You will very likely read this column in December. It will be a hectic time on campus, with the end of the semester approaching and winter board meetings looming. It will also be a season of festivity and year-end reflection. In the spirit of the holiday season, let’s take a quick look at the presents you have received this year from your campus lawyer. And let’s acknowledge the kindnesses you, in turn, have extended to your counsel.
Lawyers are in the service business. Whether campus lawyers are employed in-house or at a law firm, whether they are experienced or just starting out, they perform their duties in accordance with well-understood expectations and obligations. Your lawyer’s gift list to you includes generous quantities of the following.
- Responsiveness. A diligent lawyer should understand the importance of returning telephone calls and moving communications promptly from in-box to out-box. Boards have the right to expect promptness and responsiveness from anyone the institution engages to provide legal services.
- Lucidity. Experienced campus lawyers communicate with governing boards in language that is comprehensible, understandable, and as direct as possible. Board members—most of whom are not legally trained—expect their lawyers to explain technical matters in understandable terms that are not obscured by legal jargon or acronyms.
- A propensity to solve problems. Board members come to lawyers when they have problems and need the lawyer’s help resolving them. They don’t want lawyers to tell them what they cannot do. They want solutions, usually quickly and neatly. Good lawyers explain why a particular course of action is wise or unwise and, as appropriate, offer options.
- Candor. By virtue of their positions and the roles they play, lawyers are called upon to communicate unwelcome or unexpected news. They do so candidly and constructively. Boards do not appreciate surprises, and they do not want to hear from their lawyers only when the news is good.
- Judgment. Legal issues are rarely simple by the time they reach the board level. Board members—because they come from varying backgrounds and are trained in different disciplines—often see options and alternatives that run counter to the lawyer’s advice. A lawyer may bring weeks or even months of familiarity to bear in determining which option serves the institution’s interest best. Board members may have only a few hours or days to absorb the lawyer’s counsel. Good lawyers contribute judgment that comes from years of training and long experience with that institutional client. Good lawyers see the whole picture and take the long view in determining which course of action supports and addresses the institution.
Just as board members expect their campus lawyer to exhibit certain professional characteristics, they should appreciate that their lawyers have expectations of them as well.
- Reciprocal candor. Board members should resist the urge to pick and choose what they disclose to their lawyers. A lawyer should be told everything. Trustees, in return, have the right to expect the lawyer’s discretion and confidence.
- Effort when requested. Lawyers give their clients assignments. For example, if a trustee asks the campus lawyer for advice in analyzing a potential conflict of interest, the lawyer may ask him or her to locate and share pertinent files and documents. Board members should exhibit the same diligence in responding to requests for assistance that they expect in return from their lawyers.
- Perspective. The lifetime of most legal projects is long, often longer than clients would prefer. A board member may mistake an inconsequential setback for a lawyering failure. Just as lawyers offer perspective as one of their most important professional attributes, their clients need to understand the ebb and flow of a legal matter and understand there will be occasional bumps as those matters get resolved.
In this year-end season of celebration and contemplation, here’s wishing the best for our board members and the lawyers who serve their legal needs.
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