Attorney Journal, Orange County, Volume 151

ORANGE COUNTY

Volume 151, 2018 $6.95

Do Not Overspend on Law Firm Office Space

Kirk C. Stange

Expectations for Persuasive Female Litigators

Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm How to Meet a New Prospect Without Cold-Calling

Craig Brown

Networking: Planning, Persistence, and Practice

Vanessa Hill and Amanda Peth

Why Your Law Firm’s Blog Probably Sucks

Ross Fishman

Things Lawyers Do …

Matthew Fawcett

Attorney of the Month

Peter Maretz Stokes Wagner, ALC, Serving Orange County White Glove Service for Orange County’s Hospitality Industry

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Attorney Journal - Oct 2018 OUTLINES.pdf

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Keller/Anderle LLP BUSINESS TRIAL LAWYERS

2018 EDITION—NO.151

TABLE OF CONTENTS 6 Networking Planning, Persistence, and Practice

by Vanessa Hill and Amanda Peth

10 Things Lawyers Do ...

by Matthew Fawcett

12 Community News

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EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Brian Topor

14 Do Not Overspend on Law Firm Office Space

EDITOR Wendy Price

by Kirk C. Stange

CREATIVE SERVICES Skidmutro Creative Partners

ATTORNEY OF THE MONTH

16 Peter Maretz White Glove Service for Orange County’s Hospitality Industry

CIRCULATION Angela Watson PHOTOGRAPHY Chris Griffiths STAFF WRITERS Dan Baldwin Jennifer Hadley CONTRIBUTING EDITORIALISTS Craig Brown Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm Matthew Fawcett Ross Fishman Vanessa Hill Amanda Peth Kirk C. Stange WEBMASTER Mariusz Opalka ADVERTISING INQUIRIES Info@AttorneyJournal.us SUBMIT AN ARTICLE Editorial@AttorneyJournal.us OFFICE 30211 Avenida De Las Banderas Suite 200 Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 www.AttorneyJournal.us ADDRESS CHANGES Address corrections can be made via fax, email or postal mail.

by Jennifer Hadley

16 22 How to Meet a New Prospect Without Cold-Calling

by Craig Brown

26 Expectations for Persuasive Female Litigators

by Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm

28 Why Your Law Firm’s Blog Probably Sucks

by Ross Fishman

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Editorial material appears in Attorney Journal as an informational service for readers. Article contents are the opinions of the authors and not necessarily those of Attorney Journal.

Attorney Journal makes every effort to publish credible, responsible advertisements. Inclusion of product advertisements or announcements does not imply endorsement.

Attorney Journal is a trademark of Sticky Media, LLC. Not affiliated with any other trade publication or association. Copyright 2018 by Sticky Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced without written permission from Sticky Media, LLC. Printed in the USA

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NETWORKING

Planning, Persistence, and Practice

by Vanessa Hill and Amanda Peth

D

o not just attend an event—attend with purpose. To go with purpose means setting goals. Clearly, you want to enjoy your time, but you hope to have ROI too. Look ahead to see what you need to accomplish before, during, and after the event and determine if it is a worthwhile investment of your time, money, and energy. Attending the actual event is just one piece of the master plan.

Know your elevator pitch for this crowd

Before

Know where you are going

Plan ahead and set goals An often overlooked but very important step is research.

Consider looking into: • Who are the sponsors?

• Who is on the Board?

• What is the reason for the event?

• What kind of individuals will be attending (i.e. attorneys or sales people)?

With this information, you can be strategic. Think about the persons from your firm who should attend the event and whether you should invite others to sit at your firm’s table. While you are in the planning stages, keep your team (marketing, legal assistants, etc.) in the know. They may be able help you with some of the pre-event to-dos.

Goals may be simple: • Meet someone new.

• Talk to at least one committee member or honoree.

• Talk to people standing by themselves (be that lifesaver!).

You will make your goals a little more targeted if you have pre-identified marketing targets. Then a goal could be to introduce yourself to a business development target you know will be in attendance. (Because you did your research, you know who will be there). Many goals will require you to get up from your firm-sponsored table and mingle. Add your goals to your Outlook calendar as a friendly reminder.

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Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

Should we play Darth Vader’s entrance music for this tip?

Everyone at your firm should already have an elevator pitch, a succinct description of your firm and your role. Use the research you did to fine-tune your pitch. It may only need tweaking depending on the specific event or a recent development at your firm (i.e. an award, a new practice area, a recent public trial in the media).

When you have a free moment a few days before the event, look up the location and what the parking situation will be.

Knowing this in advance will make it easier to schedule the right amount of time for the drive and the parking. It will help you to feel less stressed and ready to be a networking rock star.

Eat a snack before you go Yes, really. Don’t show up hangry. You are there to socialize, which means shaking hands and talking with others. You cannot do this with an appetizer plate in your hand and food in your mouth. If it is a sit-down dinner, you never know how long it will take for the food to reach the table. Your brain needs fuel to stay sharp and focused on your conversation (not on how hungry you are).

During Name tags Name tags are your friend. They serve a purpose, so use them well. Always place the name tag on your front right side. Why? Because when you shake someone’s right hand, the name tag is then in their line of sight and allows them to easily read your name without making it obvious or awkward. Another reason is some event organizers leave the name tags laid out on the check-in table throughout the entire event. You do not want your name or the firm’s name to be sitting there as a “no show.”

Hold a drink in your left hand

Simple table etiquette

Some people find comfort in getting a drink and holding it throughout the networking event. That’s fine if it helps you interact with more people. However, always hold your drink in your left hand. This will keep your right hand free for handshakes and avoid that weird moment of having to wipe your hand on your clothes from holding the cold/ wet glass.

Let’s not forget that our non-verbal actions sometimes speak louder than words. Practice the good table manners your mother taught you.

