The Counselor-at-Law: A Collaborative Approach to Client Interviewing and Counseling

Cover Page
Prefatory Material
LexisNexis Law School Publishing Advisory Board
Title Page
Copyright Page
Terms Of Use
Dedication
Acknowledgment
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 — THREE MODELS OF LEGAL COUNSELING
§ 1-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 1-2. THE AUTHORITARIAN MODEL
§ 1-3. THE CLIENT-CENTERED COUNSELING MODEL
§ 1-4. THE COLLABORATIVE DECISION-MAKING MODEL
Chapter 2 — HOW LAWYERS CONTROL CLIENTS
§ 2-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 2-2. TRANSFORMING THE CLIENT’S CASE
§ 2-3. CONTROLLING THE CONVERSATION
§ 2-4. INSIDER STATUS FOR SALE
§ 2-5. STRUGGLING FOR POWER
§ 2-6. TRANSLATING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 2-7. CRAFTING THE LAWYER-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP THROUGH COLLABORATIVE NEGOTIATION
§ 2-8. CONCLUSION
Chapter 3 — COMMUNICATION SKILLS
§ 3-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 3-2. LISTENING
§ 3-2(a) Paying Attention
§ 3-2(a)(1) Paying Attention Physically
§ 3-2(a)(2) Paying Attention Mentally by Active Listening
§ 3-2(b) Actively Listening to the Client’s Nonverbal Messages
§ 3-2(b)(1) Body Language
§ 3-2(b)(2) Eyes
§ 3-2(b)(3) Facial Expressions
§ 3-2(b)(4) Using Knowledge of Body Language
§ 3-2 (c) Using Knowledge of Psychological Type
§ 3-3. BUILDING RAPPORT
§ 3-3(a) Mirroring
§ 3-3(a)(1) Mirroring the Client
§ 3-3(a)(2) Mirroring the Client’s Language
§ 3-4. WHAT TO AVOID
§ 3-4(a) Professional Blindness
§ 3-4(b) Hardening of the Categories
§ 3-5. VERBALLY RESPONDING TO THE CLIENT
§ 3-5(a) Responsive Statements
§ 3-5(a)(1) Clarification Responses
§ 3-5(a)(2) Reflective Statements
§ 3-5(b) Kinds of Reflective Statements
§ 3-5(b)(1) Paraphrasing
§ 3-5(b)(2) Reflecting Content Alone
§ 3-5(b)(3) Reflecting Emotion Alone
§ 3-5(b)(4) Reflecting Both Content and Emotion
§ 3-5(c) Summarizing
§ 3-5(d) Silence
§ 3-6. ASKING QUESTIONS
§ 3-6(a) Closed-Ended Questions
§ 3-6(b) Open-Ended Questions
§ 3-6(c) General Guidelines for Using Open and Closed Questions
§ 3-6(c)(1) The Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Type of Question
§ 3-6(c)(2) Asking These Questions in Context
§ 3-6(c)(3) Summary
§ 3-6(d) Leading Questions
§ 3-7. FINAL WORDS
Chapter 4 — BEGINNING THE LEGAL INTERVIEW
§ 4-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 4-2. EFFECTIVE LEGAL INTERVIEWING: BUILDING RAPPORT AND GATHERING INFORMATION
§ 4-3. THE GENERAL ELEMENTS OF AN EFFECTIVE LEGAL INTERVIEW
§ 4-4. THE STRUCTURE OF AN EFFECTIVE LEGAL INTERVIEW
§ 4-4(a) Overall Goals
§ 4-4(b) Structure
§ 4-5. THE OPENING STAGE OF THE CLIENT INTERVIEW
§ 4-5(a) Physical Surroundings
§ 4-5(a)(1) The Office Building
§ 4-5(a)(2) The Lawyer’s Office
§ 4-5(b) Opening the Interview
§ 4-5(b)(1) General Guidelines
§ 4-5(b)(2) Building Rapport: Conveying Acceptance
§ 4-5(c) Opening the Interview: Meeting and Greeting the Client
§ 4-5(c)(1) Introductions
§ 4-5(c)(2) Ice Breaking
Gay Gellhorn, Law and Language: An Empirically Based Model for the Opening Moments of Client Interviews
Gay Gellhorn, Law and Language: An Empirically Based Model for the Opening Moments of Client Interviews
§ 4-5(c)(3) Time Constraints and Purposes of the Interview
