Too Good To Be True

Admin — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 22:04:00 GMT

Shortly after I graduated college I had just been dumped by college sweetheart, was not happy with my original career choice, and my billfold was getting smaller and smaller as the country was in a recession. Safe to say I was in a bit of a quarter-life crisis and my confidence was slightly south of nothing. That said, within my larger circle of friends I had noticed and briefly met a girl whose beauty was so striking that the room stopped every time she walked in. I and my friends...and pretty much everyone else thought there was no way she would ever be interested in a guy like me. I am no Brad Pitt to say the least. Yet to my surprise she started to actually pursue me (That should have been the first sign that there was clearly something wrong with her). On our first date we went to a bar and I remember immediately hearing whispers from other male patrons about how in the world a loser like me could be with a gal like her. Those whispers made me feel pretty good, important even.

Now here is the reality. Within five minutes of that date I realized that this girl had so much baggage that even United couldn't lose it all. In addition every time I talked with her I wanted to claw my eyes out. Even my friends who at first thought she was a knockout quickly changed tune and told me I was a moron for dating her. Every moment was full of drama, I could never make her happy, she messed with everyone's mind, had a temper that would make Chuck Norris cry, and Chuck Norris can't cry. My billfold was not only gone but would not feel the touch of debt free cash for quite some time. I still bang my head against the wall every time I think of those days. Why did I date her??? Why would I have subjected myself to that torture??? Well, reflecting back, it was because I was on the rebound, I didn't have many other prospects at the time, my self esteem was way down, the whispers made me feel like a somebody, and I just didn't have the skill yet to pick the right people to date.

Now that I have bored you with part of my dating past there is a reason why I bring this up in a law blog. Travelling from firm to firm I have heard many stories about risky clients that have been taken on within the recent past. Some of these clients promised big returns on contingency cases, yet even though the likelihood of success was slim the firms took on that work. Why you may ask? Well, in this down economy where attorneys are starved for hours worked the mere chance that maybe just maybe they could win made them take on the matter. How did it turn out? Nine times out of ten, just as you would expect. Resources were poured into the case, the firms played with house money and at the end of the day there was absolutely no return.

In other cases I have seen very risky clients being brought in who not only have poor payment history but are demanding the world when it comes to fee arrangements and terms of payment. Again the primary reason is that work is down and attorneys need hours. Right now in many minds any hour is a good hour. Sadly this is a major problem that needs to be addressed. Just like I was down in the dumps after college, so too now are many firms. Self esteem is low after a downturn in growth, layoffs of peers, and pressure to bring in any originations. Yet the idea that any work is good work is simply false. As my colleague Bo Yancey recently mentioned, understanding the opportunity for the firm with respect to what the client is offering is essential for long term sustainability. A lot of firms would be better off not taking any of this overly risky work and focusing their efforts on identifying prospects, (most likely internal ones) that can help get acceptable work for lagging practice areas until while dust clears.

We know all too well how hard this economic downturn has hit not only the legal industry but the industries that firms serve. It is a depressing time for many of us, but we still have to keep our wits about us and make the right decisions. I made the mistake of taking on a very risky venture in my dating past. Not only that but even after I knew it was a failure I kept it going for months afterward. I challenge firms to not make a similar mistake and analyze your intake process. Try your best to make the right decisions on clients despite the pressure for originations. Finally, if you realize you made a big mistake, correct it as quickly as you can before you drain additional resources. I'd like to think that my billfold would be twice as big now if I hadn't made the choices that I did. Perhaps the same can be said for many firms ten years down the line, long after this recession.

-Russ Haskin

Russ Haskin is Director of Consulting for Redwood Analytics/Lexis Nexis

Make More Rain : risk managment, economic outlook

Too Good To Be True