Attorney Journals, San Diego, Volume 218

SAN DIEGO

Volume 218, 2021 $6.95

What You Can Do to Combat Ransomware

Brad Paubel

7 Great Habits of the Most Successful People

Brian Tracy

Discrimination in Earnings Analyses

Jamie T. Haven & Brian P. Brinig

How to Disengage from a Dead-End Conversation

Mike O’Horo

Marketing for Lawyers and Writing for Relationships

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE OF THE MONTH

David V. Lorenzo

Ankura, Irvine

Local Service with Global Reach

How to Interview Prospective Clients

Trey Ryder

Law Firm of the Month

Fielding Law, APC Serving San Diego ®

The Right Time, the Right Place, It’s Time for Expansion

SPECIALIZING IN COMPLEX BUSINESS LITIGATION

BET-THE-COMPANY CASES OVER 65 YEARS OF COMBINED EXPERIENCE REFERRALS/SUBSTITUTIONS ACCEPTED AT ALL STAGES OF LITIGATION, INCLUDING TRIAL • Complete defense jury verdict in real estate dispute and more than $400,000 collected for attorneys’ fees and costs in Batter v. McElhinney, et al. (2019)(Jason Kirby).

• $2.1 million jury verdict for firm client in Doe v. San Diego Unified School District, et al. (2018)(Jason Kirby & Michael Kirby).

• $1.1 million arbitration award for firm clients on cross-complaint after zeroing plaintiff on $6 million damage claim in Step Strategy Advisors v. Solid Gold Health Products for Pets, Inc., et al. (2018)(Jason Kirby lead counsel).

• Michael Kirby received the 2021 Best Lawyers in America® distinction for (1) Bet-the-Company Litigation, (2) Commercial Litigation, (3) Litigation – Real Estate, and (4) Litigation – Securities.

501 West Broadway | Suite 1720 | San Diego, CA 92101 | 619-487-1500 | www.kirbyandkirbylaw.com

2021 EDITION—NO.218

TABLE OF CONTENTS 6 What Every Lawyer and Law Firm Can Do to Combat Ransomware

by Brad Paubel

8 Discrimination in Earnings Analyses

by Jamie T. Haven and Brian P. Brinig

12 Seven Great Habits of the Most Successful People

by Brian Tracy EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Brian Topor

LAW FIRM OF THE MONTH

16 Fielding Law, APC, Serving San Diego The Right Time, the Right Place, It’s Time for Expansion

EDITOR Wendy Price CREATIVE SERVICES Penn Creative CIRCULATION Angela Watson

by Dan Baldwin PROFESSIONAL PROFILE OF THE MONTH

PHOTOGRAPHY Chris Griffiths STAFF WRITERS Dan Baldwin Jennifer Hadley CONTRIBUTING EDITORIALISTS Brian P. Brinig Jamie T. Haven David V. Lorenzo Mike O’Horo Brad Paubel Trey Ryder Brian Tracy ADVERTISING INQUIRIES Info@AttorneyJournals.com SUBMIT AN ARTICLE Editorial@AttorneyJournals.com OFFICE 30213 Avenida De Las Banderas Suite 200 Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688 www.AttorneyJournals.com ADDRESS CHANGES Address corrections can be made via email or postal mail.

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22 Ankura, Irvine Local Service with Global Reach

by Dan Baldwin

24 Networking: How to Disengage from a Dead-End Conversation

by Mike O’Horo

26 Marketing for Lawyers and Writing for Relationships

by David V. Lorenzo

28 How to Interview Prospective Clients

by Trey Ryder

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What Every Lawyer and Law Firm Can Do to Combat Ransomware

by Brad Paubel

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ansomware is a massive problem. A $20 billion problem in 2021, to be exact. Any business and organization can be a target—including and especially law firms.

That’s because, like banks and hospitals, law firms possess a significant amount of sensitive data entrusted to them by clients. That can prove irresistible to ransomware hackers, who are increasingly organizing sophisticated operations that run like a business, except their focus is cybercrime.

There is also much at stake for any business that falls victim to a ransomware attack. In addition to having sensitive information fall into the hands of organized criminals, those bad actors can demand as much as $700,000 per server to release data. The average total ransomware amount paid is now around $1.2 million per incident. There is also the uncertainty as to whether cyber criminals can be trusted to decrypt the data when a ransom is paid and not sell it on the so-called dark web to other nefarious individuals.

Thankfully, there are ways lawyers and law firms can protect themselves to both prevent a ransomware attack and even stop one that’s in progress before a situation becomes dire. In addition, it is not always necessary to pay a ransom—but that will depend on how quickly a breach attempt is spotted and stopped.

How Ransomware Works Ransomware attacks happen when a bad actor tricks someone in an organization to click on a link or download a file that installs a virus on their computer. This activity is called “phishing” and can involve hundreds of attempts against any computer user on a given network. Once downloaded, that malware will start to encrypt all the files on that individual’s computer—and then move on to any system connected to that computer. The malware does not stop with one computer or device: anything on the same network will soon be vulnerable.

These attacks are organized and directed. Sometimes there are hundreds of people working together to penetrate

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a particular business. They also do their research and will tailor ransom demands to the size and revenues of the designated target.

Once a network is infected and as many files as possible are encrypted, users will receive a ransom demand asking for payment of a certain amount of money—usually in Bitcoin or another untraceable cryptocurrency—to have the attackers decrypt the files. Previously, paying the ransom would unlock the data. More recently, however, ransomware criminals have taken ransom payments and unlocked files but then also keep the data and offer it for sale on the dark web. Yet another reason why preventing a ransomware attack in the first place is so important.

Early Signs of a Ransomware Attack A ransomware attack does not happen without visible signals that, if noticed, can prevent substantial damage from happening. These are the most common warning signs: • An increase in phishing attempts. If a firm’s lawyers and staff start noticing a significant uptick in spam emails, that could be a sign bad actors are looking for ways to plant malware. Since it only takes one person clicking on a bad link or mistakenly downloading a virus-laden file to potentially infect an entire network, any increase in phishing attempts should immediately set off alarm bells.

• Unauthorized access alerts. A firm’s network administrator may see an increase in unauthorized access attempt notifications. Individuals could also receive emails letting them know someone has tried to reset their passwords. This activity could indicate a ransomware attack is underway.

