Lawyers tend to operate within the clearly defined rules found in a court of law. Their clients, however, operate in the rough-and-tumble world of perception and reputation. Rules outside the courtroom lack clarity. Yet winning in the court of stakeholder opinion is equally as important to winning in court.

This applies to solo practitioners and small firms, as well as larger firms with the resources to contract with outside public relations counsel. The tips below can help you whether you are dealing with media, employees, or just about any other group that can affect a client’s reputation or ability to operate.

Why Stakeholder Perception Matters

Ask any lawyer how the media report the facts of a given case. “Misunderstood.” “Misrepresented.” “Completely out of context.” These are all common refrains from the bar.

Ask a reporter how lawyers communicate about specific cases. “Not at all.” “Not well.” “Not clearly.” All these are common refrains from outside the courthouse.

Ask defendants how a given case is affecting them. They will say they are getting mauled by media, and they are surrounded by stressed-out employees, confused suppliers, concerned customers, frightened family, and alienated friends. Meanwhile, regulators’ eyebrows are rising. And the list of stakeholder concerns goes on.

These are all important audiences for whom a communications strategy is needed to ensure client stories are told clearly, convincingly, and repeatedly. Many of these audiences are crucial to a client’s ability to function outside the courtroom.

Lawyers must think and act differently and more creatively. Lawyers who consider client implications in both spheres understand their role as legal counsel and can improve how clients are perceived with all mission-critical audiences.

High-profile lawyers typically understand the power of working with public relations counsel. The higher profile the case, the hotter the spotlight. The hotter the spotlight, the more attention by audiences crucial to reputation and operations. For lawyers wondering what value public relations offers during litigation and other client matters, here are some – although not all – areas to consider.

Using Public Relations to Bolster Clients

Relationship Rules Matter. Public relations counsel supports the legal strategy. Typically PR counsel works behind the scenes. Lawyers usually are out front. Legal counsel remains the final arbiter. But expect vigorous debate before deciding which information to release publicly and how and when to release it. Expect PR counsel to challenge legal counsel on external strategies. Integrity and engagement win the day.

Journalists Know Things. Ongoing dialogue can help build relationships with reporters, who sometimes are privy to lies, rumors, and other leaked information. PR counsel can get advance warning to help prepare for what’s coming. You might be able to kill a baseless story if you can get in front of it. Doing so can prevent character assassination and other fallout from rumor-mill reporting. And, at times, a lawyer may gain insights into the agendas of people working against the lawyer’s own legal strategy.

Privilege. Attorney-client privilege is sacrosanct. Legal strategy is paramount. But lawyers can contribute to PR strategy without divulging facts or breaking privilege. It’s imperative that lawyers and their PR counsel both know the direction of a case.

Going Where Lawyers Won’t. Look at PR counsel as a means for engaging media and other audiences crucial to success. Lawyers focus on winning the legal battle. PR counsel support the legal strategy with audiences outside the courtroom.

Media Coverage Matters. Educating, giving facts, and helping shape the tone and temperature of the coverage derives from working with media. If you don’t tell your clients’ stories, someone else will – whether or not they know of what they speak.

Waiting is Losing. If the first story is wrong, all stories will be wrong from the water cooler to the front page. The first story lays the groundwork for the ongoing narrative. How often have you had a misunderstood legal term wrongly used and then negatively affect your client’s perceived guilt or innocence? This happens not only in the media, but with other groups as well, such as employees, suppliers, and more.

Sharing is Caring. Motions and filings become public record. Public record becomes a story. Every story is shaped, by outside groups with their own agendas, person-on-the-street interviews, reporters writing what they perceive, and legal experts without intimate knowledge of the case. If your client’s side of the story is not represented outside the courtroom, your client’s reputation will be shaped by everyone but the authority on what is happening … you, the client’s lawyer.

Legalese Kills Understanding. Legal jargon should be translated to common, digestible language. Even when reporters are in the courtroom, they still might not be receiving all the information. People not in the courtroom are even less likely to get accurate information. And the information they are getting also needs to be converted to understandable pieces. Work with reporters and other mission-critical audiences to ensure they understand what they hear. Give them context. Coach them.

Education Clarifies Complex Issues. Journalists and other key stakeholders need to be educated and given the context of facts. No one understands the issues better than the lawyers involved. But if you don’t help your clients engage mission-critical audiences, some people might not understand all the relevant information. Misunderstanding is the foundation of fear; fear is the foundation of rumor. Rumor is the direct result of high-interest matters where a vacuum of information exists. All of it works against your client outside the courtroom.

Coaching to Counter Punch. Preparing lawyers for engagement with media and other stakeholders is different than preparing oral arguments for court. Objections and other courtroom rulings don’t apply. PR counsel prepares lawyers and their clients for the mental, verbal, strategic, and tactical gymnastics of playing the media game and for communicating with employees, recruits, suppliers, community members, and others. Words matter, message timing matters, and delivery matters – all shape narratives. Narratives shape perception; perception determines reputation; reputation impacts trust; and trust determines the future.

Conclusion

The “public” in public relations encompasses internal and external stakeholders. Engaging these audiences and communicating with them shows leadership. Lawyers of all stripes function as go-to advisors when things go wrong or when clients anticipate potential hazards. Thinking through both the stakeholder effects and the legal implications of a matter will allow you to give your clients complete counsel.