I was conducting a client survey for a lawyer, trying to gauge where the weak spots were in his operation and looking for ways to improve both his service and his office procedures. The surprising thing about this blunt feedback when I asked the client about his impressions of lawyers in general was that it wasn t unique. I ve heard the same thing many times in one form or another. Ill-founded or not, there are reasons why people rank lawyers way down on the list in terms of job performance. But I ve discovered that many are so busy that they go on automatic pilot and forget the basics of customer service or client relations such as regular communication and keeping the stress level low.
Clients call lawyers when they have a problem.
Business questions, a death in the family, a divorce, an accident, a bankruptcy all are potential stress producers, and the last thing clients want is more stress or irritation because of their dealings with their lawyers. Lawyers need to find ways to eliminate the unnecessary irritants that really annoy clients. Here are some common client complaints, plus suggestions for avoiding or mitigating them. Poor Responsiveness Failure to return phone calls and to respond to letters or faxes is the number one complaint clients have about lawyers. The main reasons lawyers give for failing to return phone calls being out of the office, in trial, or doing research on another matter are usually valid, but that s not a good enough excuse.