Business cards

This system works well. You think you will remember specifics about the people you engage at an event, but some details will be forgotten unless you jot them down. Notes on the back of business cards may also serve as a reminder for you to follow up with your marketing team about the people you met.

Some think business cards are old fashioned, but some fashion makes sense and never goes out of style. Have plenty of your business cards easily accessible. No digging through your purse or pocket and handing off a card that looks like it has been in there for weeks. Also, be sure you ask people for their business cards; they will appreciate it.

Phones Never make people compete for your attention with your smartphone. It’s rude. Some may think it makes them “look important,” but in reality, the important people are too busy talking to groups of attendees to peek at emails. The only time you should have your phone out is to take pictures, jot down a quote or note about the event, post on social media about the event, or in an emergency (of course).

Don’t just talk about yourself People love to talk about themselves, so encourage them to do so. A good way to start is to compliment them on something, or ask simple, open-ended questions. (Avoid religion and politics!) Questions like: • What made you come to this event?

• Did you see (sports game) last night?

• How did you hear about this event?

• How are you connected with the organization?

• Are you from this area?

Always try to repeat the person’s name during the conversation. This will help you remember the name, plus, it shows you care.

Vanessa Hill oversees and implements the firm’s marketing programs and keeps partners abreast of current trends and strategies in legal marketing. She serves as event coordinator for all firm events at Levi’s Stadium and the SAP Center of San Jose.

After Write notes on the back of business cards

Thank you notes come in all forms Take the time to hand-write a thank you note and send it through the mail, type up a timely email, or even send a public or private thank you message on social media (when appropriate). A simple thank you in any form will be noticed, appreciated, and may even be shared with others in your network.

Take on social media Your go-to follow-up goal should always be something social media related. Share pictures from the event (organizations love when guests do this), connect with someone you met at the event, like or share posts from those who already posted, etc. It’s easy, fast, and effective.

Inform your marketing team Use your marketing team as a resource. Set up post-event meetings (just 15 minutes will do) to discuss how they may help you and the firm gain the most from your efforts.

They can help you plot out your next steps. They may even suggest new items to help you connect with organizations or key targets from the event.

Armed with these helpful tips and tricks, you are ready to attend events with purpose. Make each event a success.

And one last tip…don’t forget to enjoy yourself. n

Amanda Peth is a member of McManis Faulkner’s marketing team, Amanda is responsible for crafting, tracking, and implementing marketing strategies regarding client development, social media, and general public relations. Learn more at https://www.mcmanislaw.com.

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

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The Federal False Claims Act Process is Complex Don’t let your client’s case be lost due to hyper-technical procedural mistakes

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We’ve been litigating FCA cases for 30 years, are active participants in the major qui tam attorney organizations, and regularly share expertise with other practitioners. Our co-counsel have extensive experience as former governmentfalse-claims prosecutors, so we know what aspects of the case to focus on to encourage the government to intervene.

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Wrongful Termination and Retaliation claims

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Things Lawyers Do ...

by Matthew Fawcett

I

just took my first long vacation in, well, pretty much ever.

I’ve taken time off before of course, but this was my first two weeks out of the office in 25 years. And that includes two honeymoons, by the way.

I spent those two weeks in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, the perfect place for me. Each morning, my toughest decision was: do I want to swim, play tennis, wake surf, or golf? Or just spend the day strolling, eating and relaxing with my kids? Many days we did all of the above.

It was the ideal time “away,” the perfect opportunity to step back from all of my work, to stop thinking about or acting on any of it. But here’s the thing: I didn’t. I don’t mean that I couldn’t bring myself to, or that I wasn’t strong enough to resist my email and to-do list. I just didn’t find it appealing to shut down all my work completely. Doing so didn’t feel right and it wouldn’t have made me happy.

Work Isn’t the Opposite of Life Every day, I worked at least a little bit. I was in maintenance mode, focusing on the things that mattered the most and staying on top of critical things. As a result, I came home to a clean inbox, refreshed from my glorious two weeks but still confident that I was in control of my work.

We hear a lot about “work/life balance,” that elusive equilibrium between the two halves of our modern lives.

It is the professional side, we are always told, that needs to

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Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

be contained and controlled, or else it will dominate the personal side. We hear that technology has allowed our work to invade our life, and that we must fight those incursions even more in the modern world.

I don’t buy it. I don’t accept the premise that work and life are two separate ideas sitting on opposite ends of a teeter-totter, where only one can get the priority at any moment, at the expense of the other. We don’t—we can’t— live successfully in this zero-sum mindset.

An Equation That Never Balances I think this way of thinking sells work short. If you love (or even just like) your “work,” it gives your “life” purpose and meaning, and work is part of who you are and what you enjoy.

Focusing on it and thinking about it, even while on vacation, isn’t bad or distracting or a debit from your personal life. It is just natural. And if you really can’t stand work intruding on your life, the problem might not be that you can’t separate the two. Maybe you just don’t like your job.

Everyone complains about the tyranny of new technology, that it can be such an annoyance and distraction, an intrusion. But that same technology lets us to switch quickly between work and personal modes like never before. It can give us precious flexibility to make both our personal and professional lives better. How many people get to take a little bit more time on that long weekend, tack a few days onto

their vacation, or go to a child’s lacrosse game, because they know they will have access to email? Or be able to dial in for that one really important meeting?

For people who need to completely wall out work in order to relax … good luck with that. It might work for you but for me, and for many of the people I know, it is both unrealistic and not fulfilling. How often can you take that sort of complete break in a busy life? And how does it feel to come back to complete chaos in your work?

Is that relaxing?

Real Balance Means Accepting Work and Life Together I believe that drawing hard lines between work and life is more destructive than constructive. Fighting against the reality of today’s world will make you embittered and resentful of your “work.” Your colleagues and bosses will see it too and view you through a lens of entitlement and inflexibility, leading to other challenges.

Managing both in harmony really means enjoying your entire life and living it in a way that works for you.

