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Vol. 72, No. 10, October
1999 |
Managing Risk
Work with Support Staff
to Promote Quality
Balancing productivity with risk management in a law firm
is one of the most challenging tasks a lawyer faces. Here are
some suggestions.
By Ann Massie Nelson
Before you read any further, you should know that learning
how to manage employees by reading a magazine column is like
learning how to walk the tightrope by reading a book. You cannot
fully appreciate the magnitude of the challenge until you take
the first step.
"Successful lawyers filter work down to the lowest level
at which it can be performed competently," said Gary Munneke,
chair of the ABA's Law Practice Management Section and professor
of law at Pace University, in a talk before the State Bar of
Wisconsin earlier this year. Lawyers solve clients' complex
legal problems and delegate essential administrative tasks -
ones that don't require legal education and experience -
to their staff.
Sounds simple; however, lawyers reluctantly delegate work
to the lowest level of competency - and for good reason.
Duties that lawyers have considered "ministerial" and
delegated to staff have come back to bite them, according to
Katja Kunzke, vice president-claims, Wisconsin Lawyers Mutual
Insurance Co. Some examples of malpractice claims made against
lawyers for staff errors include:
- a mortgage recorded in the wrong county, resulting in a loss
of the creditor-client's security interest;
- an incorrect statute of limitation entered for out-of-state
personal injury representation, resulting in the case being dismissed;
- a bill that erroneously referred to an unrepresented third
party as a client, giving the third party an open door to argue
that the attorney owed him a duty; and
- a zero left off of the amount secured in a mortgage, resulting
in the security interest being a small percentage of the correct
amount.
The responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the
work is, in the final analysis, the lawyer's alone. To effect
quality legal representation, law firms need to provide staff
with training, a written office procedures manual, and opportunities
for open and honest communication.
Provide Training
Sample Confidentiality Form
As an employee of (Law Firm), I acknowledge
that I have been instructed regarding the confidentiality of
all firm business, activity, and records and except as required
by law in the course of my duties, or where instructed in writing
by management, I am aware that all firm books, records, files,
and memoranda are to be treated in strict confidence. I pledge
that I will not disclose information relating to the firm, its
business, or its clients during my employment or after termination
thereof, whether such termination is voluntary or involuntary.
I understand that any breach of confidentiality will be grounds
for my immediate dismissal as a firm employee.
- Used with permission of Lawyers
Mutual of North Carolina |
Part of the risk comes from placing too much confidence in
competent, long-term employees. Over time, lawyers tend to give
staff members more responsibility and less supervision and training.
"Lawyers have a continuing education requirement, but we
forget that our staff does not," Kunzke says.
Training in the rules of professional conduct, particularly
the rules governing confidentiality, conflict of interest, and
communication, should be lesson one. At Milwaukee-based Whyte
Hirschboeck Dudek S.C., the training begins before the first
day on the job.
"When a staff person who is coming from another law firm
accepts a position, we require her or him to sign a confidentiality
agreement. Further, we conduct a conflict screening with the
former firm and, if appropriate, we set up an information barrier
within the firm," says Andrew Bednall, the firm administrator.
(See above for a sample confidentiality statement.) Staff members
participate in quarterly training covering a wide range of topics,
from professional conduct and ethics to technology and office
procedures.
Staff members who assist with a particular area of practice
will benefit from attending relevant continuing legal education
seminars. (Tuition often is reduced for staff members.) The State
Bar of Wisconsin also offers several videotapes for staff use.
(See sidebar for information about staff training tapes.) "Being
trained in the lawyer's duties helps staff understand the
value of what they contribute to clients. They become more vested
in client service," Kunzke notes.
Publish an Office Procedures Manual
Written office procedures simplify everyone's job by
answering frequently asked questions and providing a basis for
discussion and evaluation of firm procedures. The ABA Law Practice
Management Section publishes (on disk and looseleaf paper) a
model, Law Office Staff Manual for Solos and Small Law Firms.1
In addition to personnel policies, an office procedures manual
needs to address:
- confidentiality
- conflicts of interest
- client communication
- telephone and voice mail
- faxes
- mail distribution
- calendar and docket
- file opening
- records management
- standard forms and correspondence
- billing
- cash handling
- trust accounts
- reporting lawyer impairment
Bednall's firm continuously revises its office procedures
manual to keep up to date with changing technology and methods.
Encourage Communication
Ann Massie Nelson is Communications Director at Wisconsin
Lawyers Mutual Insurance Co. |
The busier the law practice becomes, the more necessary it
is to schedule regular, one-on-one time with support staff. Staff
members are the law firm's eyes and ears, but they need
a forum to voice their observations.
"Clients are often less inhibited with staff than with
their lawyers in communicating dissatisfaction," Kunzke
says. "In some firms, the climate does not allow or encourage
staff to communicate that information."
Bednall agrees. "One of the most important qualities
a staff member can have is the self confidence to raise an issue
when he or she believes an error has been made, without feeling
threatened about retaliation," he says.
Endnotes
1 Demetrious Dimitriou, Law Office Staff
Manual for Solos and Small Law Firms. Ordering information
is available by calling the ABA
at (800) 285-2221.
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