WHAT MAKES
JUDICIOUS LAW DIFFERENT?
"Law is interpreted.
Trust never is."
Facts, or things that are known or proved to be true, are indispensable to law, and they must be known before any law may be applied. In fact, judges and juries exist to settle disputed facts so the rule of law may prevail. So much reverence and ceremony are directed to identifying the truth that we do things like swear under oath to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth before testifying.
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It is also why perhaps the most well-known confidential privilege that exists among any profession is the communication between attorney and client, and it exists to remove any barriers or reservations about disclosing the truth to an attorney. Despite this, however, I encounter clients who discuss critical and sensitive information regarding their cases but never told their prior attorneys
who they had fired. I was shocked at how frequently this occurred, so I began asking questions to understand why.In almost every situation, they had experienced an erosion of trust with their attorneys for a host of reasons, but they all involved legal fees to some degree.
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Nothing affects the dynamics of an attorney-client relationship more than the unpredictability of legal fees, the lack of transparency around cost expectations, and requiring one party to make a large investment, such as requiring a retainer, before delivery of services. I adopt a more judicious approach by charging a 30-day case commencement fee, which includes a thorough consultation, filing a notice of appearance of counsel with the court or a letter to an adverse party for transactional
issues, and making an appearance on a client's behalf. This allows time for each party to gain a better insight into the facts and circumstances of the case to craft a mutually beneficial agreement that clearly manages financial expectations so they do not interfere with or affect the attorney client relationship, the representation, or otherwise impact trust.
A limited and focused initial engagement allows both parties the opportunity to negotiate a more informed and transparent representation agreement that clearly defines each other's obligations and expectations which in turn cultivates and promotes trust. Unless absolutely necessary, asking for major financial commitment along with a client's trust is often a hard ask if the only thing exchanged is the promise to represent.