That is just as true on a normal Monday standing at my desk in Sunnyvale as on a Saturday afternoon at the lake in Idaho.

So, what did I bring back from this long-awaited vacation, besides great memories? I came back energized and focused, excited to get back to the colleagues and work that I missed during my absence. And I immediately booked my two-week vacation for next year. n Matthew Fawcett is the senior vice president and general counsel of NetApp, Inc., the data authority in the hybrid cloud. Matt is responsible for NetApp’s legal affairs worldwide. He has overseen the development of NetApp Legal into a global high-performance organization with a unique commitment to innovation and transformation. He is a frequent speaker and author on the topics of innovation in the legal industry and leadership and management issues broadly. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattfawcett.

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Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

11

COMMUNITY news  L. Song Richardson, Dean of

UCI Law, received the 2018 “Be The Change” Legal Excellence Award at the 2nd Annual Diversity & Inclusion Unity in Service Celebration. In addition Casey Johnson, a partner at Aitken * Aitken * Cohn LLP, and OCBA Board Member Rick McNeil, a partner at L. SONG RICHARDSON Crowell & Moring LLP, also received the award.

The “Be The Change” Legal Excellence Award recognizes “outstanding legal jurists, scholars, legal professionals and changemakers who possess courage, compassion, leadership, decisiveness, kindness, strength, openmindedness, freedom from bias and a commitment to equity, equality and justice for all.”

 Umberg Zipser LLP is pleased to announce that attorneys Mark Finkelstein, Carole Reagan, Adina Stowell, Tom Umberg and Dean Zipser have been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2019. Finkelstein was again selected in the fields of “Litigation – Intellectual Property” and “Litigation – Patent” DEAN ZIPSER and has been on the Best Lawyers list since 2016.

Reagan was again selected for “Litigation – Intellectual Property” and has been on the Best Lawyers list since 2013. Stowell was selected for “Litigation – Intellectual Property” and “Litigation – Real Estate.” This is her first year on the list. Umberg has been on the Best Lawyers list since 2008, and was selected for TOM UMBERG “Commercial Litigation” and “Litigation – Real Estate.”

Zipser was again selected for “Bet-the-Company Litigation,” “Commercial Litigation,” “Litigation – Banking and Finance,” “Litigation – Intellectual Property,” and “Litigation – Real Estate,” and has been on the Best Lawyers list since 2008. Zipser was previously recognized

by Best Lawyers as the Lawyer of Year in Orange County for “Litigation – Intellectual Property” in 2017, and as the Orange County “Lawyer of the Year” in the “Bet-theCompany Litigation” category in 2014.

 Sevy W. Fisher, attorney at The

Simon Law Group, has been named a 2018 TOP GUN Trial Lawyer of the Year by the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association.

Fisher has been recognized as a “Young Gun” and will be recognized at the TOP GUN Trial Lawyers and Hall of Fame Award Recipient event on December 1, 2018, at the Westin South Coast Plaza.

SEVY W. FISHER

 Gregory G. Brown, Partner at

Brown & Charbonneau, LLP has been named to the 2019 Best Lawyers in America list in the field of Personal Injury LitigationPlaintiffs. Brown is a Certified Specialist in Civil Trial Advocacy, a distinction earned by only 140 lawyers in California. A trial lawyer GREGORY G. BROWN for over 29 years, he has spent over 500 days as lead trial counsel in jury trials throughout California. He is a member of The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) and has been selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers for nine years straight. He is also a graduate of the internationally renowned Strauss Institute for Dispute Resolution and the National Institute of Trial Advocacy.

 Ernest L. Weiss, Shareholder of

Klinedinst PC – Santa Ana, was recently appointed Vice-Chair of USLAW NETWORK’s Complex Tort and Product Liability Practice Group.

USLAW NETWORK is an international, invitationonly organization with over 60 ERNEST L. WEISS independent, full-practice firms with more than 6,000 member attorneys. Attorneys within the Complex Tort and Product Liability Practice Group include leaders in the field who regularly represent major clients in product liability matters domestically and across the globe.

Have a Press Release you would like to submit for our Community News?

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Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

Email it to PR@AttorneyJournal.us

 Three trial attorneys from the personal injury law firm of Bisnar Chase were selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2019. Senior partner Brian Chase, partner Scott Ritsema, and personal injury attorney H. Gavin Long were all recognized in the publication.

Chase was named Lawyer of the Year for Mass Tort Litigation and Class Actions while Chase, Ritsema and Long were named in the Personal Injury Litigation and Product Liability Litigation categories.

“This is a tremendous honor for our trial team at Bisnar Chase,” said Brian Chase. “I look at it not just as a feather in the cap for individual attorneys, but as an affirmation of the excellent work our entire staff puts into every case, and the quality of service we provide to every client.”

BRIAN CHASE

GAVIN LONG

SCOTT RITSEMA

 The law firm of Dunn DeSantis Walt & Kendrick is pleased to announce

the addition of attorneys Christine Dixon, Teagan Dow, and Bradley Lebow to its growing team. Dixon focuses her practice on representing Californiabased businesses in commercial and employment matters. She has extensive experience in the defense of commercial and professional liability matters.

Dow’s practice focuses on advising clients on employment law and litigating labor, employment and workers’ compensation matters throughout California. She provides guidance and proactive advice regarding wage and hour issues, disability/leave management, and preventative counseling geared toward minimizing risk to employers.

Lebow represents businesses – from Fortune 100 companies to start-ups and individuals – in a broad range of commercial litigation matters as well as advises on risk management and contract issues. He also has extensive experience representing regional, national, and international law firms in complex professional liability litigation. Dunn DeSantis Walt & Kendrick has locations in San Diego, La Jolla, Irvine and Dallas.

BRADLEY LEBOW

CHRISTINE DIXON

TEAGAN DOW

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

13

Do Not Overspend On Law Firm Office Space

by Kirk C. Stange

W

hen lawyers are selecting office space for their law office, the decision is often very difficult. For most lawyers, they want office space that sends a message.

