Law firms waste tens of thousands of hours in billable time simply because new associates fail to understand the demands of their most important clients - their internal ones. Listening-skills training can be the key to improved firm productivity. As lawyers advance in their careers, the acquisition of questioning skills must become an integral part of their professional development. Ideally, by the time lawyers reach their sixth or seventh year of practice, they'll possess their most crucial marketing skills. Teach new lawyers to write effectively.
Lawyers are notoriously poor writers.
Many young attorneys wrongly believe that using big words, and lots of them, wins cases. Successful attorneys know that nothing could be further from the truth. New lawyers must learn to banish certain writing styles. They must edit their writing to eliminate jargon, passive verbs, wordiness, and the excessive use of nouns. They paint pictures and move people to act.