I
was taught from early on, “cover your ass”. If a client is going against your advice, give him your
advice in writing. When the bad
thing that you said could happen happens, he won’t be able to say, “You should
have told me.” We lawyers are
always here to sue on a client’s behalf, so it is no wonder that we are
naturally inclined to try to avoid getting sued ourselves. But sometimes, our C.Y.A. tactics can
be confusing.
If
you have contacted ten personal injury lawyers regarding your “huge” case and
have heard, “That’s not my area, and I don’t know anyone who practices in that
area. Here is the state bar’s
referral number.”, that could mean exactly that. It could also mean: “You have no case”, “Your case is not
worth anything”, “I can’t make enough money on your case to justify taking it”,
“You sound like a nut job, so stop wasting my time”, etc., etc.
If
you thought you heard a lawyer give you advice, but then you heard, “I cannot
give you any advice on this matter.
You should contact another lawyer as soon as possible.”, maybe that
means you heard wrong or you did not understand what the lawyer was
saying. It could also mean: “This
is what you should do, but it’s very risky so don’t blame me if shit goes
wrong”, “I am not sure what you should do, but here is my best guess because it
would cost more than it’s worth for me to figure out exactly what you need to
do”, “You’re screwed no matter what you do, and I am not going to be there when
the shit hits the fan”, etc., etc.
If
you have fired your previous lawyer and, while trying to hire a new one, keep
hearing, “I have a conflict”, “I’m not taking on new cases”, “That’s not my
area, but here is the state bar’s referral number.”, what is being left unsaid
could be: “I think you are going to be a pain in the ass”, “I think you are not
going to pay your bill”, “I think you will be impossible to please”, etc., etc.
That’s
My Argument.
©
December 2014 Brandon J. Evans
