Polk Law Blog

…except in this post, of course. These are all related to to the legal profession, but the advice and information apply much more broadly.  Some of them are lessons I learned the hard way, if you know what I mean.

10. I spent too much time preparing for that. Take an attorney with 40 years of experience, mastery of the field, genius IQ, and put him or her against a reasonably competent 28-year-old associate who spent five times as much time preparing for the hearing, trial, or what have you, and the 28-year old will come out ahead. Why? Nothing beats preparation. Whatever life throws at you, if you have put in the time getting ready for it, you’ll do fine. You’ll even beat the people who are supposed to know better.

9. That last read-through was pointless. I have an annoying habit of reading everything “one last time” before it goes out the door – even simple one-line cover letters to the clerk of court. I’m amazed at the number of times I’ve caught errors on that last read-through. Everything you do is a reflection of yourself. Take the time to make it perfect. (With that said, if you start nitpicking this blog for minor errors, I might be in trouble.)

8. I wish I had appeared by telephone. Sometimes attorneys have the option for appearing by telephone for court hearings. Unless I have an extremely cost-paranoid client or the issue is truly minor, I almost always appear in person and I have never regretted it. Face time is important. The lesson: show up. Get to know that person — in person. Take her to lunch. You learn more that way. (It’s also fun when you show up when opposing counsel calls in and does something stupid. Nothing is more priceless than watching a judge roll her eyes at a speakerphone while opposing counsel is obliviously continuing with their feeble argument.)

7. I shouldn’t have asked for money up front. Getting paid is becoming increasingly difficult these days. Get your money, or at least a good hunk of it, before you start the work. I do lots of free work for causes I believe in – but free work when you thought you were getting paid is no fun at all.

6. It’s the principle of the thing. You are not society’s police. Using the legal system to enforce your principles against someone else is going to cost you way more money than you can afford and is unlikely to teach the other guy a lesson. Make sure YOUR conduct is principled. Everyone else has to make their own decision, so be practical when dealing with them. Don’t let other people’s moral failings get you down. Just cut your losses and move on. You’ll sleep better and have more time and money to spend on more important people in your life.

5. It’s a slam dunk! It’s never a slam dunk. Ever. An attorney I used to work with was fond of saying: “It’s called the ‘courthouse,’ not the ‘fairhouse.’” I’ve gone into court thinking I had no chance and come out peachy. I’ve also gone in thinking it was a sure thing and come out with my bruised ego safely packed away in my briefcase. Life isn’t fair. The good guy doesn’t always win. Nothing is certain in this crazy world. Hope for the best but be prepared for anything.

4. If I may interrupt, your honor… Rule No. 1 - When the judge is speaking: SHUT. YOUR. MOUTH. Same goes for your boss, your wife, your client, your kids, etc… No one respects you when you interrupt them, not matter how much of a genius you think you are.

3. The defendant is crazy! This is one I confess I actually did. I had a case where the other side’s position did not resemble logic in any meaningful way. In my frustration, I once made the error of insulting him in front of the judge during a hearing. No one seemed bothered by it, including the judge, thank goodness, but I immediately regretted it. If your arguments are sound, you do not need to resort to personal attacks of the competition. Keep your fights clean, and stick to the facts. You may get beat down by a clever name-caller once in a while, but long-term, it reflects more highly on you to keep it clean.

2. This is too complicated/difficult. If it was easy, my clients wouldn’t need me to help deal with it. Adversity is opportunity to show your stuff. Some of my most fun cases have been the ones that were so hard that my client had nothing to lose. Attack adversity passionately.

1. I haven’t read that rule in a while. Sometimes I read the court rules before going to bed just for FUN. Nothing beats intimate familiarity with the rule. A good 30-50% of minor procedural squabbles could be avoided if both sides just pulled out rule book and started reading instead of pounding their chests. Same for you. Read the manual. Research the topic. Check the instructions. Open up the documentation. Those resources are there for a reason.

So what about you? What lessons have you learned the hard way?