They want office space that is going to impress and attract clients. They want to feel great when they are sitting in their shiny office.

At the same time, some lawyers can really be tempted to overspend on office space. In other words, they can obligate themselves to pay for office space that increases the overhead of the law firm in an unreasonable manner. They might do so because the space is impressive. They might do so because they are so overly optimistic about how their law firm will do.

To make matters worse, many law firm owners personally guarantee their office space. This means that if they ever fall behind on rent, not only can the landlord come after the law firm itself, but they can come after the law firm owner personally.

When choosing law firm office space, lawyers should undertake a careful review and analysis of their revenue and their budget. For many law firms, this may mean sitting down with an accountant or financial professional and really digging into the numbers before signing any lease.

Certainly as well, location matters as it relates to law firm office space. In many localities, and for many law firms, clients are used to going to a particular area of town to seek out a lawyer. If a law firm is not located in the part of town that top clients are used to going to, it can result in a law firm missing out on the quality clients the law firm needs.

On the other extreme, it is true as well that a law firm should not sign a lease for space that sends the wrong message about the law firm. In other words, while A and B office space might be okay, do you really want C and D office space just because

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Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

the rent is cheap? It is also not helpful if the law office is in a location that the quality potential clients you are seeking will not go. The reality is that—even if the space is cheap—it might be difficult to get the best clients if the space sends the message that the law firm is a fly-by-night operation.

Ultimately, law firm owners should really take the time to determine how much rent they can comfortably afford, while still having an appropriate profit margin. They then need to know what part of town their law firm office should be and the space features they need. For most law firm owners, they then need to get the very best space available at that price in the desired location and with the appropriate space attributes.

However, if a law firm owner really breaks the bank on office space, and goes above and beyond what they should spend, it can cause the law firm all kinds of financial problems in the long run. It can result in a law firm not hitting the profit margin numbers they need to hit.

Or worse yet, it can result in some law firms even going in the red and being unable to pay their rent. This is where many law firms and law firm owners can get themselves in deep financial trouble. This is particularly true where the lease is long-term— and the law firm owner has signed a personal guarantee.

No law firm or law firm owner wants to get behind on rent.

Thus, be careful not to overspend or over-commit on law firm office space. n Kirk C. Stange is a founding partner of Stange Law Firm, PC. Stange Law Firm, PC has offices in the Midwest in Missouri, Illinois and Kansas.

In addition to practicing law, Kirk spends time educating attorneys and other law professionals at CLE Seminars through the Missouri Bar, myLawCLE, the National Business Institute and other organizations.

Learn more at: https://www.stangelawfirm.com.

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White Glove Service for Orange County’s Hospitality Industry Driven by Passionate People, Stokes Wagner Provides 5-Star Legal Services to Those in the Business of Spectacular Service

by Jennifer Hadley

“Because high touch service is at the heart of our clients’ operations, it is likewise a part of our fabric at Stokes Wagner,” says Shareholder Peter Maretz. “With Orange County being a premier tourism destination, the Stokes Wagner brand is fortunate to represent many different businesses of all sizes, but our typical client is a high-end hotel or restaurant,” he adds.

For his part, the patently energetic and incredibly friendly Maretz says that although he didn’t set out to work in hospitality, or even employment law, he’s eternally grateful that the chance presented itself. “The opportunity to focus on hospitality really found me, but I love it and it matches who I am so well. The commitment to customer service drives me to the hospitality industry,” he explains. Plus, he adds, “One of my favorite things to do in all the world is to cook, so I love being around chefs, cooks, sommeliers, restaurateurs, and the like. God help the cook being interviewed by me! It’s all I can do to not talk about recipes or techniques,” he says with a smile.

Better yet, to hear Maretz tell it, his colleagues at Stokes Wagner all share a similar enthusiasm for their work with hospitality clients, which is one reason why so many benchmark establishments such as Dorchester Collection, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Kimpton Hotel Group, Viceroy Hotels & Resorts, the Mandarin Oriental, and Nobu Hotels have come to rely on the experienced employment lawyers at Stokes Wagner.

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Origins of the One-of-a-Kind Firm “We trace our roots to a firm that began in San Diego in 1987,” says Maretz. However, since the firm’s inception, it’s fair to say that Stokes Wagner has undergone a unique metamorphosis, transforming into a truly niche firm, with principles, values, and energy unmatched by others in the hospitality law arena.

Maretz attributes this evolution to the leadership of renowned trial attorney and name partner Arch Stokes. “He’s our patriarch, and the firm is a reflection of his passion, expertise, and enthusiasm,” says Maretz. “Plus, he’s been trying—and winning—cases forever,” he adds.

Indeed, the firm, which is comprised of 17 Shareholders, Senior Counsel and Associates, with offices throughout California, as well as Pittsburgh, Atlanta, and Ithaca, NY, has a long history of success in trial representing some of the world’s most recognized hospitality brands. That success, however, has nothing to do with luck, but is the direct result of the firm’s principles, values, and flat out passion for what they do.

“We are often hired to try the very difficult cases and we

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believe our success comes from looking at cases differently and presenting them differently. For example, we recently faced one of LA’s known plaintiff’s attorneys in a wrongful termination/ discrimination case on behalf of an iconic 5-Star hotel. We were fortunate to have worked with that particular hotel since its opening, and helped craft its culture. This is not unusual for us, and in discussing the case with jurors following the defense verdict, they relayed that they could not accept that the conduct our client was accused of could exist in the strong positive culture of the hotel. We were humbled by that affirmation,” Maretz says.

