As lawyers, we have to do everything possible to turn the case in our client’s favour. However, we also have to follow the lawyer. We have to move about legally and ethically, and some clients may not like that. However, they are paying money, so they often demand a quick fix to their legal problems through law procedures.
Unfortunately, legal proceedings take time and proper documentation. After losing patience, clients often refuse to pay fees, threaten to fire you, and even badmouth you and your firm. If you want your legal negotiations to be smoother, you should know how to deal with such people. Here are ten ways you can deal with aggressive legal clients.
1. Try Not To Involve Family and Friends
Always try to deal with the person who’s paying you. You will not get paid for dealing with the client’s family and friends. Therefore, you should remain professional and ask your clients to act similarly. Ask them to involve their family in legal negotiations only if they have something to do with the case. Often, a conflict between lawyers and the client’s relatives arises, which ruins the mood of the negotiations. Moreover, if the client is a relative of yours, remember your relationship could become bittersweet depending upon the case’s outcome.
2. Telephonic Screening
It’s better to know about the client’s nature and personality before calling them to your office. For that, you can organise a telephonic screening first, where you can get to know the client a lot better. First, educate them about the legalities and technicalities of their case. Then, you can meet them once they are content with your explanation, hoping the negotiations will be smooth.
3. Educate Your Clients
One of the most important reasons your client might be conflicting with you is that they might not properly understand their case’s legal aspects. In the initial phase of your negotiations, explain the legalities of the case properly to your client. Tell them what’s possible and how you can defend their case. They might react negatively and might have a conflict with you. Therefore, as we mentioned previously, you should discuss your client’s case properly before meeting them personally.
4. Follow Up Lawyer
Clients often act impulsively during meetings. While you shouldn’t comment on their behaviour at the moment, you can send an email. Review your meeting, summarise all the points discussed in the meeting, and inform your client about their bad behaviour. You can also warn the client not to behave again or lead to serious legal consequences. You can also propose solutions that you might’ve come up with after the session.
5. Never Rule Out Firing a Client
If your client is too aggressive and is crossing the line, you have the right to fire them. You can also take legal action if necessary. However, consider this as a last resort. It is always advisable to fix the relationship between you and your client without further escalating the matter. You can try to make them trust you with their legal issues. But, if the issues have reached a dead end, you have the right to do what’s necessary.
6. Let Your Client Vent
Remember, firing the client is always a last-resort scenario. Maybe your client was just frustrated and resorted to venting. Let your client talk about their problems and act as their therapist for once. You can even charge for the venting if you want. Once the session is over, you can give your client feedback via email. Highlight what was wrong with their behaviour and things they can work on.
7. Explain Ground Rules Before Initiating Negotiations
If you want to keep things clear between you and your client, you should explain the ground rules before getting involved in any negotiation. Tell them how your sessions will work and when you can call, text, or email them. You can guide them regarding the payment procedure, due date, and the consequences of paying your fees late. You can also warn your clients about the penalties and consequences in the case of any misconduct in behaviour.
8. Explain Your Charges
It’s important to decide on your rate before starting negotiations. Confirm your charges both verbally and in writing. Tell your clients how much you charge for extra hours and how much they’ll have to pay for misconduct.
9. Don’t Be Someone’s Second or Third Lawyer
Many clients hire multiple lawyers to keep the pressure on. They try to play the numbers game and force you to do things beyond the legal and ethical boundaries. Do not work with clients hiring you as their 3rd lawyer to avoid this pressure.
10. Understand What the Client Wants From Lawyer
Before dealing with a client, you should understand their motives as well. For example, if they choose the legal route to take revenge on a certain person or entity, better to step away. First of all, they might urge you to do something illegal. Secondly, if the case’s outcome is not according to their expectations, they might even develop a conflict with you. To avoid such situations, it’s better to choose your cases wisely and not accept anything you propose. It’s also important to educate such clients on what you can do legally.
Lawyer` Verdict
Every lawyer encounters difficult and aggressive clients at some point in their career. The best strategy to have with such clients is to avoid them in the first place. Only consider working on a case when you are completely satisfied with the client’s motives. It’s always good to educate the client about the legal possibilities to avoid confusion in later stages.
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