austinbar.org MAY 2023 | VOLUME 32, NUMBER 4
They Didn’t Teach Me THAT in Law School An Associate’s Reflections After One Year in Practice BY JOHN D. BOONE, MAPLES | JONES, PLLC
T
ime and time again, during my first year in the practice of law, I have caught myself saying some variation of the following phrase: “Well, they didn’t teach me that in law school.” Now, this article is not to bash law schools, or the law school experience generally, but I think it fair to say that even the best law school cannot fully prepare someone for the practice of law. After all, working as an attorney is a practice, and while the academic study of the law is essential to a successful career, it is no substitute for handson experience. So, in no particular order, here are a few things I have learned in my first year of practice that they most definitely did not teach me in law school. 1. Clients exist, and they have feelings too. In law school, clients were rarely mentioned, and if they were it was as largely passive observers in the judicial process. In reality, the client most definitely exists! And they have strong feelings about the judicial proceeding and the direction their attorney is taking in that proceeding. Now, of course, there are all different types of clients out
there, and admittedly my perspective is a bit skewed by being a family law attorney, where the clients have an intensely personal interest in the lawsuit and its outcome. But corporate clients and governmental agencies certainly also have vested interests in any judicial proceeding (or potential judicial proceeding), and corporate and
governmental clients deserve to be just as informed regarding the status of their case as any individual. The most important thing I have learned over the past year when it comes to client relations is to keep the client consistently informed regarding major events in their case and to manage the client’s expectations. Most clients are relatively uninformed about the law—or, worse, consider themselves to be extremely well informed because of last night’s Law and Order episode. In either case, the client likely has significant anxiety about the lawsuit. I have found that client anxiety levels significantly decrease if clients are educated about the law and how the law applies to their situation.
A simple email or brief phone call explaining what is happening in a client’s case, and what is likely to happen, goes a long way toward building a healthy and productive attorney-client relationship. Set expectations. Many clients expect their lawyer to swoop in like Superman (or Superwoman) and solve all their problems in one heroic leap. But of course the law cannot, and should not, solve everyone’s problems. Having a frank discussion with clients about what the law can realistically achieve goes a long way toward managing expectations and building clients’ trust in their attorney. continued on page 26