Helping hospitality brands to build harmonious cultures is possible due to the firm’s dedication to risk mitigation, through the practice of preventative law. To that end, Maretz says that very specific strategies, principles and practices are in place at Stokes Wagner, to ensure that the attorneys know their clients’ business from A to Z. For example, our proprietary “Lawdit” is a top to bottom examination of a hotel or resort’s operations. The flat fee retainer relationship that Stokes Wagner offers fosters frequent communication between clients and attorneys. “By offering reasonable flat fee retainers, we encourage our clients to call us at any time, with any question, without worrying about a meter running,” Maretz says.

“We removed the biggest barrier, by encouraging clients to reach out. This makes for smarter clients who call us before issues arise that lead to a lawsuit. We have found this to be incredibly helpful in avoiding many problems. In fact, many of our clients won’t engage in major discipline, or a termination without bringing us in. That’s the advantage of the flat fee retainer. “We want them to call us, and they do.”

Moreover, clients can feel comfortable in calling the attorneys at Stokes Wagner day or night as well. “Hotels are open 24/7 and issues arise at any time. That’s why every one of my clients has my cell number, and knows they can call me any time, day or night.

Frankly, while I’d much prefer everything was always running smoothly for my clients, I like getting the calls at 1 or 2 in the morning when an emergency arises. My clients know they can look to me in a crisis, and I like that,” he says sincerely.

Hospitality clients also feel comfortable calling on Maretz and his colleagues, because they know the attorneys at Stokes Wagner truly understand their operations. That’s in part attributable to the fact that the vast majority of attorneys and support staff at Stokes Wagner have a background in hospitality themselves.

However, any who don’t happen to have that background will get hands-on experience in learning their clients’ business from the ground floor up, through a unique program created at Stokes Wagner.

“Not only have many of our attorneys worked in the hospitality field, but we have a program where we send our associates on mini ‘internships,’ where they actually join a client’s workforce and work their business. This affords us an invaluable perspective into our clients’ business.”

Stokes Wagner goes even further in getting to know the ins and

outs of the clients it represents, in many cases through the use of the wholly comprehensive 360-degree Lawdit® audit, which was the brainchild of Arch Stokes. “We are the first lawyers to apply a holistic approach to auditing hotels using the Lawdit process,” Maretz says. “We understand our primary job is to prevent problems before they happen. Rather than stoking the flames of conflict, we proactively seek to eliminate risk, by continually developing the best practices within the ever-evolving world of legal compliance in the hospitality industry. It’s just another of many innovative approaches we take to servicing our clients,” Maretz says.

Continuing he explains, “We take the time to get to know their people. We understand the heartbeat of the hotel or restaurant.

We spend a lot of time in their property, and make it a point to learn their sensitivities, to learn what their goals are, and to get to know the personalities of their staff,” he explains. “This has proven invaluable when lawsuits do arise.”

Successful Cases Speak to Client-Centric Service Though the team at Stokes Wagner are broadly defined as “employment lawyers,” make no mistake, the firm has fierce trial lawyers in its ranks, as evidenced by multiple trial victories on behalf of their clients. Maretz summarizes a few of them.

“A career-defining case for me was Dupree v. Sajahtera, Inc., a multi-plaintiff case involving an iconic 5-Star hotel in Beverly Hills. It was our first case for that hotel, and we were hired over the hotel’s long-time counsel, a national labor and employment firm. The suit was being followed by everyone at the hotel. The line employees with no direct involvement in the case were deeply interested in the outcome and it was clear they viewed it as a baseless attack on the strong culture they had worked so hard to create. The litigation lasted over 3 years, and the trial took 5 weeks. Our client was elated with news of the defense verdict,” he recalls.

In another case, O’Brien vs. Sajahtera Inc., Maretz says the Stokes Wagner trial team pulled out all the stops in court, using a $2,000 bottle of wine as an exhibit. In that case, they again prevailed, in what was the first case wherein a sommelier was found exempt under the learned professional exemption.

Likewise, the team at Stokes Wagner settled a dispute favorably on behalf of Pick Up Stix in Chindarah v. Pick Up Sticks, which established a basis for settling directly with employees in a putative wage and hour class action.

Ethos of the Firm: Energy, Experience, Enthusiasm Although the firm’s success in trial, extra-mile efforts to provide easy access to advice and counsel, and innate understanding of the way its clients operate, are reasons for the firm’s success, none of them would have been possible without the passion driving the people at Stokes Wagner.

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Contact Peter Maretz Stokes Wagner, ALC One America Plaza 600 West Broadway, Suite 910 San Diego, CA 92101 619.237.0909 pmaretz@stokeswagner.com www.stokeswagner.com 20

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

EXPERIENCE

“Arch deserves the credit for the incredible people at Stokes Wagner. He’s been asking potential hires, and even jurors, ‘What is your favorite thing to do in the world?’ for years. We always want to know what makes people tick.

We want to know what makes jurors tick, what our clients are passionate about, and what potential hires are passionate about. Of course, we look to hire people who are interesting. But, more than that, we look for people who are interested. I don’t care if it’s sailing or Minnesota wild rice, show passion for things if you want to work with us,” Maretz says.

For Maretz personally, a career as an advocate and ally for those in the hospitality industry evolved incredibly naturally, after initially catching him off-guard. “My father was a transactional lawyer, and a very good one. I spent so much time at his office as a kid—whether working there or just hanging out—and I thought what he did was so boring. I knew I’d be anything but a lawyer when I grew up. But when I was in college I took a psychology and the law class, and we studied the psychological aspects of trying a lawsuit. I fell in love with the artistry of being a trial lawyer. I also inherited from my father an unwavering commitment to client service. He would 100% walk through fire for his clients, no matter what. That was very cool to me then, and I still think it’s what being a lawyer is all about.”

Rest assured, Maretz spends his days with like-minded colleagues who feel the same way about the practice of law, and the end result is a culture at Stokes Wagner unlike anything he’s seen in his 27 years of practicing law.

“I’m in this firm because I love the people in my firm. I love my partners, the associates and all the staff. I want to work with these people. We are all doing something we love to do. The dynamic in our firm overall, and the San Diego office in particular, is just magic. Everyone gets along amazingly well, and we have so much fun working together. Arch Stokes is a terrific mentor.

