Any successful civil litigation matter depends on the parties’ ability to communicate intricate legal concepts and arguments straightforwardly and convincingly. Whether during depositions or trials, strong written and oral communication can influence the outcome of the case.
Good communication skills benefit legal professionals in several ways, both with clients and internally at the firm. Key strategies include active listening, effective questioning, empathy, understanding, clarity, and conciseness.
Preparing for Trial
For attorneys, the days and weeks before trial may be a mad dash as they gather evidence, formulate their case theory, and craft the most engaging story possible. Attorneys may need help to stay on top of all the information due to the complexity of those duties.
Effective communication is a critical component of civil procedure. Scott A. Schweber attorney can communicate clearly with all stakeholders, including opposing counsel, clients, witnesses, and judges. They must also be able to convey complex legal concepts and arguments understandably to all audiences.
As improved technology makes global communication more commonplace, all lawyers must remain aware of language and culture’s impact on judicial outcomes. They must be able to communicate with people of all backgrounds, and they must be able to facilitate communication for their clients with disabilities or limited English proficiency.
Preventing Disputes
In the case of a civil dispute, effective communication prevents many potential misunderstandings and disagreements from developing. It guarantees that all parties to a contract are aware of each other’s responsibilities and expectations, as well as any potential changes to the terms of the agreement. It also creates a collaborative atmosphere where problems can be found and resolved quickly.
In a professional setting, effective communication allows managers to provide employees with clear and consistent information in the preferred delivery method. For example, some employees prefer face-to-face communication, while others prefer email or other digital forms of communication. Regardless of the process, a manager should always consider whether the communication is urgent, primary, or sensitive and choose the most appropriate channel.
Moreover, it is essential to ensure all communications are appropriately documented. Any documents or data valid in a lawsuit should be carefully recorded and stored to avoid being lost to routine document destruction processes during a dispute resolution.
Communicating with Your Clients
Managing expectations is a massive part of the communication process for civil litigation clients. This can be done in various ways, but it’s essential to always be clear with your client about what they can expect from their case. This will help prevent them from being startled by unexpected developments or feeling dissatisfied at the end of their matter.
Legal clients are accustomed to white-glove service, which includes consistent communication protocols. It’s critical to create systems that make effective communication a standard part of your practice and empower your team to communicate with prospects and clients on their preferred platforms.
Practical communication skills are often overlooked during law school and CLEs but are essential for a civil attorney’s success. By learning to effectively communicate with your clients, staff, other attorneys, and a judge, you can build strong relationships that set you up for success in your litigation cases.
Communicating with the Court
In legal matters, addressing the court and being transparent with the judge is critical to moving cases forward quickly and efficiently. Knowing and understanding the judicial audience’s needs, assumptions, knowledge, and ways of thinking is essential.
It’s crucial to keep your communication style simple and appropriate for the people you’re speaking to, even litigants representing themselves. For example, if you use a term that the litigants might need to become more familiar with, provide a brief and clear explanation.
Research shows that judges’ communication choices influence actual and perceived fairness in the courtroom. Effective communication includes verbal and written words, nonverbal behaviors, and listening skills. Personal characteristics conveyed through language, such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, education level, literacy, and region of origin, are fertile ground for conscious and unconscious bias in communication. Good communication skills offset this potential to some extent.
