There are so many stereotypes about attorneys. Some of them are true, of course, but most of them are not.
Some attorneys are, for instance, sharp dressers, every bit the models for the top designers that you might expect, with perfect hair and a packed brain to match, but not all attorneys look like they belong on the cast of some courtroom drama that moves through its story arc each week in 44 minutes flat.
Some attorneys are fast and slick and out to make a quick dollar — or a quick couple of thousand dollars — but not many.
And, yes, some attorneys are blindingly intelligent and able to rattle off laws, statutes, regulations and court cases long since decided as if it was their job because, well, it is.
Your attorney is not a heart surgeon, a rocket scientist or a neurophysicist. They might as well be, though, to handle the level of work and degree of difficulty required during the last couple of years. After all, you have probably rarely called your attorney for something casual during these strapped economic times. Calls always seem to be reserved for something expensive and stressful that has to be handled correctly.
“We do forget that there are times when the client, in an effort to reduce the time a lawyer needs to spend on a matter — and thereby reduce the cost if the matter is being billed on an hourly basis — will sometimes make judgments that the lawyer doesn’t need to see something or that something isn’t important,” says F. Daniel Balmert, managing partner of the Akron office, Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. “I understand the effort to hold down costs — every business is trying to do that — but it can lead to increased costs if the client’s not careful.
“You can see how it can backfire.”
And if you reserve those calls for only a few occasions or late during the process, you might be in the midst of another missed opportunity right now. A majority of attorneys say this is an opportune time to think, then think again, about your business strategy and to examine the economic landscape, because there are opportunities available right now, even in slower industries, that will not be available for long. If you can afford to, this is the time to move. And if you have a good attorney on your team of advisers — no stereotypes here — you already have about as good an ally as possible to help steer you forward.