• Virus protection alerts. If an outside bad actor is trying to place malware on someone’s computer, any installed virus protection software may raise an alert

and block the program from running. Having up-todate antivirus software is an excellent idea as it can serve as the first line of defense.

• Scrambled file names or contents. When malware encrypts the data on a computer, it will often scramble the names of files or make the files inaccessible. If a user is looking at their drive and notices their usual file names have been replaced with unrecognizable gibberish, that could be the early start of a ransomware hack.

• Computers locking up. Malware can interfere with a computer’s operating software, and that will cause performance issues, including system freezes. If these start to happen out of nowhere, ransomware could be the culprit.

Preventing a Ransomware Attack Prevention is the best way to avoid problems with ransomware attacks. It begins with training everyone who accesses a computer at the firm—both lawyers and staff—to recognize the above signs. Then, procedures should be put in place to inform employees of the actions to take if something is discovered (i.e., alert a supervisor or the IT department).

Since the level of technical knowledge within firms can vary quite a bit (even in 2021), there are ways to help identify where problems might exist. Some tools are available, for example, that will send fake phishing emails within an organization to test for vulnerabilities.

Essentially, this simulates a ransomware attack and can give valuable information to tailor education around the common pitfalls.

Firms should also establish routine procedures for regularly backing up data, preferably to the cloud or to an offsite location. That way, if there is an attack, a clean backup is available to reinstall once any trace of malware is removed from the onsite systems. Cloud backup services also regularly scan data for malware and other viruses, which acts as a stopgap to any measures a firm has in place.

These precautions and prevention measures apply to firms of any size. In fact, solo firms might be even more vulnerable as most do not have full-time IT staff.

No, You Don’t Have to Pay: How to Stop a Ransomware Attack Having robust preventative measures in place means it’s far more likely a law firm can stop a ransomware attack before

it gets rolling and corrupts an entire network. The steps to follow in an ideal situation where only one computer is infected include: • Disconnect. Immediately. Even the slightest indication that a ransomware attack has happened or is happening should lead a user to completely disconnect their computer from the law firm’s network(s). That includes both physical connections (i.e., LAN cable) and Wi-Fi. The computer should be completely airgapped, meaning no data is going between it and the rest of the firm’s computers.

• Clean the affected computer(s). Once an infected computer—or computers if the malware has spread— is disconnected, you can start searching for the malware to remove it. Locating it can be tricky, and third-party service providers will do it for you to ensure it’s completely gone. Additionally, if costs are being monitored, there is also software that can assist.

• Restore from backup. Only after a system is completely clean should data be restored from a cloud backup.

These steps can be applied to most ransomware attacks, even if malware has spread throughout a network. It will just take longer and perhaps cost more to ensure every trace is gone. Again, having a recent backup on a cloud server is key to recovering.

Doing this will also increase the likelihood that the firm will not have to pay to have its data released, and it might not even lose anything important if the cloud backup is recent enough.

Don’t Panic! You Can Fight Ransomware The vital thing to know about ransomware attacks is that all firms are vulnerable and, more than likely, will experience a ransomware attack at some point. How severe, disruptive, and expensive it is will depend on whether staff and attorneys are trained to spot early signs and the procedures put in place to deal with phishing attempts. Even if malware spreads, a firm shouldn’t panic and immediately give into ransom demands. A methodical approach that involves isolating affected computers, and servers, rooting out the malware, and then restoring from a clean cloud backup can usually deal with the situation. n Brad Paubel is the Chief Technology Officer and Chief Operations Officer at Lexicon, a legal technology and services company. Learn more at lexiconservices.com.

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Discrimination in Earnings Analyses

by Jamie T. Haven and Brian P. Brinig

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overnor Newsom approved Senate Bill No. 41 adding §3361 to the California Civil Code on July 30, 2019. §3361 states: “Estimations, measures, or calculations of past, present, or future damages for lost earnings or impaired earning capacity resulting from personal injury or wrongful death shall not be reduced based on race, ethnicity, or gender.”

The purpose of the bill was to stop the use of statistics that incorporate racial, ethnic and gender biases when calculating damage awards in civil litigation matters.

The consequences of this well-intentioned law raise practical questions for the courts, lawyers and economic experts who rely on statistics to calculate losses.

Forensic economists regularly rely on statistical tables that report earnings, work life expectancies, life expectancies and other data to calculate the estimated losses of individuals in disputed matters.

The economic expert typically compares the subject of the analysis to the most comparable peer group within a set of statistics to draw conclusions about the subject’s anticipated earnings (or other metrics).

Many existing studies set forth observed data based on various demographic characteristics, including age, gender, education, race, and workforce participation.

Some of these categories are immutable characteristics and others include immutable characteristics such as gender, race and ethnicity.

The policy of the new law is an understandable attempt to rectify past biases and discrimination. No one supports discrimination based on an immutable characteristic of an individual. However, the implications of not calculating an individual’s damages based on his or her actual life situation presents some illogical inequities when attempting to calculate “unreduced” damages.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law published an article entitled How Race, Ethnicity, and Gender Impact Your Life’s Worth: Discrimination

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in Civil Damage Awards in 2018 which cited several instances of bias in damage awards in cases throughout the country. The Committee stated that gender- and race-specific earnings tables “Preserve systemic and structural inequalities, reinforce current pay gaps and workforce discrimination, and fail to account for possible progress.” The earnings tables referenced in the article are published by the United States Census Bureau and rely on information provided in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey. The Survey provides a variety of personal income tables that delineate income based on multiple variables, including but not limited to marital status, educational attainment, work experience and classification of worker.

One method of estimating an individual’s lost income is reliance on the Survey tables for personal income by educational attainment, which range from less than 9th grade through a doctorate degree. Data is provided for males, females and both sexes. For each gender category, there are tables for “all races,” “white,” “black,” “Asian,” “Hispanic” and other ethnicities.

Compliance with the new law requires the forensic economist to decide which income table will not reduce damages as a result of race, ethnicity or gender. If use of the table fitting a plaintiff’s specific characteristics results in a lower dollar amount of damages, is the plaintiff being discriminated against?

Many personal income tables for females and minorities report lower income than similar tables for males and non-minorities. However, the calculation of “unreduced” damages is more complex than simply using data for white males. In the tables for income by educational attainment, there is not one ethnic group with data consistently higher than all the others, particularly as the level of educational attainment increases. “White alone, not Hispanic” males with a high school diploma working full-time, year-round, have higher mean earnings than all other equivalent

male categories at every age level reported. For males with bachelor’s degrees, however, there are age groups in which mean earnings for Asian males are highest.

