They will usually want you to treat litigation as a matter of all-out war. You should never succumb, however, to a client's insistence that you treat opposing counsel shabbily. Thus, some clients will be incensed that you have agreed, for example, to opposing counsel's request for an enlargement of time. While you can permissibly make adjustments in the stance and tenor of court papers and other matters so as to accommodate a client's particular ideas, you should never sacrifice professional courtesy just to satisfy a client's lust for hardball tactics. Clients come and go, but opposing counsel stays around forever.
Life is already difficult enough.
Let the Partner Take the Credit. The Judge has just granted your motion for summary judgment. Informing a client of a major victory is one of the most rewarding aspects of practicing law, and you pick up the telephone to convey the good news. Put the phone down. What you should do instead is to advise the partner in charge of the case and let him or her have the pleasure of calling the client.