If you want to become the associate partners ask for by name, start with this: make it easier for them to serve their clients. Finish what you start. Tell them what they need to know. Give them work they can use. And please, don’t make them chase you for an assignment you promised two days ago.
I think associates sometimes spend so much time trying to impress partners that they overlook what partners actually need. A partner with a hearing tomorrow, a client waiting for advice, and three drafts to review needs someone who will take responsibility for the work. There is plenty you can do to become that person, even when you are still learning how to practice.
1. Understand What You Are Being Asked to Do
Before you start researching or writing, make sure you understand the assignment. What does the partner need? When does the partner need it? How much time should you spend? Is this a quick answer for a phone call or a brief the court will read? Ask. You are not bothering someone by making sure you understand what they want.
Ask why the assignment matters, too. If you are drafting deposition questions, learn what the team needs to establish. Read the pleadings. Look at the documents. Understand where your work fits. Otherwise, you may spend hours preparing questions that never get to the issue the partner needs to address.
2. Give the Partner Time to Review Your Work
If something is due Friday, find out when the partner wants your draft. It may be Tuesday. The partner needs time to review it, send it back, talk with the client, and deal with everything else that lands on the desk. Your deadline should account for those steps.
And if you can’t meet that deadline, say something early. Don’t wait until Tuesday afternoon to announce that the Tuesday draft will arrive Thursday. Explain what is holding you up and what you can deliver. Give the partner a chance to adjust. You would want the same courtesy from someone doing work for you.
3. Keep People Updated
You may be working hard on an assignment. The partner may have no idea. A short email can fix that. Explain what you have finished, what you still need, and when the work will be ready. If you are waiting for records, identify the records and explain what you are doing to get them.
Think about the client calling the partner for an update. Have you given the partner enough information to answer? Or does the partner have to track you down first? Keep the file current. Save the documents where they belong. Make it easy for the next person who needs to pick up the matter.
Put the useful information first. If the partner needs to approve something, say so in the opening sentence. Include the date by which you need a decision. Attach the document you are discussing. Think about how many emails that person will open today. Make yours one they can understand and act on without sending three questions back.
4. Give Your Opinion
When a partner asks what you think, answer. You may be wrong. That is part of learning. Explain what you recommend and why. Identify the facts that support your recommendation and the ones that concern you. If you need more information, say what you need and how you would get it.
Try to do this before forwarding an email with “Thoughts?” at the top. Read the email. Think through the request. Propose a response. Your partner can disagree and explain why. Now you have learned something, and the discussion has moved the matter forward. You have also shown that you are thinking about the case.
For example, if opposing counsel requests more time, check the schedule before asking the partner what to do. Explain whether the extension affects a hearing, another deadline, or the client’s plans. Then recommend an answer. That small amount of preparation turns a forwarded request into advice the partner can evaluate.
5. Review Your Work Before Someone Else Does
Read your draft before you send it. All of it. Check the names, dates, record references, and citations. Make sure the argument says what you intend. If you used a document from another case, remove everything that does not belong. We have all seen another client’s name survive in a draft. Slow down enough to catch it.
A first draft should reflect your best effort. The partner will still make changes. That is expected. But give the partner something worth editing. You learn more when the discussion concerns your argument and judgment than when someone spends twenty minutes correcting mistakes you could have found yourself.
6. Learn From the Changes
When the partner returns your draft, compare the versions. What changed? Did the partner move the conclusion to the beginning? Cut three pages? Remove an argument? Ask about changes you do not understand. There is a lesson in that draft if you take the time to look for it.
Keep track of recurring comments. Before your next assignment goes out, check it against those comments. If someone keeps asking you to shorten your sentences, work on shorter sentences. If someone keeps asking for record support, include it. Show that the time spent teaching you is changing how you work.
You do not have to agree with every edit to learn from it. If you think a change leaves out something important, ask about it. Bring the document or authority that explains your concern. You may have spotted a problem. You may be missing some context. Either way, have the conversation.
7. Respect the Client’s Money
Ask about the budget. A research question can fill an afternoon if you let it. Sometimes it should. Sometimes the client needs a practical answer that does not require reviewing every case ever written on the subject. Talk with the partner about how far to go, especially when the assignment starts growing.
Enter your time promptly and describe what you did. Learnthe client’s billing requirements. Ask why certain work gets written off and how you can avoid repeating the problem. These details affect whether the firm gets paid for your effort. Learning the business of practicing law goes hand in hand with learning the law.
8. Treat the Staff Well
Your assistant and paralegal can teach you a great deal. Listen to them. Give clear instructions and enough time to do the work. Don’t sit on a project all week and then make it someone else’s Friday afternoon emergency. When someone catches your mistake, thank them.
Partners notice how you treat people. More to the point, those people deserve your respect regardless of who notices. Learn their jobs. Ask what they need from you. Take responsibility when your instructions were unclear. An office works better when people can raise a concernwithout getting snapped at. Help make yours that kind of office.
9. Speak Up Before a Problem Gets Worse
If you make a mistake, tell the partner. Explain what happened and what you think should happen next. Don’t spend the afternoon hoping it will somehow resolve itself. The sooner the team knows, the sooner it can work on a solution. Embarrassment is uncomfortable. Letting a fixable problem grow is worse.
Speak up about your workload, too. If three partners have given you assignments due tomorrow, explain the conflict and ask them to help set priorities. If you think a partner missed an important fact, point it out. Be respectful and specific. Serving a partner includes offering information the partner may not want to hear.
10. Pay Attention to What Comes Next
When you finish an assignment, look ahead. Did the deposition identify records we should request? Does the upcoming hearing require exhibits we still need to assemble? Raise the issue with the partner and ask who will handle it. You are learning to manage a matter, and that requires seeing beyond the task in front of you.
Look for ways to help the firm, too. Share useful research. Help a newer associate. Offer to assist with a client presentation. Follow through when a partner includes you in business development. You do not need your own clients to contribute to the relationships that bring work through the door.
If you attend a client meeting, prepare. Learn who will be there and what the meeting concerns. Ask the partner how you can help. Take useful notes and complete whatever follow-up you accept. These opportunities show you how relationships develop. Treat them with the same care you give an assignment that ends in a filed brief. Your preparation helps the partner include you in more of those conversations later.
11. Become Someone Others Can Count On
Partners have a role in this. They should explain assignments, answer questions, and make time to teach. Associates need feedback and a manageable workload. A firm that wants good associates has to invest in developing them.
For your part, focus on what you can do with the next assignment. Understand it. Do it carefully. Keep people informed. Ask for help when you need it. Learn from the review. You build trust through those ordinary decisions, repeated over time. When a partner knows you will take care of the work, that partner has a reason to give you more responsibility. That is how you grow.
Frank Ramos is a partner at Goldberg Segalla in Miami, where he practices commercial litigation, products, and catastrophic personal injury. You can follow him on LinkedIn, where he has about 80,000 followers.
The post How To Better Serve Your Firm And Partners As An Associate appeared first on Above the Law.
Recent Comments