For males with master’s degrees, there are different age categories in which mean earnings for Asian males, all races and Black males are the highest. The inconsistencies in the data continue to persist in the median earnings tables as well. Does the new law require the calculation of “unreduced” damages from the highest dollar amount in each age category regardless of race? Or, should the economist select the one race category which would result in the highest lifetime earnings?

Economic experts do not always rely on the Survey tables when calculating lost income. When a plaintiff has an established work history, the historical earnings of the plaintiff are typically considered when estimating future lost earnings. According to the Lawyers’ Committee article, “large racial wage gaps persist for men of color: in 2015, African American men made 73% of white men’s earnings and Latino men earned only 69%.” The same type of gap in earnings exists when comparing the earnings of males and females. Could the argument then be made that plaintiff-specific historical earnings for minorities and females are already reduced due to their ethnicity and gender and need to be increased by some factor to adjust for this? If so, what data should be used to adjust these amounts to no longer reflect past discriminatory earnings practices?

Lost wages are not the only component of earnings in a damages calculation. The value of lost benefits is also included. These benefits can include health benefits, employer contributions to a 401(k) retirement plan and Social Security. One potentially significant benefit is the value of a fixed pension for those plaintiffs who are eligible as part of their employment. Examples of positions which offer such pensions are teachers, state workers and federal employees. In order to calculate the value of a pension plan, a forensic economist frequently considers the statistical life expectancy of the plaintiff. Unlike the earnings tables discussed previously, the life expectancy for a female at any particular age is always greater than the life expectancy for a male the same age. So, in this scenario, should female life expectancy statistics be used for both males and females in order to not reduce the pension loss calculation for gender?

An individual’s life expectancy also affects calculations of lost household services, assumed to continue to some degree to the end of the person’s life. These damages, while not “lost earnings or impaired earning capacity,”

are still a component of economic loss in civil litigation matters, when applicable. If the loss of a future pension benefit for a male should be calculated to the statistical life expectancy for a female to remove any bias, should the loss of household services be calculated to the same life expectancy? What if, instead of or in addition to a loss of household services, the plaintiff has future medical care needs which need to be quantified through the remainder of his life?

Furthermore, economic experts do not typically limit their practices to only one legal venue, such as the California Superior Court system. They often provide analyses for cases throughout the country and in federal court. Should they use one methodology when calculating damages in a California civil matter and a different methodology in other states and federal court or should the desire to present “unreduced” damages result in the use of only one methodology regardless of the venue?

While the preceding examples do not represent the totality of choices that must be made when calculating damages in a civil litigation matter, they offer a sampling of the types of issues that must be addressed in order to no longer reduce damages based on race, ethnicity or gender. No one wants our judicial system to support discrimination, either directly or indirectly. The forensic economist is tasked with presenting an unbiased opinion of the plaintiff’s damages considering all relevant facts and making reasonable assumptions to form a conclusion.

Does compliance with the new law require the economic expert to ignore the specific facts of a case and make all plaintiffs into the highest earning and longest living individuals? Calculations of damages should be based in reality while recognizing that in the past that reality has often been biased against women and minorities. Careful consideration should be given to the particular changes that need to be enacted to end this type of discrimination while still producing reasonable damage calculations which take all relevant facts into consideration. n Jamie T. Haven and Brian P. Brinig are both forensic accountants and economists at CBIZ Brinig Taylor Zimmer in San Diego. They provide damages analyses in personal injury, wrongful death and wrongful termination matters. Learn more at www.cbiz.com.

Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

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7 Great Habits of the Most Successful People

by Brian Tracy

M

any people wonder how they can become highly successful, not realizing that they hold within them everything they need to achieve all of the success they desire. Successful people are where they are today because of their habits. Habits determine 95% of a person’s behavior. Everything that you are today, and everything that you will ever accomplish, is determined by the quality of the habits that you form. By creating good habits and adopting a positive behavior, you too can become successful and live a prosperous life.

Successful People Maintain 7 Good Habits For thousands of years, success in human life has been studied by great thinkers and philosophers. I have personally studied the subject for more than 30 years. What I have found is that the very best people have developed good habits. I have identified seven valuable habits that you need to develop if you want to perform at your very maximum in everything you do. Register today for my first live online event and unlock the secrets of using powerful habits to achieve your goals.

 They Are Goal Oriented The first habit is to become goal oriented. You need to be a habitual goal setter, and dedicate yourself to working from clear, written goals every day of your life. All highly successful people are intensely goal oriented. They know exactly what they want, they have it written down, they have written plans to accomplish it, and they both review and work on their plans every single day.

 They Are Results Driven The second habit of highly successful people is being results driven. This is made up of two practices.

• The first is the practice of continuously learning so that you become better at what you do.

• The second practice is that of time management. This

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means setting very clear priorities on what you do and then concentrating single-mindedly on the most valuable use of your time. All really successful people are intensely result oriented.

 They Are Action Oriented The third major habit you need to develop is that of continually taking action. This is really the most important habit for material success. It is the ability to get on with the job and get it done fast. It is your ability to develop and maintain a sense of urgency, and a bias for action. Fast tempo in whatever you do is essential to your success. You need to overcome procrastination, push aside your fears and launch 100% toward the achievement of your most important goals. The combination of goal orientation, result orientation and action orientation, in themselves, will virtually assure great success.

 They Are People Oriented The fourth habit you need is people orientation. This is where you put relationships in the center of your life. This is your decision to cultivate within yourself the habits of patience, kindness, compassion, and understanding. Virtually all of your happiness in life will come from your ability to get along well with other people. The good news is that you can become a wonderful human being in your relationships with others when you decide to. As Aristotle said, the only way that you can learn any habit is by practicing it on a regular basis. The more you practice being a truly excellent person in your relationships with others, the more you will internalize those qualities and actually become that person.

 They Are Health Conscious The fifth habit that highly successful people develop is health consciousness. This means that you must fastidiously watch your diet, and always eat the right foods in the right portions.

