Today John Henry talks to me about “professionalism.” He begins by telling me I will soon develop a reputation amoung lawyers, judges, court clerks and bailiffs, court reporters and people in the community. He tells me my reputatuion in the long run is all I have. John Henry makes a big deal about “professionalism.” He tells me I must practice law at my highest level at all times. He tells me I must look like a professional, speak like a professional, write like a professional and be a professional.

Look Like a Professional. John Henry says dress like I am going to cout. This means a suit or sport coat with a pressed shirt and tie. This means pressed slacks and dress shoes that are shined. John Henry likes Hickey Freeman for suits and sport coats. He wears Gitman shirts. His shirts are dry cleaned. He likes Allen Edmunds shoes. He  wears a belt matching his shoes. He wears subtle colors. John Henry fits the stereotype of a successful lawyer. He says “to be succseeful look successful.”

Speak Like a Professional. John Henry reminds me we earn our living by talking and how we speak is essential to our success. First, think before I speak. Refrain from senless bable. He reminds me of the Lincoln quote “It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.” He tells me to speak with power. This means speak in nouns and verbs. Eliminate modifiers- adverbs and adjectives that suck the blood out of a message of nouns and verbs. Words that have no place as far as John Henry is concerned are: pretty,  little, probably, maybe – any word or phrase that telegraphs weakness, doubt or uncertainity.

Write Like a Professional. As well as speaking we earn our living by writing. John Henry gives me Strunk & White, The Elements of Style, and tells me to read it from cover to cover. Read it every year until it is engrained into my writing (and speaking). He tells me never to write something I do not want the world to read. He says this is especially true with e-mails.  On writing he likes to stick to the point, make the point and move to the next. He likes short paragraphs. He likes the rule of three.

Timeliness. John Henry says always be on time. Plan ahead. there is no excuse for being late. John Henry says timeliness means returning telephone calls, and correspondence. Timeliness also means meeting deadlines, including discovey deadlines.

Kindness. John Henry explains a professional is kind. He says “you never know who you are being nice to.” John Henry says learn the other person’s story and therefore who they are.  Here John Henry says the secret is listen. John Henry likes a “soft cross examination.” He prefers to make the witness his rather than destroy the witness.

I feel fortunate. I have landed an associate position. Not a traditional associate position, but a job working for an experienced lawyer-a personal injury (PI) lawyer. He is a member of the law firm Weiss  Henry, Jones, & Bennett (WHJB).

In a traditional law partnership the partners collectively share their profits, or divide them based on a formula at the end of the year. The partners have associates that they bill at a rate at least twice the amount they pay the associate. In this way the law firm can represent multiple clients through the use of associates, and make more money along the way. This traditional formula works for lawyers who bill on an hourly basis.

My cases are billed on a contingency fee basis. This means our law firm or my partner John Henry (JH) does not bill on an hourly basis. He represents injured people without taking a retainer from the client and without billing them for his time. Rather he takes a percentage of the recovery-generally one third. At WHJB the partners each have their own cases and do not share their fees. The partnership is a cost partnership meaning the only sharing is with common overhead such as rent, the receptionist and our internet law library. JH gives me smaller cases and I work them to completion with his help. He pays a salary and keeps his share of the contingent fee.

Most important for me JH is teaching me how to be a lawyer. JH says law school is necessary to become a lawyer but that’s about it. JH says law school has little to do with how to be a lawyer. JH says being a PI lawyer is about two things. First is helping the little guy against the big insurance company. JH says in a car collision case the defendant runs over the plaintiff and then the defendant’s insurance company runs over the plaintiff . The PI lawyer stands in the way of the insurance company and gets fair value (justice) for the little guy. Second the PI lawyer makes a decent living along the way. According to JH this means taking cases he has a likely chance of winning. Sometimes JH loses. He says this is what happens when we try cases on a regular basis.

JH says insurance companies also run over  lawyers who do not try cases. This is because they know they can settle the non trial lawyer’s cases for minimum value since the insurance company has no risk.  It is only when the insurance company has a risk of loss at trial that they may pay fair value. So JH is teaching me how to be a trial lawyer. I’m about to meet a new client so I have to go. Soon I will report on my first lesson on being a trial lawyer.