§ 4-6. EXPLANATIONS
§ 4-6(a) Confidentiality
§ 4-6(a)(1) Discussing Confidentiality
§ 4-6(a)(2) Talking About Confidentiality at the Initial Interview
§ 4-6(b) Fees
§ 4-6(b)(1) Talking About Fees
§ 4-6(b)(2) Talking About Fees at the Initial Interview
§ 4-7. SAMPLE DIALOGUE TO OPEN A CLIENT INTERVIEW
§ 4-8. CONCLUSION
Chapter 5 — HEARING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 5-1. THE FRAMING STATEMENT
§ 5-2. GETTING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 5-2(a) Opening Questions
§ 5-2(b) Avoiding Narrow Frames
§ 5-2(c) Providing Context
Gay Gellhorn, Law and Language: An Empirically Based Model for the Opening Moments of Client Interviews
§ 5-3. HEARING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 5-3(a) Getting Past Framing Statements
Gay Gellhorn, Law and Language: An Empirically Based Model for the Opening Moments of Client Interviews
§ 5-3(b) Identifying the Client’s Goals and Interests
§ 5-4. LAWYER DISTORTIONS
§ 5-4(a) Interruptions
Linda F. Smith, Interviewing Clients: A Linguistic Comparison of the “Traditional” Interview and the “Client-Centered” Interview
§ 5-4(b) Narrow Questions and Premature Diagnosis
§ 5-4(c) Cross-Examination
§ 5-5. CLIENT DISTORTIONS
§ 5-6. SUMMARY
Chapter 6 — DEVELOPING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 6-1. FRAMING STATEMENT: REPEATING THE HIGH POINTS
§ 6-2. CLARIFYING AND EXPLORING THE CLIENT’S STORY
§ 6-2(a) Funnel Sequences
§ 6-2(b) Helping Clients Explore Their Memories
§ 6-2(c) Statements of Understanding
§ 6-3. AN EXAMPLE OF SUCCESSFULLY EXPLORING A CLIENT’S CASE
Gay Gellhorn, Law and Language: An Empirically Based Model for the Opening Moments of Client Interviews
§ 6-4. ENDING THE INITIAL INTERVIEW
§ 6-4(a) Defining the Role of the Attorney
§ 6-4(b) Things to Do at the End of Every Interview
§ 6-4(c) Things to Do When No Decision About the Case is Made at the End of the Initial Interview
§ 6-4(d) Things to Do When a Decision About the Case is Made at the Initial Interview
§ 6-5. CONCLUSION
Chapter 7 — DECISION-MAKING
§ 7-1. LEGAL AND THERAPEUTIC COUNSELING: SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
§ 7-2. APPROACHES TO LEGAL COUNSELING
§ 7-2(a) The Client-Centered Approach
§ 7-2(b) The Authoritarian Approach
§ 7-2(c) The Decision-Counselor Approach
§ 7-2(d) Collaborative Legal Counseling
§ 7-3. COMMON ELEMENTS OF EFFECTIVE LEGAL COUNSELING
§ 7-3(a) Relationship Building Practices
§ 7-3(b) Decision Process Practices
§ 7-4. FACTORS THAT INTERFERE WITH EFFECTIVE DECISION-MAKING
§ 7-4(a) Satisficing
§ 7-4(b) Elimination by Aspects
§ 7-4(c) Information Processing Flaws: Heuristics and Biases
§ 7-4(c)(1) Heuristics
§ 7-4(c)(2) Biases
§ 7-4(c)(2)(i) Availability Biases
§ 7-4(c)(2)(ii) Representative Biases
§ 7-4(c)(2)(iii) Anchoring and Adjustment Biases
§ 7-5. DEALING WITH UNCERTAINTY
§ 7-5(a) Risk
§ 7-5(b) Framing Gains or Losses
§ 7-5(c) Guidelines for Accurately Framing Risk
§ 7-6. CONCLUSION
Chapter 8 — CLIENT COUNSELING
§ 8-1. THE LAWYER’S RESPONSIBILITIES IN COUNSELING CLIENTS
§ 8-2. THE RHYTHM OF COUNSELING
§ 8-3. DESCRIPTION
§ 8-3(a) Accuracy, Objectivity, and Completeness
§ 8-3(a)(1) Assess the Client’s Case
§ 8-3(a)(2) Identify the Alternatives