You must exercise on a regular basis, continually using every muscle and joint of your body to keep it limber and fit. And finally, you must have good habits of rest and recreation that

will enable you, in combination with diet and exercise, to live out your years in a healthy state. Remember, your health is the most important single thing you have, and it is completely subject to the habits that you develop with regard to the way you live.

 They Are Honest The sixth habit is that of honesty and integrity. In the final analysis, the character you develop as you go through life is more important than virtually anything else. Honesty means that you practice the “reality principle” in everything you do. You are completely objective with yourself and with the world around you. You set very clear values for yourself and you organize yourself around your values. You develop a vision for yourself and then you live your life consistent with your highest ideals. You never compromise your integrity or peace of mind for anyone or anything. This attitude of honesty is critical to your enjoying all of the other good habits that you are developing.

 They Are Self-Disciplined The seventh habit, and the one habit that guarantees all the others, is that of self-discipline. Your ability to discipline yourself, to master yourself, to control yourself, is the most important single quality that you can develop

as a person. The habit of self-discipline goes hand in hand with success in every area of life. Every one of these habits, being goal oriented, results driven, action orientated, people orientated, health conscious, honest and selfdisciplined, can be developed. You are where you are and what you are today because of your habits. Your habits have been developing, mostly accidentally, from the time you were an infant. Today you can take complete control over the shaping of your character and personality, and everything that happens to you in the future, by making the decision, right now, to define and develop the habits that will lead you to great success. And when you develop the same good habits possessed by other successful people, you will enjoy their success as well. Your future will become unlimited. n Brian Tracy is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian’s goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Youtube.

Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

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2021

The Right Time, the Right Place, It’s Time for Expansion

by Dan Baldwin

“

Despite my best efforts to go in a different direction, the Universe guided me into Plaintiff Personal Injury Law. You could accurately say that PI selected me,” says Founding Principal Clark H. Fielding.

The Universe chose well. Fielding Law has grown considerably and has earned a sterling reputation in its practice area in the roughly two and a half years since Fielding founded the Firm. Recently his success has been recognized by legal organizations and news media. North Valley Magazine selected him as one of the Top Arizona Valley Lawyers in 2020 and 2021; he is listed in the U.S. News & World Report Lawyer Directory for 2021; he received Lawyers of Distinction Membership for 2020 and 2021; Avvo Client’s Choice Award for 2020 and 2021; and he earned a place in the coveted Southern California Super Lawyers List for 2022. Fielding Law earned Better Business Bureau accreditation in 2020 and Expertise.com awarded the Firm Best Personal Injury Lawyers in Irvine, California for 2020 and 2021.

“Personal Injury is an ideal and fantastic match because of the intersection of law and medicine, which is fascinating and ever-changing. It’s also a numbers and negotiation game, which gives us an edge as I used to be a forensic accountant and love the art of negotiating,” he says.

Fielding cites his Firm’s positivity, compassion and continuing success in tough cases as a major factor in their continuing growth.

One example is the tragic case of 17-year-old Luke Knight, a creative and adventurous Higley High School student from Gilbert, Arizona. Knight left high school in his vehicle when several other teens in another car raced by. One of their tires blew out, which caused their car to sideswipe Knight’s vehicle, sending him into the center divider and light pole. Tragically, he was declared brain-dead at the scene, and passed away the following day in the hospital. His family and friends were devastated. Knight was very popular with the student body, many of whom left memorials at the scene that Fielding and his team visited. The case was not a big money case because of the limited insurance policies, but it was obviously about so much more. “Luke was a super bright light who shared his happiness and hopefulness, he was inclusive; the more the merrier was his motto. He was particularly sensitive to those who felt lonely or lost. Thankfully, we were able to make sure things were done correctly legally so the family could achieve closure and peace of mind to focus on living like Luke,” Fielding says. “Luke’s legacy is about striving to reach out, show love, and live life to the fullest.”

The big news for the Firm is its brick-and-mortar expansion into Arizona in February of 2020, with full-time staffing of the office in January of 2021 and expansion into a larger space in July of this year, which was motivated by client demand and Fielding’s personal ties and desires. “I was raised in Arizona. My parents moved there from Utah in September of 1982 when I was about two-and-a-half-years old. I graduated from Mountain View High School in Mesa and attended Arizona State University - Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. I love hiking in the Grand Canyon and rafting down the Colorado River.” He interned in Washington, D.C. for friend and former Arizona Congressman and U.S. Senator Jeff Flake, externed during law school in Phoenix for the Honorable Timothy J. Ryan in Maricopa County Superior Court, and for the Honorable James A. Teilborg in United States District Court. Fielding is licensed to practice law in California and Arizona. He recently had the honor to represent an ASU law school professor for a personal matter.

“Now is the perfect time for the expansion of our presence in Arizona,” he says.

Fielding, assisted by Associate Attorney Ryan W. Cooper, faced a significant challenge in selecting a new attorney for the Arizona operation from a wide list of highly qualified applicants through Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law’s on-campus interviews. “Ryan and I were intending to hire only one person, but we struck gold with Alexa Weber and Claudia Reeves. We decided to hire both of these talented women who are now awaiting their Arizona bar exam results. The Universe continues to work in my favor; we have an incredible team,” he says.

The Fielding Law team understands and appreciates the importance of the parent-child relationship. Paralegal Andrea Blackburn welcomed her first baby, a girl Amelia Alexandria in March of 2020, and is expecting a baby boy in February of 2022. Legal Assistant Rachel Holden’s third child, a boy Connor Ivan, was born this September of 2021.

Fielding himself has three young children with his wife Moranda, who also works as the Creative Director for the Firm, so championing working parents, especially mothers who had to leave their jobs at an unprecedented rate during the pandemic, is paramount to the Firm’s culture.

More Than a Job—a Calling Ryan W. Cooper, Associate Attorney, says, “representing people—individual human beings whose lives have been damaged—has always felt more like a calling than a job. It is very hard work, but it is work that I feel good about. I know that all my energy, stress, and time is being spent to help improve someone’s life. That’s a cause that allows me to sleep well at night.”

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© Ben Christensen Instagram: @_benchristensen

New Associates: Alexa Lynn Weber and Claudia Manning Reeves

“Quickness does not need to sacrifice quality if done right ...”

In almost three full years of practice, Cooper has recovered more than $14 million for his deserving clients.

One client wrote, “Ryan Cooper was exceptional! He was professional and friendly. He explained each step and truly worked hard to get me my best settlement. I would recommend him 100 times over.”

