Law
Offices of Phillip J. Griego & Associates Law
Offices of Phillip J. Griego & Associates
Every successful business has a philosophy - a reason for being in business.
The philosophy of this office is to provide our clients with more than lawyers
or great legal technicians. We strive to be counselors as well.
Our goal is to move beyond gamesmanship because gamesmanship almost always operates to the detriment of clients' long term interests. It is not always wise to wage war. It is up to the counselor to advise his client as to what is best, not necessarily what is expedient. If more lawyers were counselors a great many evils in our judicial process would disappear.
Toward that end we have set up three criteria to refer to during
the business of the day. They may be called the three B's:
BE AVAILABLE. Answering phone calls is somewhat inefficient
because it interrupts work flow. But it means a great deal to the people we
serve to know that they can reach us when they need us. Unless there is an important
project that must get done, try to be available to the clients. At least answer
the phone and tell the client that you are working on something very important
and ask if you can call them back. If possible arrange a mutually convenient
time for your return call. This also means being available to each other for
questions and problem solving. We have arranged meetings during the day to solve
problems. This is encouraged.
BE RESPONSIVE. Means more than just following up on commitments
to our clients. It means preparing a course of action that meets their needs
and keeping the strategy on course. Every case must have a plan of action with
a specific goal in mind. This also means spending quality time on the cases
each day and with the clients. There is no other way to make intelligent decisions
about the best legal strategy. This also means the client is kept fully informed
about the progress of the case. All paperwork should be copied to the client.
BE EFFECTIVE. Are we doing the RIGHT things RIGHT. There
is a difference between being efficient and being effective. We can be very
efficient at counting how many times a client calls the office. But do we need
to know this information in order to meet our responsibilities? This is best
illustrated by an excerpt from the book "Getting Things Done," by
Edwin Bliss(c): He says "The day of the old-fashioned 'efficiency expert'
is long gone. Today management consultants think in terms of effectiveness,
which is a broader and more useful concept. Efficiency concerns the best ways
of doing an assigned job. Effectiveness, on the other hand, concerns the best
use of time-which may or may not include doing the particular job in question.
... Sound time management involves thinking in terms of effectiveness first
and efficiency second."
Never let a day go by that you don't examine yourself, your office and your colleagues and notice how the work gets done. There is always a better way.
This information has been prepared by the Law Offices of Phillip J. Griego & Associates for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Transmission of the information is not intended to create, and receipt does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. The information contained herein is provided only as general information which may or may not reflect the most current legal developments. This information is not provided in the course of an attorney-client relationship and is not intended to constitute legal advice or to substitute for obtaining legal advice from an attorney licensed to practice law. This information is not intended to be advertising and the Law Offices of Phillip J. Griego & Associates does not wish to represent anyone desiring representation based upon viewing this article in a state where dissemination of this information fails to comply with all laws and ethical rules of that state.