{"id":145,"date":"2010-01-04T13:58:09","date_gmt":"2010-01-04T18:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/?p=145"},"modified":"2010-01-16T18:44:10","modified_gmt":"2010-01-16T23:44:10","slug":"how-to-hire-a-lawyer-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/?p=145","title":{"rendered":"How to hire a lawyer- Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coming from someone who lectures, writes and litigates I can tell you that each\u00a0requires its own “skill set”. \u00a0Having the talent for one skill does not necessarily carry over to another.<\/p>\n

Here are generic answers to this question we receive almost daily:
\n“I know I need to hire a lawyer to represent me in what maybe or is even\u00a0 likely to be a lawsuit.\u00a0 I never been involved in a litigation. How do I know who to hire to represent me?”<\/p>\n

Part 1 of a 2 part check list, follows.\u00a0 Remember also that while you are interviewing your lawyer (assuming the lawyer is not flat out desperate for business), he\/she is interviewing you.\u00a0 More on that in Part 2.<\/p>\n

Its your money, your life so ask<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

1. Does he\/she actually practice law and try cases in real courtrooms?\u00a0 Attorneys who write, lecture, negotiate or teach but do not actually try cases in front of flesh and blood judges and juries are of no use to you if you must go to trial.\u00a0 They are of minimal use in real life except as reference points or sources of information.\u00a0 Its much easier to convince an audience than a judge or jury.<\/p>\n

I’ve taught in a\u00a0 Masters Class in business and law at SVA.\u00a0 Jack and I just authored a book.\u00a0 We lecture all over the country.\u00a0 None of the foregoing has anything to do with trying cases.\u00a0 Representing clients, taking depositions, writing and arguing motions, talking to judges and convincing juries.\u00a0 The former activities are fun and easy. That “legal” stuff however, is hard, really hard.<\/p>\n

There is no comparison.\u00a0 Representing clients and trying cases is a skill set which requires daily use.\u00a0 Anybody can write and almost anybody can teach. Those who teach and write live longer than those who litigate.\u00a0 I have learned that lesson about ten years too late.<\/p>\n

Check via Google (or equivalents) to see how many cases your lawyer to be has actually tried and how many those went to verdict.<\/em> If he\/she is not actively trying cases, forget about him\/her.\u00a0 Attorneys who do not litigate regularly do not understand the adversary system and its local and current cast of characters.<\/p>\n

Attorneys who do not practice law and try cases believe that what is written is.\u00a0 Those who work in the trenches know that, “What is wrote, may not be what is”.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0 Is your lawyer utterly familiar with terms of art?\u00a0 No pun intended.\u00a0 If he\/she does not demonstrate a familiarity with the terms used in photography, publishing, illustration, art, etc. move on.\u00a0 He\/she may still be great lawyer but likely not for your case.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0 Ask other attorneys for references.\u00a0 The word gets out in the legal community as to who is both knowledgeable and effective.\u00a0 Bad references from other attorneys should disqualify your candidate.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0 Ask the lawyer for the names of long standing client references and permission to talk with them.\u00a0 True, most if not all names given you will be people who view the lawyer favorably BUT you will be surprised as to what personality traits and problems of the lawyer you can glean from such conversations.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0 Can you co-exist with this lawyer?\u00a0 How would you feel being stuck in an elevator with him\/her?\u00a0 This is not a marriage but it is close.\u00a0 You need to tell this lawyer the truth (yes really!) and trust him\/her with your fate.\u00a0 If you are not comfortable with him\/her for any reason, move on.\u00a0 You need not love him\/her but you need to have frequent, productive conversations under very stressful situations.<\/p>\n

Don’t get taken in\u00a0 by pure demeanor.\u00a0 A seemingly mild mannered, soft spoken attorney may be just as or more effective than a so-called “pit bull” – or vice versa.\u00a0 Remember this is not a television show.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0 Does your candidate speak plain English?\u00a0 There is no legal concept that can not be explained in plain language using words of three syllables or less.\u00a0 If you do not understand what the attorney is saying to you, what good is he\/she?<\/p>\n

7.\u00a0 Never hire an attorney based on an ad.\u00a0 Do not call an attorney based on an ad.\u00a0 Ignore each and every ad you ever see for an attorney.\u00a0 Would you hire a brain surgeon to cut open up your skull based on an ad?\u00a0 If your answer is “yes”, then you deserve to hire an attorney based on an ad and furthermore, you will deserve the outcome.\u00a0 I am constantly amazed that this topic which does not deserve any discussion is raised by creatives.\u00a0 You guys work in advertising.\u00a0 Advertising is legalized lying.\u00a0 Notwithstanding your insight some of you are steered by ads!!!!\u00a0\u00a0 Just can’t make it up!<\/p>\n

8.\u00a0 Request a written fee arrangement.\u00a0 Ask questions about any\/all of it.\u00a0 If the lawyer is anxious or not responsive, move on.\u00a0 Do not sign any retainer agreement unless you understand it, all of it.\u00a0 If the lawyer does not want you to “take it home to think about it” or show it to your spouse, do not hire him\/her.\u00a0\u00a0 If you are hiring an intellectual property attorney, show the fee letter to your “regular” business attorney and obtain the benefit of\u00a0 his\/her scrutiny.<\/p>\n

9.\u00a0 If all else fails, and you can’t fine anybody phone your local or closest law school.\u00a0 Ask for a professor who teaches copyright or intellectual property.\u00a0 Get a referral from him\/her.\u00a0 These folks generally know who knows how to try a case in your legal and geographic area.\u00a0 If they don’t know, they can get you references real quick.\u00a0 In my opinion this is a much, much better technique than calling the local Bar Association (or equivalent).\u00a0 On occasion – and do not rely on this – if your case is interesting the professor may provide your private attorney with some (unpaid for) assistance rendered by students.\u00a0 If you have seen the movie, “Reversal of Fortune” you know that Prof. Dershowitz like thousands of other professors, used his students with great results for Mr. Von Bulow.<\/p>\n

10. Any attorney who assures or guarantees you a result should be ignored.\u00a0 No reputable attorney can or will do such a thing.\u00a0 \u00a0 Ask him\/her to clarify the comment.\u00a0 If he\/she is dumb enough to say it again, get up and leave.\u00a0 Before the other side has even been heard from, some attorneys will frequently guess at to what you case is worth in an effort to seduce you into retaining that lawyer.\u00a0 Such guesses are almost always useless and if given with some eagerness, beware the source.<\/p>\n

Remember, attorneys who do not try cases for other creatives should not be entrusted with yours.<\/p>\n

Edward C. Greenberg
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Coming from someone who lectures, writes and litigates I can tell you that each\u00a0requires its own “skill set”. \u00a0Having the talent for one skill does not necessarily carry over to another. Here are generic answers to this question we receive almost daily: “I know I need to hire a lawyer to represent me in what […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,15,5,20,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-copyright-info","category-legal","category-paperwork","category-stuff-you-should-know","category-you-cant-make-this-up"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=145"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":480,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/145\/revisions\/480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecopyrightzone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}