Cooper’s UC Irvine baseball coach preached the mantra of “Be Quick, but Don’t Hurry,” a guideline that he still follows today. When Cooper joined Fielding Law, APC in October of 2020, he immediately applied the mantra to his cases. The most recent example of this mantra at work involved the case of a wonderful French professor at Arizona State University who was T-boned by a truck that ran a red light. Quickly, Cooper and the Fielding Law team were able to recover the at-fault truck driver’s auto insurance policy limit. He then focused his efforts on his client’s substantial Underinsured Motorist policy. At first, his client’s own insurance company only wanted to pay

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about 25% of her full coverage for her damages. Rather than give up, Cooper thought outside the box and coordinated a non-recorded meeting between his client, himself, and the defense attorneys. Cooper allowed the defense attorneys one hour to talk to his client off the record so they could hear her story in her own words.

In reflection on the case and fantastic result, Cooper said, “The meeting was definitely unorthodox and I’m sure some of my colleagues never would have allowed it because it ‘breaks the mold.’ However, I believed in our client, and I knew that once the defense attorneys spoke with her face-to-face, there was no way they could continue to low-ball her. They would be forced to see her as the wonderful person that I had come to know rather than just another claim number.” Cooper’s instinct was right.

Following the meeting, her insurance agreed to pay her the full policy limit. Cooper and the Fielding Law team obtained all available insurance money within six months

CLAUDIA MANNING REEVES

Meeting Challenges Head-on “While there was much that I had to overcome physically and emotionally as a child and young adult, I am grateful for the cards that I was dealt. I had the unique opportunity to practice empathy and tenacity from an early age. As a Law Clerk, I can truthfully say that I have experienced many of the same emotions and challenges as our clients, and for that reason, I am able to boldly advocate their position,” says Claudia Reeves, Law Clerk.

Reeves’ personal life story combined with her early professional experience gives her that unique perspective on the intense physical, emotional, and mental challenges confronting her Firm’s clients.

Reeves and her identical twin sister were diagnosed at age five with a rare genetic mutation called Oligodontia, which is estimated to affect less than 0.1 percent of the world’s population and is characterized by the absence of more than six primary teeth. She spent the next thirteen years trying every mouth device ever invented to overcome the problem: braces, rubber bands, bondings, palette expanders, flipper teeth, winged teeth, implants, bridges, and so on. The basic need to eat or maintain proper nutrition was extremely challenging since her back teeth did not touch, and her existing teeth did not grow larger than an eight-year-old’s teeth leading to little teeth function.

To put the problem into perspective, until six years ago, she was unable to bite into an apple.

That’s when she underwent facial bone grafting—an essential surgery because without it, her face would collapse.

The family’s insurance companies claimed surgeries were not medically necessary. Consequently, her family had to pay out-of-pocket approximately $150,000 for the surgeries.

That invaluable personal perspective is augmented by her practical experience in the world of insurance and public health. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Business Organizational Management at the University of Arkansas with an emphasis on finance and insurance and worked at Allstate Insurance for more than three years so that she could

have both textbook knowledge and practical application of the insurance industry. Reeves completed her bachelor’s degree in three years and graduated top 10 percent of her class as a Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society member.

Prior to becoming a Law Clerk at Fielding Law, she was a Legal Researcher at the Center for Public Health Law for a year and five months, aiding requestors with law and policy issues affecting public health with an emphasis on COVID-19 emergency legal preparedness. Her most significant memory at the Center was presenting to the Arizona Supreme Court about COVID-19 at the forefront of the virus. Reeves co-authored multiple pieces that were published in sources such as The Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics, The Journal of the American Medical Association Health Forum, and The Berkley Forum. Before that, she was a Legal Intern at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for nine months, helping individuals fight back against race discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, sex discrimination, and disability discrimination.

Fielding says, “Claudia has such a compelling and inspirational story. For some people her physical challenges would make them down on life and be their undoing. She keeps a positive attitude and hits challenges and obstacles head on. Claudia is a phenomenal communicator. Looking

Moranda and Clark Fielding

© Ben Christensen Instagram: @_benchristensen

of her accident. “Every case is different and as such needs to be handled differently. In this case, my client did not want the case to drag on. She wanted to avoid arbitration, if possible, and she was willing to tell her story if I felt it would help her case. We got creative and got her the best possible recovery within a very short period of time. Quickness does not need to sacrifice quality if done right, and this case was the perfect example of that.”

Cooper’s most recent honors and awards include Super Lawyers—Rising Star for 2021, Best Lawyers—Ones to Watch for 2022, and Avvo Client’s Choice Award for 2021.

Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

19

© Christopher Todd Studios The Fielding Law Legal Team and Staff.

Irvine, California Office at The Boardwalk.

at her, you just know she’s hearing and understanding you perfectly. She’s an acapella singer so she’s a performer and that certainly helps in our profession. She’s been published many times. She’s a bright light. Fighting through challenges has given her tremendous strength.”

Now established at the Firm’s Arizona office, Reeves began her career at Fielding Law as a Law Clerk on August 23, 2021.

Reeves earned her Juris Doctor degree at Arizona State University-Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. She received the Health Law and Policy Certification and the highest distinction for Pro Bono Service and was a member of ASU’s 2020 Transactional Health Law Moot Court Team. In 2019, she was recognized with the Frank Fanning Scholarship for her excellence in employment and discrimination law. Reeves enjoys hiking, kayaking, biking, camping, and lifting weights. She was a singer with ASU’s Law Cappella, is the dog mom to a mischievous foster failure named Loki, and attends Impact Church.

Reeves says, “I also found purpose because I knew that I could use my personal trials to make an impact greater than myself. Becoming an attorney means helping others receive greater payouts from insurance companies for their health adversities and encouraging those walking through similar uncertain and dark times.”

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Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

ALEXA LYNN WEBER

A Desire to Advocate “I have a desire to advocate for those who are unable to advocate for themselves. Along with my innate sense of justice, I have a strong belief that in my role as a future attorney, I have the ability and the responsibility to impact others’ lives for the better. As such, my priority is to not only get to know my clients, but to really understand why their case is important to them. By doing so, I am able to work through each and every case effectively and empathetically from beginning to end,” says Alexa Lynn Weber, Law Clerk.

