If you’ve ever hired an attorney before, be it personal injury, divorce or otherwise, you have likely sat in a consultation with an attorney before. And chances are, if you’ve done this, you probably understand how absolutely indispensable the establishment of trust between an attorney and yourself truly is.
Why do we do client consultations? There are a lot of reasons, including trying to establish whether or not we can actually handle the case. When we have consultations for potential personal injury cases, we need to assess the damages, talk to you about what happened, and begin to consider where the fault in the accident lies. Our divorce and family law consultations are more to establish what needs to happen next, and give the client a very preliminary idea of what they are dealing with.
Consultations are important because it gives the client very early and usually very basic advice about what kind of case they are dealing with and how to proceed next. These are the more overt, more obvious reasons. One of the most important – if not the most important – reasons, however, for having a consultation is not so overt: the establishment of trust.
Mutual trust between client and attorney is not just important, it’s vital. We understand that in order to best represent our clients, we have to first have respectful honesty firmly established, regardless of what kind of case we are dealing with. Here’s why.
1. You need to feel right about your choices in your gut.
As the saying goes, trust your gut; it already knows what your head hasn't figured out yet.
Nothing is more important than feeling right about who you’re hiring. We want our clients, above all, to feel like we are a good match for them.
If trust isn’t present in an attorney-client relationship, there are so many things that can go wrong because of that very simple, very primary detail. Our divorce clients, for example, need to feel comfortable speaking to us about very intimate details. Car accident clients shouldn’t be squeamish about discussing details of their health.
We see our law practice as a step people can take towards a more stable, better part of their lives. They need to feel secure in taking that step.
2. It’s all about the teamwork.
We consider ourselves a hired hand in helping others get through extremely difficult situations. Our goal is to do everything in our power to get the best result we can. This means working together with our clients. Whether a new detail emerges regarding an alimony situation, new damages arise out of a personal injury case, or a new suit is filed, the lines of communication should always be open between attorney and client.
Solid communication between us and our clients cannot exist without trust. When we trust each other, it’s much easier to work together to get the results we are looking to get.
3. It’s essential that we know about everything. Yep, everything.
As the saying goes, honesty is the best policy! The more we know, the better we can litigate your case. If a client doesn’t trust their attorney, the likelihood goes up that they will withhold information from their attorney that may be relevant to their case. This should always be avoided. Clients should trust that their attorney has their best interest at heart, and that their attorney can properly handle the information given to them regarding their case.