When I opened my first law office shortly after law school, I volunteered one day a week at a legal clinic. I got some experience dealing with real people and I got a few paying clients.
Most of those clients were family law related. I had filed a few uncontested divorces but knew nothing about the grittier aspects of family law. A friend of mine from law school was also working there and I told him I thought I was in over my head. He told me not to worry, the clients would point me in the right direction.
The clinic’s clients were poor, mostly women, and mostly those who had suffered through bad marriages and abusive husbands. They had first hand knowledge of the concept of “domestic violence”. They knew what it meant to get a restraining order. They knew what they had to prove because they had either gone through the process before or they knew women who had. Sure enough, they pointed me in the right direction. In fact, many of them brought the correct court forms with them.
I learned a lesson that day. I learned to never assume anything about what my client did or did not know. True, most clients don’t know what we lawyers do, but some do.
Today, because of the Internet, many prospective clients know a lot about the law. They read articles and blog posts. They chat with others in forums. They watch or listen to seminars. When you talk to them, it is dangerous to assume that they don’t know anything. But it is equally dangerous to assume that they do.
The best course is to make no assumptions. Ask questions and find out what they know:
- Do you have any experience with this issue?
- Have you talked to any other attorneys about this?
- Is this your first claim?
- What are you looking to accomplish?
Listen to their answers. Listen to their questions. Also, pay attention to what they don’t say and don’t ask.
Many prospective clients today have incorrect or incomplete information. They think they know the way things are and their expectations are based on what they “know”. This is when you have to be especially careful. You have to help them understand the ways things really are without making them look bad or feel embarrassed.
On the other hand, sometimes clients know things we don’t know. They’ve lived with an issue longer, dug a little deeper, found the loopholes. We must never assume that because we went to law school and they didn’t that we are right and they are wrong. If they can point you in the right direction, let them.
Never make assumptions about what your clients know. Or about what you know.
If you want to earn more in the new year, I can help you. Start here.