Weber, who started with fellow Law Clerk Claudia Reeves, is helping to further establish the Arizona office of Fielding Law. Weber attended Iowa State University, Greenlee School of Journalism and Mass Communication, earning a B.S. Public Relations with a minor in Political Science. She earned her Juris Doctor degree at Arizona State University - Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, where she received a full-ride scholarship and participated in the O’Connor Honors Program.

During her first summer of law school, she worked as a law student intern for Honorable Judge Darren L. Vahle

“Fielding Law has a devoted, caring, and dedicated team that embraces the people around them and strives for excellence every day.” in Centennial, Colorado. In this role, Weber assisted with research during trial, sat in on multiple jury trials including first-degree murder trials, and helped organize the courtroom for jury selection. In her second summer of law school, she worked as a legal intern for the District Attorney’s Office in Centennial, Colorado. This experience allowed her to develop a love for advocating; she argued bond, argued against motions to suppress, and was responsible for crafting plea deals for misdemeanor traffic offenses and other traffic infractions.

Weber rounded out her last semester of law school as a Legislative Assistant at the Arizona Legislative Council.

Weber found her passion for law and policy while working at a public policy firm in Denver during her last summer in college. In this position, she worked as an intern for a grassroots campaign in Colorado. This job required her to reach out to local community members to educate them about the health care system in Colorado and to find a common thread that connected individuals to each other, aside from political ideologies. The experience was as gratifying as it was educational. “I found myself lighting up and smiling with every interaction I had and with each connection I established,” she says.

Weber is a strong believer in the necessity of personal communication between attorney and client. This feeling stems from growing up in the 300-population town of Larkspur, Colorado. “From a very young age, I had to understand the value of close, meaningful relationships with individual people and my community. I carry that lesson into every phase of my work here at Fielding Law.” The vetting process for joining Fielding Law was intense and included Zoom interviews. From the beginning of the process, she felt that the match was a perfect alignment of skills, education, motivation and personality. “From the moment I spoke with Clark Fielding and Ryan Cooper over Zoom for my first interview, I felt their sense of passion and dedication—two crucial ingredients for a successful law firm.

I knew I wanted to be a part of that.”

She found the way Fielding and Cooper spoke about why they went into plaintiff personal injury was inspiring, unconventional and unlike her experiences in other offices.

“During the job search, I knew that the most important things to me were working with a group of people who build each other up, rather than tear each other down and treat the workplace as a sort of competition. Fielding Law has a

devoted, caring, and dedicated team that embraces the people around them and strives for excellence every day,” she says.

Weber enjoys spending time outside in Arizona, caring for her two adorable cats, and keeping her twenty-five plants thriving.

Fielding says his Law Clerk Alexa is fierce, yet considerate of clients, co-workers as well as opposing counsel. Alexa is a published author and a Girl Scout Gold Award Recipient.

“There’s so much to her in terms of intelligence, attention to detail, and work ethic. She also finished law school at 24 yearsof-age. She is a natural fit for us,” Fielding says.

Fielding adds that both the new members “fit perfectly with our team ethos and our vibe. Both love the Valley of the Sun and adventuring. Both have the ‘It’ factor that marks them for success. They reinvigorate the Firm and me.”

He has a unique description of the new law clerks in the Tempe office. “Scorpions are tough, adaptive, swift and common in Arizona. From my experience, they also run in pairs. I looked at these two brilliant women working in unison together, so the analogy was obvious and appropriate.

They are very powerful indeed—our two scorpions.”

Fielding predicts a bright future for his Firm. The new Arizona office is just one example of how that prediction is already coming true. “I believe in the underdog against the big insurance companies; the biblical David versus Goliath fight. I know we can make a positive difference in peoples’ lives from all walks of life. I am fulfilled advocating for the common man.

When the Universe places you in the right place at the right time, amazing things happen,” Fielding says. n Contact Fielding Law, APC The Boardwalk 18575 Jamboree Road, Suite 600 Irvine, CA 92612 (949) 288-5484 Fielding Law, APC The Watermark 410 North Scottsdale Road, Floor 10 Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 542-5454 hello@fieldinglawfirm.com www.fieldinglawfirm.com Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

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JOURNALS

Local Service with Global Reach

FEATURED PROFESTSHIOENMAOLNPTROFILE OF

2021

H

Ankura Helps Attorneys Navigate Challenges in a Changing Marketplace

W

hen clients face immediate business challenges or require expert advice to help increase corporate value or advice on how to protect themselves against all potential risks, they often contact Ankura. Ankura can design, develop, and execute solutions tailored specifically to meet corporate needs through a proven combination of experience, expertise, and foresight.

The firm’s senior-level advisors provide valuable insights in all types of situations—from government issues to complex business challenges to legal proceedings. In each case, Ankura works with their clients to deliver measurable and meaningful results that have moved law firms, corporations, governments, and nonprofit organizations in a positive direction.

Ankura provides a wide range of services and technologies directly addressing these issues. Mark Clews, Senior Managing Director in Ankura’s eDiscovery Practice, says that Ankura provides an amazing number of wide-ranging services and technologies to directly address the many issues that continue arising in a complex marketplace by hiring the best people who are capable of and committed to creating real-world solutions delivering holistic, meaningful, and sustainable results.

Ankura’s Data & Technology Practice is far more than an eDiscovery and information security provider. They assist 22

Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

clients and their counsel in navigating the challenges related to responding to litigation and government investigations, including cyber security, digital forensics, eDiscovery, structured data analysis, and data privacy consultancy services. The Firm offers local clients a full-service eDiscovery team in Southern California consisting of a secure digital forensic lab, project management and discovery consulting team, and digital forensics subject matter experts with complementary experts including economists, forensic accountants, construction experts, and a wide range of industry experts.

Ankura was founded in 2014 with the goal of becoming a top tier consulting firm with the belief that collaboration drives results, by attracting, acquiring, and retaining top talent that believes in a shared set of core values focused on being a best partner for their clients. The Firm has 30 offices across the U.S. and in international locations. California offices are located in Irvine, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Head of Sales and Managing Director for Ankura’s Data & Technology practice Alex Marjanovic says, “We provide the appropriate expertise, technologies, and methodologies for supporting complex litigations, investigations or any triggering event that could create the need for data challenges such as reviewing a data breach or

managing data collection requests within complicated government investigations. Through consulting at every stage of the process, Ankura’s Data & Technology practice has a well rounded team of experts who have the expertise to manage the issues at hand, but also have the creativity and skillsets when solutions and technologies don’t exist to close the gap and solve emerging data complexities. Our goal is to solve problems with the right combinations of expertise. I feel incredibly fortunate to be a part of this Ankura team; we are a culturally-unified global firm that fosters our strong local footprint in each market we operate.”

