Pat on the back
A colleague of mine at this firm was sent on short notice to a deposition in a fairly new lawsuit. Upon arriving at the deposition and talking to counsel, Colleague realized that the damages in this case were going to far exceed the policy limits of his client, an insurer, and there was little or no liability issue. So, before commencing the deposition, Colleague placed a quick phone call to his client to explain the situation and give the insurer the chance to settle the case immediately. The insurer agreed with this plan, plaintiff's counsel obviously accepted the policy limits, and Colleague left the deposition without incurring the attorney fees and costs associated with the deposition. This impressed the insurer so much that corporate counsel left a message praising Colleague with one of our managing partners.
Lawyers do good work every day. Some of them do good work on behalf of the poor, indigent, and helpless. Others do good work on behalf of our government. And others do good work for insurance companies. It's worth noting and remembering that, now and then, since the state bar only publishes disciplinary reports and not good-job reports.
posted by The Uncivil Litigator at Wednesday, September 08, 2004
3 Comments:
Hi, UCL, I'm only posting anonymously because Blogger is not recognizing me (such a pain that system). This is David Giacalone.
Pat on the back? Okay, but this should not be a story worth retelling or praising. What your colleague did should be standard operating procedure for every lawyer every day -- that's what putting the client's interests first and fulfilling our fiduciary duties to the client are all about. The fact that it seems like a big deal -- and would surprise a client -- says a lot.
Hi David! Your perspective is always welcome here. And as I see it, your perspective is particularly harsh on the legal profession, which is something the profession DOES need, from more lawyers like you. But that doesn't mean I agree with your take on specific issues, such as this one. The client knowingly instructed its lawyer to attend a deposition on short notice with the expectation of paying the lawyer for that service. The lawyer saw that there may be a way to avoid the client paying for the service if quick action were taken, and went beyond the call of duty to do so. That is not a heroic event that deserves a Nobel Prize. But it does demonstrate sound business sense and a sincere committment to satisfying the client.
It's very easy to say that every business that offers services should always be 100% devoted to the customer 100% of the time without fail. But that attitude does not reflect the reality of the world we live in. Outstanding service is indeed the exception rather than the rule. If you doubt that, I suggest you pick up the phone and try talking to your long-distance carrier about... well... anything. So my point is very simple: good service is worthy of praise when observed, and this is an example of good service.
(Blogger's comment service does suck. Sorry about that.)
Am I alone in seeing the irony of the complaints David and I both just made about Blogger's "service"? :)
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