out the link below!
Super Lawyers 2014 - Digital Edition
I believe very firmly in the old saying that you should just do good work without always knowing who notices, and as time goes on, people will notice. Well, that must be true because I have no idea how this happened once, let alone many years in a row. To those who see me, thank you. I will continue to do my best in the practice of law.
Cheers! Have a great day, and if there are any topics my followers would like the to write about, please do drop me a line!
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
How to Hire Me? Let The Lawyer Counsel the Client on How to Hire....And Build Trust
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Welcome to 2014. The year of getting it all done. Here with some news you can use, I would like today's post to talk about client retention. That is.. how you should hire an attorney. I have two would-be's who are giving me pause, and I felt like this is an excellent opportunity to use these two as examples of how to get off to a bad start with a lawyer.
As per my usual, I like to give tips on how to have a good relationship with your lawyer. Folks, this starts off at the moment you contact me. If you have found my name or any attorney's name online or via a referral from a friend, or even on a billboard, when you call, there are a few rules to know, for maximum respect and an interest to help you. First, it's a good idea to leave your phone messages brief and to the point. A good example of this would be as follows:
"Hi. This is John Jones, and I'd like to speak with you or someone in your office about a n landlord/tenant matter. I'm a landlord and looking to evict a non-paying tenant. I can be reached at ........... Please call me."
That is right, to the point and succinct. We love that. When a prospective someone goes on and on and tells me how they got laid off, and have no money, or they get into the real meat and potatoes of the matter, then there's little to talk about at a consultation which the lawyer should be getting paid for, and there is the message sent that the client has just run their mouth too much. Just leave a short message. It helps.
Second, when hiring an attorney, a client should expect a retainer agreement. It's taught in school that this is a serious and formalized process that begins the attorney-client relationship and builds trust. If I give you a contract and tell you that all blank fields must be filled out, you must fill them out. If I ask for a credit card number and your social, then that means in order to hire me, you must provide that information. Yes, if you don't pay, that helps me to collect. However, when you open a checking account or rent an apartment, you give all that information up, including your checking account number - every time you write a check! Hiring lawyers is no different. When the attorney asks for information, although it must be used for a lawful purpose, the lawyer has the right to ask. While the prospective client has the right to decline, the retainer of the attorney may hinge on just the paperwork being filled out. You need to be clear on what is expected of you. Be sure you understand.
Third, along the same lines, but in a different lane, another kind of prospective client asks an attorney to review a case and consider accepting it but then never really gets that far in retaining the attorney. If you contact someone and want advice and tell them you are going to hire them - after many emails going back and forth if the attorney has to keep asking you for a meeting or when they will be given the file, the prospective client needs to understand that the lawyer is very soon not going to be all that interested in the case, if the "hiring" portion of the discussion doesn't get underway on the faster end of the discussion. A good thing to remember is that if you are getting rid of your current lawyer, sometimes you just have to have a discussion and get rid of the current person before someone new can take over. Big picture here? Just do it already. Get the file to the new lawyer, and properly complete the retainer process. What dilly-dallying gets you is a lost case in court.
Overall, it's very important for would-be clients to understand is that justice doesn't wait while you do. Cases are won and lost on delay issues and claims all the time. You must act fast to preserve legal rights, and its important that then you hire counsel, you understand.
The best way to hire counsel is by following simple rules:
As per my usual, I like to give tips on how to have a good relationship with your lawyer. Folks, this starts off at the moment you contact me. If you have found my name or any attorney's name online or via a referral from a friend, or even on a billboard, when you call, there are a few rules to know, for maximum respect and an interest to help you. First, it's a good idea to leave your phone messages brief and to the point. A good example of this would be as follows:
"Hi. This is John Jones, and I'd like to speak with you or someone in your office about a n landlord/tenant matter. I'm a landlord and looking to evict a non-paying tenant. I can be reached at ........... Please call me."
That is right, to the point and succinct. We love that. When a prospective someone goes on and on and tells me how they got laid off, and have no money, or they get into the real meat and potatoes of the matter, then there's little to talk about at a consultation which the lawyer should be getting paid for, and there is the message sent that the client has just run their mouth too much. Just leave a short message. It helps.
Second, when hiring an attorney, a client should expect a retainer agreement. It's taught in school that this is a serious and formalized process that begins the attorney-client relationship and builds trust. If I give you a contract and tell you that all blank fields must be filled out, you must fill them out. If I ask for a credit card number and your social, then that means in order to hire me, you must provide that information. Yes, if you don't pay, that helps me to collect. However, when you open a checking account or rent an apartment, you give all that information up, including your checking account number - every time you write a check! Hiring lawyers is no different. When the attorney asks for information, although it must be used for a lawful purpose, the lawyer has the right to ask. While the prospective client has the right to decline, the retainer of the attorney may hinge on just the paperwork being filled out. You need to be clear on what is expected of you. Be sure you understand.
Third, along the same lines, but in a different lane, another kind of prospective client asks an attorney to review a case and consider accepting it but then never really gets that far in retaining the attorney. If you contact someone and want advice and tell them you are going to hire them - after many emails going back and forth if the attorney has to keep asking you for a meeting or when they will be given the file, the prospective client needs to understand that the lawyer is very soon not going to be all that interested in the case, if the "hiring" portion of the discussion doesn't get underway on the faster end of the discussion. A good thing to remember is that if you are getting rid of your current lawyer, sometimes you just have to have a discussion and get rid of the current person before someone new can take over. Big picture here? Just do it already. Get the file to the new lawyer, and properly complete the retainer process. What dilly-dallying gets you is a lost case in court.
Overall, it's very important for would-be clients to understand is that justice doesn't wait while you do. Cases are won and lost on delay issues and claims all the time. You must act fast to preserve legal rights, and its important that then you hire counsel, you understand.
The best way to hire counsel is by following simple rules:
- Be direct in communications.
- Fill out all retainer paperwork completely.
- Deliver all file materials, documents, photos, emails and a full chronology of events
- Be diligent in timing and do not waste time by procrastinating.
- Be informed about the existing status of your case and pending court dates.
- Be a good communicator!
All in all, the best advice is the simplest: tell the truth and be on time. Happy 2014 to all my loyal readers and please keep me in mind for Chicago based real estate law.
Levin Law, Ltd.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