“We have been using Ankura to assist us in our complex trade secret litigation and securities matters for several years and they have been an invaluable resource for us. They offered us several different platforms to use for our document hosting and review needs and worked with us to determine which one was the best fit for each specific matter. They also provided us prompt and knowledgeable support for forensic collection and analysis of our clients’ electronic devices and cloud systems and their experts were always there for us to work through a complex issue or provide guidance on the best way to proceed. With the help of Ankura we always felt one step ahead of the competition and their dedicated project management team made it easy to tackle large discovery projects quickly and efficiently. Ankura has provided us with the confidence and expertise needed to navigate and succeed in the complex and ever-changing world of e-discovery.” —Katherine S. Bowles, Partner at Shustak Reynolds & Partners, P.C. Ankura’s Southern California-based operation combines local hands-on service backed by global resources. “We are well connected in the local community combined with a much larger international entity that can manage data challenges at scale when needed. We’re a tight team and regularly collaborate with our colleagues and we have the expertise to draw on from USA, Europe, Asia and beyond,” says Senior Director Beau Towers.

Leading the Leading Edge Ankura has more than 64 experts recognized annually by Who’s Who Legal for their expertise in the legal consulting market. The Southern California team of Ankura is recognized regularly as well, including team leader Mark Clews. “Mark Clews enjoys a stellar reputation for his expert management of complex data sets and e-discovery know-how. Mark is recognized for his strong data security output and deep expertise in data review proceedings,” Who’s Who Legal 2020 edition.

Clients call on Ankura when they face challenges that traditional eDiscovery, information security and data privacy tools and providers cannot resolve. Ankura excels at complex data challenges and often develops custom solutions for their clients to solve problems. They can deploy digital forensics experts rapidly to preserve data in a defensible manner, providing their clients with the security that the scoping, preservation and production of responsive data will stand up to interrogation in court. Ankura’s experts have extensive experience testifying in court in relation to the steps taken and comment expertly on evidential artifacts.

The law in general and government regulations, corporate needs, and economic challenges are constant forces in the marketplace.

Businesses, institutions, and non-profits must remain not only up to date with such changes, but must have the ability to react appropriately, swiftly, and with an eye to even more changes likely to arise.

Perhaps they have received a subpoena and now need to scope it out to determine a defensible way to meet the request but don’t have the necessary technology to handle. Ankura puts experts on site or remotely with the most up-to-date technology and workflows in place to preserve data in a way that is defensible.

“Our clients turn to us when they receive government investigation subpoenas, lawsuits or internal investigations. We assist our clients in investigating IP, antitrust and securities matters regularly. We have a dedicated Second Request team that has assisted some of the largest antitrust investigations that have occurred in recent years. We collaborate closely with our cyber security team which is on 93 cyber insurance panels and managed more than 1,000 data breaches in 2020 alone. We also work with Am Law 100 to regional boutique law firms on complex litigation matters that do not have the forensic and eDiscovery internal support for specific matters,” Clews says.

Ankura is a highly respected consulting firm that is regularly called on and trusted to handle the most difficult challenges in the legal and information security industry because they have the talent, technology, and, most important, the drive to help clients navigate successfully through the marketplace.

Connecting with the Local Community The management and staff at Ankura are committed to being an active member of the southern California community at large.

“Alex, Beau and their Ankura colleagues have been more than generous with their time and resources to many organizations in San Diego. For years they’ve been a consistent sponsor of Lawyers Club of San Diego, whose mission is the advancement of women in the law and society. They not only sponsor events, but also attend functions and provide guidance on programs and events.

Ankura leadership have philanthropic hearts and are not satisfied with only donating money but provide real support to causes and charities and acts. We need more people like Alex, Beau and their Ankura colleagues who understand the importance of supporting local organizations.” —Deborah Dixon, Partner at the Gomez Law Firm and Past President of the Lawyers Club of San Diego.

“Although our reach is global, we never forget our commitment to helping people and organizations locally to navigate their complex challenges,” Marjanovic says. n Contact Alex Marjanovic Ankura Consulting 1 Park Plaza, Suite 1050 Irvine, CA 92614 (949) 660-8200 Ankura.com Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

23

Networking: How to Disengage from a Dead-End Conversation

by Mike O’Horo

W

e’ve all found ourselves trapped in a dead-end conversation at a networking event. Someone drones on about a topic in which you have no interest. Or, it’s simply someone you don’t like. Or, there’s nothing wrong with the topic or the person, but you can’t spend that much time with any one person. You need an escape that doesn’t require you to be rude. Before I give you some tricks to manage this situation, let’s first take a look at why this happens, and how you can avoid most of it. This problem is often the result of aimlessly talking with anyone and everyone about almost anything, because you have no clear purpose. Since you don’t know what you’re trying to accomplish, you’re neither screening conversation partners nor directing the conversation. You’re guaranteeing irrelevant or indulgent chatter. Randomness also causes you to go to the wrong events, populated by too few people of the type you want to meet. When you go to an event simply because it’s available, you’re taking the Fogameer Approach, i.e., speaking with anyone who can fog a mirror.

Don’t Network; Hunt The solution? Change your approach from networking to hunting. My definitions of the terms are intentionally stark, perhaps even a bit harsh: Networking: You hang around any available event, with no purpose, chatting with as many people as you can, initiating “relationships,” thinking that coming home with a biz card from anyone with a pulse constitutes some type of success.

Hunting: You know who you want to speak with, and more importantly, who you don’t. You have a specific profile of who would need someone with your skills, and the conditions that trigger demand for those skills and expertise. You only attend events with a high likelihood of being populated with people who match that profile. You spend your time filtering the room, briefly exploring the problem you solve, testing for those who acknowledge having that problem, and disengaging from others as graciously as possible.

When you arrive and pick up your badge, take a look at how it’s formatted. Where does the company name appear? Is it easily read from 5-6 feet away? If so, you can scan badges to identify the wearer’s likely industry affiliation, and avoid those who

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Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

are irrelevant. (In your profiling exercise, you’ll have deduced which industries have high concentrations of companies experiencing your demand-triggering problem.)

