People Make Mistakes and Lawyers are People Too

Have you read the stories about partners at two firms and their mistakenly directed emails? I'm not sure why this is news, maybe it's a slow day in legal journalism land.

Check out the link above for the full story: "Well-known litigator Sheila Birnbaum of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom believed Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood used a press release and newspaper column to mischaracterize a recent confidential settlement with her client State Farm, and she said so.Her opinion was intended to circulate in an internal e-mail, but instead she sent it to more than a dozen reporters, the Associated Press reports.
“This is so over the top,” she wrote in the e-mail. “Can we ask that he be held in contempt of court for misrepresenting a settlement agreement and order of the court?”
Lawyers, you may want to consider deleting reporters' names from your e-mail address book. Birnbaum's misdirected e-mail is the second by a lawyer to make headlines this month. A lawyer at Pepper Hamilton in Philadelphia reportedly sent an e-mail referencing settlement negotiations that apparently involved Eli Lilly & Co. to New York Times reporter Alex Berenson. The message was intended to reach co-counsel Bradford Berenson of Sidley Austin.
A hat tip to the Wall Street Journal Law Blog, which posted the story."

Um, a hat tip? Maybe it's just me, but I really don't think that an honest mistake combined with some fairly innocuous email contents is all that interesting. Yes, there is a lesson to be learned (be careful, observe confidentiality standards, delete reporters from your address book and so forth) but does this rise to the level of being newsworthy?

What about journalists observing and honoring those disclaimers at the bottom of the emails?

People make mistakes. And lawyers are people too.

-Catherine

Acknowledgement is Key

A recent coaching meeting had me realize how powerful acknowledgement can be in moving people into action. She made none of the calls we agreed she would make in our last meeting and was feeling defeated. I said, "Remember our last meeting, when you said you wanted to increase your revenue by 10% this year? Given your level of success last year, that's a big deal. You had the guts to make that personal goal and I want to acknowledge you for that." Her face lit up and her demeanor opened up a bit - giving us the room to move on and set up the next action plan with specific, measurable benchmarks.

Acknowledgement - the genuine and sincere type - may help you nudge an otherwise dormant client into action. Even if your best efforts have been less than successful, you might want to acknowledge your "coachee" for being willing to roll up their sleeves and work with you. Some of our clients' colleagues would never make the time to talk about how to grow their businesses.

Focusing on the gap - what wasn't done and what needs to be done - is obviously critical. Doing so in the context of acknowledgement may be an access to higher levels of success for you and your clients. Take on this practice and let us know about the results!

Law Without Suits - WSJ Article

Did Law without suits: Youth flouts tradition, By STYLE CHRISTINA BINKLEY
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EUROPE, DOW JONES REPRINTS
February 1, 2008

This is an interesting and provocative read. The angle seems undercut by the punchline (“Trying a case is like a movie," Ms. Arnold says. "Wardrobe is everything."), since the article seems to be going in the direction of a generational discussion and/or the value of having a consultant like Gretchen Neels in to remedy the situation.

I do think it’s true that there are differences in dress codes between offices, firms, geographies and generations. Full disclothesure: I’m in the “suit” category for a couple of reasons: it is actually easier to put together when you are bleary eyed and/or rushing to get out the door in the morning and also for professional appearance reasons. You can go anywhere in a suit but you can't in jeans (which I really don't think are appropriate for a professional services provider who is in the office anyway).

But, and with all due respect to the managing partners of the world, the more relevant question is…. What are the CLIENTS at the associates' level wearing and what do they expect and want THEIR lawyers to look like?

-Catherine