The opportunities he’s made possible for me, and for all of us, are way too numerous to mention. There’s not another lawyer like him. He’s unbelievably well-read, and has an unquenchable thirst for life. It’s just fun being around him.”

Maretz feels a similar fondness for the clients Stokes Wagner works with from coast to coast. “I love my clients, and I’m genuinely interested in who they are, and what makes them tick. I crave knowing how their kids are doing, what music they like, what their favorite thing to do in all the world is, you name it.”

As far as the future of Stokes Wagner is concerned, Maretz says the firm intends to grow commensurate with the exploding Orange County hospitality industry, but the growth and addition of new attorneys and support staff will be done carefully. “We want to preserve the magic in our firm. We insist on maintaining an environment where everyone is excited about what we’re doing. Where we all enjoy what we do. Of course, you can run a law firm without that palpable feeling of enthusiasm, but why would you want to?” n

» EDUCATION • University of California, Hastings College of the Law, J.D. – 1989 • Executive Editor, Hastings Law Journal • Dartmouth College, A.B. Psychology – 1984

» PRACTICE AREAS • • • • •

Hospitality Business Disputes Employment Litigation Preventive Law Labor Relations Federal Contractor Compliance

» HONORS & AWARDS • AV Preeminent Martindale Hubbell Rating, 2017 • San Diego “Top Lawyers” – San Diego Magazine, 2013-2017

» PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND ACTIVITIES

• Member, Board of Directors, California Restaurant Association, San Diego Chapter • Member, Hospitality in Human Resources Association • Member, Society for Human Resources Management

» CALIFORNIA BAR ADMISSIONS • U.S. District Court Southern District of California • U.S. District Court Central District of California • U.S. District Court Northern District of California • U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit

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How to Meet a New Prospect

Without Cold-Calling

I

by Craig Brown

come from a skiing family—not a “luxury condo at Vail” kind of skiing family, but more of a “tromp through the parking lot in ski boots with your sack lunch because your mom won’t let you buy a $12 burger in the lodge” kind of skiing family.

Recently I asked my mother why we became so involved in skiing, an expensive sport, when we were not a family of substantial means. She explained that one of the reasons was the magic of the ski lift. Having your teenage sons all to yourself for the time it took to get to the top of the mountain was pure gold to a mother who wanted to understand what was going on in the lives of her children. During that short trip she could get information, build trust, give advice, and become closer to her kids.

Of course, business people have been doing this for years.

Golf, ball games, and fishing trips all mirror that same experience—an activity that allows focused one-on-one time with someone important to your business success.

The convenient and fast-track version of that experience is the classic business lunch. In less than 90 minutes, business 22

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

people can come together, build trust, understand one another better, and strengthen relationships in a relaxed and casual setting that is conducive to fostering strong bonds and positive feelings.

However, it’s not just about good feelings. Studies show that the business lunch creates better business outcomes. In an experiment conducted by Lakshmi Balachandra, Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at Babson College and Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, simulations confirm that eating together in a restaurant during a negotiation increases the combined value of the outcome by 12%.

Anecdotal evidence supports this study. Kim Schmittel, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Stites & Harbison, PLLC, reports that “lunch with clients or potential clients is an easy way to strengthen relationships without so much pressure. It’s an opportunity to get to know someone on a more personal level while also gaining insights into any business challenges they may be experiencing. This in turn provides an avenue for you to help solve problems.”

The many tips, tactics, and rules for ensuring the success of

the hosted business lunch could fill volumes. (Google “business lunch” and you’ll find plenty of advice.) My top 21 ideas are listed below.

However, the most important rule of the business lunch is this: Know what you want and plan for it.

At the outset, you should know what you are trying to achieve with the meeting. Is it merely social and a way to stay in touch and show appreciation? If so, make sure you do just that—connect, build common ground, and show appreciation. If the purpose of the lunch is more concrete— to move something forward or to introduce a new idea or get agreement—make sure you’ve identified the outcome you desire and plan for it in advance. Begin with the end in mind and craft the meeting that will get you there. Come ready to explain your position briefly and know exactly what, when, and how you will ask for the outcome you want.

Leaving a lunch with warm handshakes and happy smiles is great if that was the objective, but don’t get caught leaving a meal if your objective was something more solid. Be ready to

ask for what you want. If you are initially rebuffed, present the next best result you want.

Some lunches are no less a business meeting than meetings you hold in a conference room. If it’s important, thinking about it casually in the cab ride to the restaurant is not enough.

Enter the restaurant with a plan and the chance of a better outcome increases.

In addition to knowing what you want, I’m offering my list of business lunch rules below.

You probably have others that work for you. Please share. I’d love to hear about them. n Craig Brown uses his experience as a lawyer, business developer and seminar leader to train and coach lawyers to build relationships that lead to strong books of business and satisfying careers.

Widely recognized as an authority on building law firm clientele, Craig has worked with law firms for over twenty-five years in the areas of business development, training, coaching, strategy, knowledge management, research and as a practicing attorney.

Learn more at: http://lawvisiongroup.com/consultants/craig-brown.

Craig Brown’s Top 21 Tips for Hosting a Business Lunch 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Nail down the restaurant logistics—reservations, directions, parking, menu, and so forth.

Tardiness—not good.

Make it easy on your guest—be easy to find in an easy to find place where it’s easy to talk.

Etiquette—bread to the left, drink to the right, use the correct fork, use your napkin, take small bites, etc., etc.

Phone—you know what to do.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

Order something easy—skip the lobster and ribs and anything else that requires a bib.

17.

Drinks—skip them. If you can’t skip them, order only one, only light, and only if others join you.

18.

Know when to jump in—make small talk before you order, talk business after you order.

Be interesting—lunching with a one-dimensional person is intolerable. Before you leave the office, check up on industry news, entertainment, and sports (try Google news for ideas).