§ 8-3(a)(2)(i) Minimal Acceptance Criteria
§ 8-3(a)(2)(ii) Cover a Wide Range of Options
§ 8-3(a)(2)(iii) Generality of Options
§ 8-4. DISCUSSION
§ 8-4(a) Client/Lawyer Collaborative Deliberation
§ 8-4(b) Structuring the Discussion
§ 8-4(b)(1) Agree on the Options Under Discussion
§ 8-4(b)(2) Agree on the Criteria Used to Evaluate the Options
§ 8-4(b)(3) Apply the Criteria in a Rigorous and Systematic Fashion
§ 8-4(c) The Decision Sheet
§ 8-4(c)(1) The Consequences to the Client
§ 8-4(c)(2) The Consequences to Others
§ 8-4(c)(3) Consequences for the Client’s Self-Image
§ 8-4(c)(4) Consequences for the Client’s Reputation
§ 8-4(c)(5) Reviewing the Decision Sheet
§ 8-5. DECISION
§ 8-5(a) Choosing the Option that Best Meets the Client’s Values and Goals
§ 8-5(a)(1) Making an Optimal Choice
§ 8-5(a)(2) Making Comparative Judgements
§ 8-5(a)(3) Making the Decision
§ 8-5(a)(4) Reviewing the Decision
§ 8-5(b) How to Structure the Decision Phase
§ 8-6. GIVING CLIENTS BAD NEWS
§ 8-7. CONCLUSION
Chapter 9 — MORAL CHOICES IN THE LAW OFFICE: WHO GETS HURT? AND WHO DECIDES?
§ 9-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 9-2. AUTHORITARIAN LAWYERS: THE GURU AND THE GODFATHER
§ 9-2(a) The Lawyer as Guru
Harrop Freeman, The Rabbi and the Horse-whip Lawyer
§ 9-2(b) The Lawyer as Godfather
§ 9-3. CLIENT-CENTERED COUNSELORS: THE LAWYER AS HIRED GUN
§ 9-4. COLLABORATIVE LAWYERS: THE LAWYER AS FRIEND
Anthony T. Kronman, The Lost Lawyer
§ 9-5. AVOIDING LAWYER DOMINATION
§ 9-6. MORAL DISCOURSE WITH CORPORATE CLIENTS
§ 9-7. CONCLUSION
Chapter 10 — TO SUE OR SETTLE?: COUNSELING ABOUT DISPUTE RESOLUTION
§ 10-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 10-2. COUNSELING CLIENTS ABOUT NEGOTIATION
§ 10-3. COUNSELING CONCERNING ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Chapter 11 — DEALING WITH CLIENT-LAWYER DIFFERENCE
§ 11-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 11-2. THE IMPACT OF DIFFERENCES ON THE LAWYER-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP
§ 11-2(a) Cultural Encapsulation
§ 11-2(b) Sensitivity to Different Cultural Rapport-Building Rituals and Patterns
§ 11-3. STEPS TO BECOMING MORE AWARE OF CULTURAL ENCAPSULATION
§ 11-3(a) Expectations
§ 11-3(b) Empathy
§ 11-4. CAUTION NOT TO STEREOTYPE BY ATTRIBUTING GROUP PREFERENCES TO INDIVIDUALS
§ 11-5. DO’S AND DON’TS
§ 11-6. SUMMARY
Chapter 12 — LAWYERS, CLIENTS, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE THEORY
§ 12-1. INTRODUCTION
§ 12-2. AN OVERVIEW OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPE THEORY
§ 12-2(a) Two Mental Functions, Perception and Judgment, Influence Communication Between Lawyers and Clients
§ 12-2(b) Two Directions of Energy: Extraverting or Introverting
§ 12-2(c) Two Lifestyles
§ 12-3. REFLECTING ON YOUR TYPE PREFERENCES
§ 12-4. VALUE OF TYPE KNOWLEDGE
§ 12-5. TYPE AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT
§ 12-6. THE FOUR PREFERENCE SCALES APPLIED TO LEGAL INTERVIEWING AND COUNSELING
§ 12-6(a) The Perception Functions: Sensing or Intuition
§ 12-6(b) The Judgment Functions: Thinking or Feeling
§ 12-6(c) Direction of Energy: Extraversion or Introversion
§ 12-6(d) Lifestyles: Judgment or Perception
§ 12-7. TYPE DYNAMICS
§ 12-8. USING TYPE IN PROBLEM SOLVING
§ 12-9. CONCLUSION