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Home » Blog » It’s More Than Just Answering the Phone

It’s More Than Just Answering the Phone

It's More Than Just Answering the Phone

A good lawyer does a significant part of his or her work out in the field – in the real world, where the facts are.

A good lawyer should be an engaged and active empath, a tenacious bulldog in court, and a detective on the street, initiating discovery in ways that support the client.

Family law is a good example – in most cases, clients are there because there’s a conflict or an active problem. They aren’t just there for paperwork – there are deep and abiding issues with the structure of the family – issues that will have an impact on people’s lives for decades afterward, after the case is resolved.

With that in mind, those who go to a law firm for help deserve assistance that’s focused on their case, that meets them where they are, and lawyers to pay attention and work on their behalf.

You may have heard a million times that legal representation is about helping make the client’s voice heard in court – it’s somewhat of a cliché, but it’s fundamentally true, and it deserves every bit of the prominence that it gets as a central idea in legal work, something that we talk about at conferences and that the best firms build into their business models because it’s the right thing to do.

The problem is that some firms, and some of the bigger firms in particular, can start to have a more blasé approach to what they do. With so many cases to handle and so much work to be done, the lawyers and involved staff persons are looking to get things off of their plate. Every case becomes a number, and every day becomes an exercise in task triage. That’s kind of a sad way to work, but it’s too often the reality – that is, unlike the firm is proactive about creating a certain culture, a people-first culture that does not allow this more base philosophy of work to take root.

In this kind of context, without the right culture, some of the hapless clients of these firms are lucky if they can get their lawyer to answer the phone. But even if you do maintain active communication with the law firm, that doesn’t always represent adequate counsel.

Counsel is care. It’s something that’s active and engaged. It’s a service that truly helps. That’s what we’re about at Turner Law Offices, and if our workflow does not accommodate that, we change it. It sounds simple, but it really takes some dedication, and it’s ultimately very important. Take a look at our web site for information on our practice areas including family law, criminal law, DUI, injury law, probate and more.