Remember the personal—“How is your son, Jack, enjoying Yale?”

19.

20.

21.

Know your agenda—review the key items you want to discuss before you get there.

Listen.

No whining—it’s not about you.

Don’t linger—one hour max.

Don’t ambush—tell your guests in advance why you are meeting. Don’t spring it on them during coffee.

Pay—make it clear that you are paying. Reach for it, pay for it, and don’t make a big deal about it.

Don’t jack with the staff—people like people who treat people like people.

Be likeable—if they walk away thinking you are an unpleasant person, you’ve wasted sixty bucks and an hour of your day. Don’t be an ass.

Breakfast might be easier—defer to your guest.

Encourage the unemployed—offering to buy lunch and helping a prospect in between jobs = a friend for life.

Relax—it’s just lunch.

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

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Expectations for Persuasive Female Litigators

by Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm

O

ne way to stir up a controversy is to talk about the social expectations that apply to female litigators. The ABA Journal recently played host to that discussion after an article by Debra Cassens Weiss on showing anger in the courtroom quoted an essay in The Atlantic by former public defender and current law professor at the University of San Francisco, Lara Bazelon. Based on a review of the literature and interviews with many female trial lawyers, Ms. Bazelon shares her belief that a narrower range of acceptability actively limits what she can teach her female students in law school. Drawing from her own experience, she notes, “My supervisors also reminded me to smile as often as possible to counteract the impression that my resting facial expression was too severe. I even had to police my tone of voice. When challenging a hostile witness, I learned to take a ‘more in sorrow than in anger’ approach.”

This discussion led to an emphatic response from Cris Arguedas, a defense attorney in several high-profile matters including Barry Bonds’ perjury trial in San Francisco. She argues that, rather than limiting themselves based on perceived expectations, female litigators need to employ the full range of delivery, including anger, depending on the situation. “A skilled examiner must be able to use all the tools.” Differing expectations 26

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

on anger is, of course, just one aspect of the context a female attorney faces, but it is one of the more salient distinctions, and one that has seen recent relevant research. As it regards acceptable expressions of anger, I believe that the exchange highlights two separate questions: One, “Are there differences in the latitude of social acceptance for female attorneys?” and two, “If so, does that mean that female attorneys should hold back?” I think the answers are, respectively, “Yes, to some extent,” and “No, not necessarily.” I’ll briefly unpack both of those in this article.

The Research: Anger Helps the Male Attorney, Hurts the Female Attorney

Writing about perceived differences in the acceptability of assertiveness by gender, Ms. Bazelon notes in her article, “This isn’t just dated wisdom passed down from a more conservative era. Social science research has demonstrated that when female attorneys show emotions like indignation, impatience, or anger, jurors may see them as shrill, irrational, and unpleasant.” On that score, she is right.

A just-released study published in Law and Human Behavior (Salerno et al., 2018) underscores that point. Researchers from Arizona State University looked at in-court expressions of anger

by attorneys and found, “when expressing anger relative to when calm, female attorneys were seen as significantly less effective, while angry male attorneys were seen as significantly more effective.”

7

Calm Attorney Angry Attorney

Attorney Effectiveness

6 5

4.92

5.32

5.26 4.65

4 3 2 1

Male

Female

One Implication: The Difference Isn’t Tremendous

The difference between men and women represented in the chart above is statistically significant. And, of course, it is also notable that the directions are reversed for male and female attorneys: Consistent with the perceptions and the experiences Ms. Bazelon shares, expressed anger helps male lawyers and hurts female lawyers.

But it is also worth noting that the difference isn’t overwhelming. It likely reflects real differences in social expectations, but that doesn’t mean that women are uniformly punished for expressing anger, and it certainly doesn’t mean that Ms. Arguedas is wrong to show anger when she thinks the situation in the courtroom demands it. One can’t run a study on each individual, and it stands to reason that there are high levels of individual difference regarding the latitude of what one can get away with in court.

Another Implication: What’s Measured Is Really Acceptance

In the study quoted above, the dependent variable was broadly labeled “effectiveness,” but was measured through asking research participants about positive or negative inferences (e.g., “strong” or “shrill”), and also through asking participants whether they would hire the attorney they saw on video. Of course, there’s a business development implication there for female attorneys if people say they’re less likely to hire the angry ones, but neither of these measures looks at whether the anger increases or decreases one’s ability to persuade in a given case.

For example, in the response article in the ABA Journal, Ms.

Arguedas notes, “even the jurors who don’t like the aggression will get over it,” and she quotes one juror commenting on her cross-examination style post-trial, “I thought you were a bitch, but that witness was a liar.” The social expectation doesn’t necessarily negate the effectiveness.

Final Implication: Comfort Matters

It is critical to filter these results through the eye of the beholder. The article exchange between Ms. Bazelon and Ms. Arguedas provides one window into a personality difference that likely plays an important role in mediating the individual effectiveness of anger as a technique. In the Atlantic article, Ms. Bazelon makes clear that she has spent her life trying to avoid emotional expression. “When I got angry,” she writes, “I had to stifle that feeling.” She notes that she tells her students, “adhering to biased expectations and letting slights roll off their back may be the most effective way to advance the interests of their clients in courtrooms that so faithfully reflect the sexism of our society.”

In contrast, in her response article, the author, Ms. Arguedas, is clearly more comfortable with expressing her full range when the situation calls for it. And it isn’t necessarily that one woman is wrong and the other is right: Both may simply have a good understanding of what works for them.

As Ms. Arguedas concludes, “The most important thing is that an attorney maximizes her power and authority in the ways that are most natural and authentic to her.” On a similar note, the ABA Journal article by Debra Cassens Weiss quotes Chicago attorney and managing partner Patricia Brown Holmes, noting that this authenticity is the key: “The lawyer who screams or is angry at trial but is normally not that way is not often well-received. But the lawyer who shows the jury their true self—whether that is passionate, angry, sincere or otherwise—will be better received.”

