These newsletters are usually philosophical in nature but today I felt compelled to write about legal strategies. These “strategies” are frankly more akin to principles than strategies. I thought I would share some “strategies” applied to problems with the goal of equipping the reader with a tool kit of sort.
Most appointments in my practice start with a general discussion of how someone got where they are and what they expect from our professional relationship. I learned early in my career that many clients seek legal solutions to non-legal problems. Desperate, the client appears with a mess on their hands caused by an unending compulsion to do something to fix a problem that might have solved itself but for their constant tampering. But now they arrive in my office with a situation caused by a combination of the following: “ I heard that this could be done, or I was told that if I did this then that would happen. Well, I drafted this and then did this and now that occurred. Now I am stuck!” Untangling this serpentine mess is part of the high costs associated with legal work. Let me state unequivocally that I do not consider my approaches novel or unique, but I possess a compulsive efficiency to obtain the most impact with as little “legal” means available. In my world less is definitely more.
I share the following strategies with you so you can hopefully avoid the dead center of any situation that you might encounter.
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A problem arises so what is to be done first? This is the first trap of any situation because there is an assumption that something needs to be done. Strategy 1 “let the sleeping dog sleep.” Do nothing.
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There is a situation that needs to be resolved. Ok, now that the dog is awake the situation demands a response. Strategy 2: ask more questions than you answer? We tend to be hyper-focused on our response when we should be asking more questions than we answer so that we obtain as much information as possible.
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Is the answer long or short? Many times, our initial response should be measured and limited. Save your dry powder when a fire fight ensues. Strategy 3: Don’t fire a cannon ball when a bullet will do. Don’t say more than is necessary to respond fully.
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I have multiple courses I could take to solve this problem. How do I choose which one? Strategy 4: Occam’s Razor: choose the simplest one with the least moving parts.
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My problem has lots of participating voices vying to be heard. We live in an age that assumes everyone needs to be involved. This is a huge mistake: Strategy 5: Too many cooks spoil the broth. Well intentioned people love to give advice but nothing in their education, history or track record proves them worthy. Set up a board of diverse people that are sober and wise then ask the same questions to each of them gathering their opinion. Then apply 1-4.
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Now that the solution is selected what next: Strategy 6 Burn the ships! Never look back never give up! Endurance is the preferred decision versus a quick clever ingenious solution. Believe that this is the best course for you and hang on for dear life. Most people give up so set your eyes on the distant horizon and do anything and everything to bolster your resolve – endure when others fade you know this situation is only temporary!
Albert R. Hartley