The Four Levels of Communication

Published February 5, 2008

Too often the lawyer-client relationship is a one-way street—the lawyer tells the client what to do (we call it “counseling”) and submits the bill. The real focus of the dynamic must be for the lawyer to understand the intent, the desires, and the wants of the client. Only then can you shape your professional advice. If the their wishes and your advice are in harmony, and you make certain that the client knows what to expect, there is little likelihood of a relationship problem.

Communication skills are vital ingredients to a successful lawyer-client relationship. It’s essential that the client knows what the lawyer is doing, and that the client approves of the tactics used to achieve the his or her strategy/goal. Effective lawyers find out not only what clients need, but also what they want. The obligation to promote quality communication between attorney and client and to assure that the client has a good understanding of what to expect lies squarely with the attorney, as part of his or her professional responsibility.

There are four levels which the communication between lawyer and client can be measured.

  • Level One: Satisfaction. This is the minimum threshold of a legal services relationship, and is synonymous with communication. Law firms that don’t communicate with their clients—to learn what they want, how they want to receive it, and what their future needs will be—will have dissatisfied clients who soon will be quick to find another attorney.
  • Level Two: Exceeding expectations. This goes beyond mere satisfaction, but can be hard to define. Often client expectations are set too low because their lawyer did not explain at the start of the engagement what was reasonable to expect. This represents a communications failure by the lawyer that amounts almost to deceit, and one that cannot be sustained.
  • Level Three: Earning loyalty. The measure of this level is time, where the firm maintains client relationships for years, or even decades. Communication is the foundation here as well—sometimes clients contact the law firm first when new needs arise, other times their lawyer offers a new service or idea that the client hadn’t expected.
  • Level Four: Collaboration. This is the culmination of all three levels. Lawyer and client work together to assess needs and develop a proactive, interactive law approach, making recommendations to each other about actions and decisions that are mutually beneficial. Such a relationship is ultimately both satisfying and enduring—and successful.

Categorized in:

Audience type: Administrators, Associates, Large Law Firms, Small Law Firms, Sole Practitioners