“Write what you know.”
Mark Twain
I know absolutely nothing about the collapse of Minden Gross LLP beyond what I have read in the Globe & Mail. However, I did hang around the legal profession for a long time, and I figure that qualifies me to comment.
“I am happy because I’m grateful. I choose to be grateful. That gratitude allows me to be happy.”
~ Will Arnett
The other day I received a private message from a lawyer who I have never met in person. She expressed her appreciation for my contributions to the profession in my retirement and did so in a manner that was warm and sincere. I practically blushed when I read it. She made my day.
I came across a lawyer the other day who makes mistakes in his communications with clients and the other side. None of the errors will likely land him in too much trouble. They may even be excusable based on the theory that spending too much time trying to be ‘perfect’ is unhealthy and expensive for clients who are being billed based on the amount of time spent on the matter. But they are mistakes nonetheless, and they could all be caught with a bit more thought and proof-reading.
I believe that lawyers should not compete based on price. I tell this to my mentees, and sometimes the response is, “that is easy for you to say from a cruise ship in the Pacific. I’m struggling to get files in the door and pay my rent.”
I also think that new lawyers should avoid practicing in areas that have become commodities and are particularly fee sensitive, such as residential real estate. My young friends tell me that they have to get cash in the door and that doing some real estate files is the best way to do it.
Those of you who have been following this series know that I said that Part Seven was the final article in the series. It turns out that I lied.
The purpose of the series is to set out the questions which Articling Students and new Associates should figure out about their firms when deciding whether to stay there over the long-term.
This time it is about the Chief Marketing Officer (“CMO”).
This is an abridged version of one of my first posts from several years ago.
Supervising lawyers fall into two groups.
When automobile manufacturers first put vanity mirrors on sun visors, they only put them on the passenger side. Their reasoning was that the passenger was usually a woman who had makeup to apply. The car was being driven by a man and men did not wear makeup.
Why do you figure that the manufacturers eventually started putting vanity mirrors over the driver’s seat? Did they come to believe that men also like to look at themselves in the mirror? Or was it that they suddenly discovered that women also drive cars?
Now and then I will tell a story about something that I did back in the day when my wife Maureen and I practiced at the same law firm. Typically my story involves a brilliant legal strategy that I developed, a big win, and a grateful client.
Occasionally Maureen will observe, “how quickly my good idea becomes your great idea.” Her point, I guess, is that she was the brilliant one and I just took her idea and ran with it. It could have happened that way. It was a long time ago and it really is not in my interest to remember the details that clearly.
When I practiced law, I worried a lot. I worried about making a mistake on my files. I worried that I was too busy. I worried that I was not busy enough.
This is the last in a series about the questions which Articling Students and new Associates should figure out about their firms when deciding whether to stay there over the long-term.
This time, I will speak about supervising lawyers (“SL”).