Everything. Any attorney should tell his or her clients both the good news and the bad. Our job is not to gloss over details, but to go into them. That's how you win cases, and that's how clients help us win their case. At Johnson Law Group, we strive to have clients be more informed, not less. Anyone needing to hire an attorney should never feel like he or she in the dark, especially when it comes to a court case.
It is often hard for any professional person to explain things to someone who is not also in that profession. This is why, for example, at a party we see doctors talking to doctors at a party, plumbers talking with plumbers, and attorneys talking with attorneys. The inability of attorneys to explain things to people who are not attorneys is epidemic in the legal profession. Frequently, when someone hires us after being disappointed with their prior attorney, it is unfortunate that we often hear part of their disappointment relates to what information they were given—or not given. It is equally sad to hear all of the stories of attorneys trying to explain things to people, only to wind up using only "attorney speak."
My partners and I strive to make sure that our clients understand every aspect of their case, and doing it without talking down to our clients. We have all had that experience, such as when a doctor talks to us and we do not understand a single word. In fact, we don't just explain things, we over-explain. We would rather our clients understand all of the intricacies, all of the nuances of their case, rather than just be told about the basic issues.
We pride ourselves on making sure that our clients understand their case. This means understanding what the evidence is, what the government's burden is, what the government must prove, and what can be done about it. Whether it be discussing what motions can and cannot be filed, to understanding what likely outcomes might be to a case, our attitude is that our clients can never have too much information.
Our belief is that our clients deserve to know the issues with their cases, to know the details of them, big and small, and to know what the law is and what can or cannot be done about it. Our belief is that our clients deserve to have the most information possible without feeling as if they are being talked down to. We don't just have beliefs, we exercise them, and, because of this, I think our clients are among the most informed out there.
Copyright © 2017 by Brendan Bukalski
The information provided in this column is general in nature, and should not be relied upon as legal advice or interpreted as creating an attorney-client relationship . As a general rule, all specific legal problems should be handled by an individual's attorney. All rights reserved. Any copying, duplication, or commercial use of the information contained in this column is strictly prohibited without prior permission.