An ease in using the full communication spectrum when it suits you translates into greater confidence, perhaps explaining why anger seems to work for Arguedas, but apparently not for Bazelon.

So, the final implication is this: Find your own level of comfort. Don’t ignore social expectations, but don’t be fenced in by them, either. What matters most, no matter the gender, is to zealously fight for your client using all the tools that will work for you. n Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm has provided research and strategic advice on several hundred cases across the country for the past 16 years, applying a doctorate in communication emphasizing the areas of legal persuasion and rhetoric. As a tenured Associate Professor of Communication Studies, Dr. Broda-Bahm has taught courses including legal communication. To learn more visit http://www.persuasionstrategies.com.

Salerno, J. M., Phalen, H. J., Reyes, R. N., & Schweitzer, N. J. (2018). Closing with emotion: The differential impact of male versus female attorneys expressing anger in court. Law and human behavior. 42:4, 385-401.

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Why Your Law Firm’s Blog Probably Sucks

by Ross Fishman

C

an we get real here for a minute? Most law firm blogs suck. They really, really suck. And yours is likely to suck too. I responded to a question on an online legal marketing group posed by someone whose firm was struggling to re-launch a blog "to promote business and visibility" and improve their Google ranking. But the lawyers "didn't want to participate." She wanted to know how to get it going. I told her to not bother.

That wasn't a criticism of her firm; her experience is very common. I know I’m going to get all sorts of crap from the people who write or sell law firm blogs for a living, but here’s how I perceive the situation: There’s very little chance that any law firm’s blog is going to be especially successful. I know that sounds apocalyptic, but let’s be realistic. Under the best circumstances blogs are very, very hard.

After reading an article about how some firm’s blog magically landed it at the top of Google searches and was a panacea that solved all of its marketing challenges, catapulted it to market leadership, and generated an appalling amount of new revenue, innumerable firms have launched blogs— without considering that their firm hasn’t historically been able to manage a quarterly newsletter. (They also failed to notice that sensationalized article was written by someone who sells blogs to law firms for a living.)

In reality, blogs are really freakin’ hard for most law and other professional-services firms. And they’re even harder to read.

Remember, Fishman Marketing designs law firm websites, so we see a lot of long-dead blogs stinking up the firms’ old home pages. Here’s what I’ve seen most consistently: A law firm excitedly announces its new cleverly named blog and posts 3-4 entries the very first week! (“Look! We’re blogging!”) They submit two posts the next week. Then nothing in week three but posts one more entry in week four.

The next one comes 6 months later. Then never again. The date on the “Publications” section on the home page is three

28

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years old. Instead of looking like dynamic market leaders, they look ineffectual.

Why? Lawyers are busy. They bill hourly. And writing regularly is really hard. Trust me, I write a couple blogs myself. I’m both opinionated and I enjoy writing, and it’s still hard to push out reasonably meaningful content somewhat consistently. (Feel free to subscribe at fishmanmarketing.com/blog … !)

Exacerbating this is most lawyers’ writing style, which is stiff and stilted. They’re not comfortable writing in the casual 8th-grade style demanded by Internet readers. Internal approvals take too long. No one owns the blog or takes personal responsibility for its long-term success, so posts are assigned on a monthly editorial calendar to a random group of faceless associates, so there’s no consistent style or “voice.”

(You know, just like The New York Times does.)

Plus, the firm’s leadership has never answered some fundamental questions, like: • Who’s our specific audience?

• Why will our blog be better than the countless other existing publications on this topic from paid bloggers or professional publishers like ALM? » Will ours be better written, more entertaining, more targeted, or provide better information?

• Will it measurably improve our Google rankings? » And if it does, do we care, i.e. will better SEO generate meaningful revenue?

• Our audience is busy; they don't have time to read much, so why would they choose to read our blog over the many other competitors for their precious attention, things like The Wall Street Journal, People magazine, Harry Potter, Facebook, Instagram, porn, or simply going home?

• What is the chance we’ll be able to write at least every single week for at least 2-3 years?

I could go on.

Basically, for a blog to be effective, I think you need at least one person who (1) is simply passionate about writing, and (2) has countless interesting opinions about a narrowly focused topic. The world doesn’t need another generic “Law” blog or other broad area that is already being ably covered by a few thousand other blogs that are currently being read by … almost nobody.

There are currently 350 million Tumblr blogs online and hundreds of millions more WordPress blogs (see e.g. https:// www.statista.com/statistics/256235/total-cumulativenumber-of-tumblr-blogs/). How will your blog rise to the top of that immense pile?

My point is, if you’re having this much difficulty getting your very first entry posted, how likely is it that it’s going to get easier over time? Is this really the best use of Marketing’s time and effort? Aren’t there other proven marketing tools that could have a higher chance of success at your firm?

To throw a bone to the blog-sellers whose neck veins are

popping right now, I’m not saying that there aren’t some wildly popular and successful revenue-generating law firm blogs out there. There are. But in my experience, of the incalculable number of legal industry blogs currently in print, they’re the exception.

Consider: Is your blog likely to climb ahead of tens of thousands of other firms’ blogs if you’re already having difficulty getting your very first post written? Sure, maybe, I don’t know your firm.

Hey, I’ll grant you, this is only my personal opinion, I could be wrong. But c’mon, deep down, you know I’m probably not. n Ross Fishman is a former litigator, big-firm Marketing Director, and Marketing Partner. Ross has conducted more than 300 law firm retreats, CLE and Ethics presentations, and marketing-training programs on six continents, from New Mexico to New Zealand, and California to Croatia. Ross is also the Founder of Fishman Marketing, a one-stop solution for strategy, marketing, branding, and leadingedge websites. Learn more at: https://www.fishmanmarketing.com.

Attorney Journal Orange County | Volume 151, 2018

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