These bad habits can be the beginning of the end of the lawyer-client relationship:

• Hang up on your client.
• Consistently get your accounts wrong.
• Never answer your phone – have the answering machine pick it up.
• Take your time getting back to clients.
• Constantly tell clients how swamped you are.
• Be clueless about your client’s business.
• Double-lawyer as much as possible.
• Disclose information from another retainer.
• Don’t keep your client in the loop.
• Don’t bother to contact your clients until you send them your bill.

For more information, please read CBA PracticeLink's full article: What Do Your Clients Really Think of You?

This article was published in the June 2005 issue of BarTalk and is subject to the copyright by the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, 2005, all rights reserved.