My Lawyer Can Beat Up Your Lawyer

Lawyers are expensive. Most of us charge by the hour. That means every time a client calls, a meter starts running. Most of the time calls aren’t an issue, but some folks need more hand-holding than others. Jill was one of these people. She emailed and called constantly. I finally had to explain to her that she was eating away at her retainer by asking questions for which she already had the answer. She still didn’t get it. Finally, I printed out her bill and walked her through the ever-decreasing retainer until she understood what I meant. We agreed that she would limit her calls to emergencies only and would wait for me to contact her with updates as needed. Peace descended upon my office. The phones were calmer, email inbox emptier and my days less stressful. This lasted for about two weeks.

My first warning that something was wrong was the baleful stare my receptionist leveled on me as I walked in the door from a morning in court. “You need to check your voicemail” was all she would tell me. With a growing sense of dread, I put the phone to my ear to hear Jill’s voice blasting out. “You need to call me immediately. I can’t believe I hired you. I trusted you!” Feelings of dread were confirmed.

There is a reason so many lawyers are alcoholics. Calls like this would drive anyone to drink! I resisted the urge to head to a bar and hesitantly dialed Jill’s number. “Hello Jill, what’s going on?” I could tell that she was trying to calm herself before replying and I greatly appreciated her efforts. “I just don’t think you are qualified to represent me.” This is probably not the best start to a conversation with your lawyer. “I don’t think you are being aggressive enough. I know you haven’t been practicing law all that long and the other lawyer has been practicing for twenty something years.” Before I could respond, she continued. “And you’ve got a reputation for not wanting to fight. I didn’t know all of that when I hired you. You should have told me that you didn’t want to fight for my rights and protect my children’s future.” At this point, I’d had enough. “What the hell are you talking about Jill? What exactly have I done that isn’t fighting for you? I have filed several motions and they are all set for hearing next week. I’ve done everything that can be done. Where is this coming from?”

Over the course of the next ten minutes it all came out. She had talked to her husband and apparently his lawyer “told him all about me.” The other lawyer had informed him that I was soft. That I didn’t like confrontation and would settle for whatever they offered. This other lawyer then pointed out that he had been practicing law for 20+ years and I had less than half that number under my belt. Basically he told her that his lawyer could beat up her lawyer so she should just give in now.

I was able to calm her down and assure her that I intended to fight as hard as I could in her case. After two calls to the other lawyer’s office and a few to mutual acquaintances, I managed to get the other lawyer on his private cell phone. I politely inquired as to veracity of the charges laid against him. Actually, I asked him “What the hell do you think you are doing?” Slowly, the truth started coming out. According to him, he had not said those things about me to his client. He did not think I was a push over. He had mentioned to his client the difference in our years of practice, but he did not tell his client that it would make a difference in the case. I chose to believe him. It appears that Jill’s husband had mostly fabricated the alleged conversation with his attorney. He saw that Jill was starting to calm down over the case, so he started pushing her buttons to cause hysteria. He wanted to disrupt her ability to calmly deal with the situation and work with me. And to a certain extent it worked. She ended up wasting her retainer on a bunch of non-issues, which eventually applied pressure on her to either settle the case or continue paying attorney fees. I was left scratching my head and wondering, “Why would you believe what your soon-to-be-ex has to say about your lawyer? They don’t know your lawyer and probably have no idea about their reputation, but they have every reason to lie to make you sweat.”