When I started my own practice over five years ago, I accepted all kinds of clients, and I was happy to perform legal work for pretty much everyone. As time went on, and I became busier and busier, I had to make decisions about how to allocate my time. In some circumstances, I turned down work from difficult clients I had previously represented. Of course, it makes sense to turn down work from clients if the client does not regularly pay their bills or there is an ethics issue, but in other circumstances, it might also make sense to turn down work from clients.
Any seasoned lawyer can convey how some clients are easier to deal with than others. Certain clients respect boundaries, get tasks done on time, and make it easier for lawyers to handle the work at hand. However, some clients are extremely difficult to deal with, and it might not be worth the headache to continue with these clients.
Several years ago, I had a client for a few months who seemed normal enough. The client came recommended by another lawyer I trusted, so I thought that I had stumbled into a good situation and that the client and I would develop a strong professional relationship. The client did joke that he was difficult to deal with, which I should have taken as a warning sign, but — at the time — I thought this was just a joke.
The client ended up being very difficult to work with. For instance, the client routinely would call around 6:45 in the morning with matters that could have easily waited until business hours commenced. One time, the client called me on a religious holiday — that the client told me he was also observing — and became displeased when I said I could not talk during that day.
The client was also difficult to manage during litigation matters. The client did not want to extend the most basic courtesies to the other side, which made my life more difficult because I had a tough time obtaining extensions and other breaks during the representation as well. The client was also extremely critical of me during the representation. The client was astonished that I could not remember the smallest details of a deal offhand and criticized me greatly for not being able to recall a deal term in conversations with the other side.
When the representation concluded, I resolved that I would not perform any additional work for the client since I had enough work from other sources, and generating revenue from the client was not worth the trouble. A few weeks after the initial representation concluded, the client reached out to me about handling a new portfolio of work. I conveyed that I was busy and would not be able to assist with this work. The client got the message, and I know the client had had several other lawyers in the recent past, so he was probably used to being fired by his attorneys. I never regretted turning down that client’s work since my firm was generally busy and didn’t need the trouble.
There might be a sentiment among lawyers that attorneys should not turn down work since the legal profession is extremely competitive, and it is difficult to judge when a lawyer will be slow with work. However, the legal profession is difficult enough without having to deal with clients that cause excessive amounts of trouble in the representation. More lawyers should feel empowered to fire clients that are difficult to work with, especially if their practices are more developed and they can make choices about which types of work to handle.
Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothmanlawyer.com.
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