Your Escape Plan Even so, you’ll still occasionally get trapped. When that happens, the way to escape graciously is to first test whether or not the person acknowledges that her company is experiencing, or faces, your demand-triggering problem.

You (reading her badge): “Hello, Jane. Mike O’Horo (extending your hand). Nice to meet you.”

Jane: “Jane Newman. Nice to meet you, too, Mike.”

You (pointing to her badge): “Integrated Biometrics? I’m not familiar with your firm, but it sounds like you might be in the secure access business. How close am I?” Jane: “Good guess. We make biometric identification devices that secure sensitive areas for hospitals and defense contractors.”

Jane’s company matches your target profile.

You: “From what I see in the business press, that’s a very dynamic business these days.”

Jane: “Oh, yes. It feels like the technology changes monthly.

It borders on chaos.”

You: “Besides the pace of technical innovation, it seems like biometric security companies are also wrestling with [your demand-triggering problem]. You’re in the business. Tell me, am I on track, or way off base?”

Jane: “You’re pretty close, but [Jane modifies your understanding of the problem].”

You: “Thanks for clarifying. That makes sense. I’d love to chat with you about some ideas I have for dealing with that, but I don’t want to monopolize your attention. You’re here to network. Would it make sense for us to explore this by phone over the next week or so?”

Jane: “Sure, but this week is a bear for me.”

You: “I understand. Mine’s a bit jammed too. (Pull out your phone.) Want to put something on our calendars now, and confirm it tomorrow?”

Peterson Reporting.

Providing nationwide service since 1986.

Jane: “No, Mike. Too many things are fluid right now. Send me an email next week and we’ll see what can work.”

You: “Ok. May I get your card?” (Don’t say, “Here’s my card.”

By doing so, you give up control of the contact to Jane. You always want to be the initiator. You know you’ll email Jane; you don’t know that Jane will email you.)

Jane’s company doesn’t match your target profile, but is related to it.

You (pointing to her badge): “Integrated Biometrics? I’m not familiar with your firm, but it sounds like you might be in the secure access business. How close am I?” Jane: “Close, but not close. We aggregate the data that those devices collect, and analyze it for activity patterns.”

You: “Interesting. Do you partner with the device companies?”

Jane: “Sure.”

You: “I’m writing an article about how [your demandtriggering problem] affects the biometric security business.

Do you think any of your partners would be willing to have a brief call with me to get a quote from them?”

Jane: “I don’t see why not. They might welcome the exposure.”

You: “Would it be an imposition for me to ask you to introduce me to a few of them?”

Jane: “Not at all.”

You: “Thanks so much. I don’t want to monopolize your attention here. How about if I send you an email to arrange a time for a brief call about who might make the most sense?”

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Jane: “That’s fine. Here’s my card.”

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Jane is a dead end.

You: “So far tonight, I’ve been wrong on most of my badge guesses. Oh, well. Jane, I apologize, but I’ll have to excuse myself. One of my clients is in the middle of something time sensitive, and I can feel my phone buzzing in my pocket, so I’d better find a quiet spot. It’s nice to have met you.” n For 20 years, Mike O’Horo has been known by lawyers everywhere as The Coach. He trained more than 7,000 of them, generating $1.5 billion in new business. Mike can be reached at mikeohoro@rainmakervt.com.

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7/12/13 25 5:04 PM Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

Marketing for Lawyers and Writing for Relationships Using a Personal Approach

by David V. Lorenzo

W

hen it comes to marketing for lawyers, building a relationship with your prospective client is critical.

Before a client will trust you, they must feel as though they know you and like you. This is where regular writing can be a big help. By regular writing, I mean using a blog, a newsletter or a weekly email to keep up communication with your base of clients and prospective clients. Writing and sharing these articles with some frequency will allow your readers to gain an insight into your mindset. It allows them to project themselves into your world and they can actually develop a relationship with you through your writing.

You Write for Two Audiences: Clients And Referral Sources When I introduce this as an important component of marketing for lawyers, I always receive some resistance. This comes from criminal lawyers, immigration lawyers, personal injury lawyers and family lawyers. They tell me that people will not even visit their website until they have a need for their services. While this may be (partially) true, when they do visit your website, they will read EVERYTHING that is up there. If the information is only about you and your law firm, they will not have a full understanding of how you can help them. It is far better to have them read an ongoing narrative of your thoughts than to read a canned bio.

Referral sources will also regularly read everything you write. It is critically important that your referral sources know you, like you and trust you. If you can keep them interested in what you have to say, on a daily, weekly or monthly basis, you will be amazed at the business that comes your way. Think about the member of the clergy who wants to refer immigration cases to you or the financial planner who needs to refer a divorce attorney to a client. If they want to send this referral to you, how will they gain any insight into who you are and your philosophy?

How to Write When attorneys start writing on a regular basis, they complain about the amount of time it takes. It does take time to organize your thoughts and put them into a coherent format for print or Internet consumption. But it is not like writing an academic research paper.

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You are writing to develop a relationship. Nobody is grading you. While including facts and figures is good, sometimes people are more interested in what you think and how you feel about the topic. That is how relationships are developed. You do not build a relationship in a sterile environment with clinical information. It is messy and emotional. That’s life and that’s how you should write.

There are four elements that should be included in an article you are writing for the purpose of building a relationship. These elements are summarized by using the acronym P.O.K.E. That stands for Personality, Opinion, Knowledge and Entertainment. Those are the four things readers are looking for when they read your writing. Below are some ways to incorporate each of these elements into your writing style.

Personality Each of us has a distinct “voice” when we write. Legal writing tends to dull that voice. You need to find it and put in on display in your marketing. Be a real person. Demonstrate some emotion. People are not hiring a robot when they need a lawyer. They are hiring a flesh and blood human being and they expect you to act like one. Show them who you are through your writing.

Opinion What do you think? How do you feel about this topic?

Those are the questions running through the mind of the reader while they are reading your article. If you take a stand, offer an opinion, some people will disagree with you.

Some may even be turned off. But others will bond with you forever. Have some courage. Give your opinion. Your readers want it.

Knowledge Educational marketing is fantastic for demonstrating knowledge. Your challenge is to do this in a way that is not condescending or demeaning. Help your readers discover the truth; do not beat them over the head with it. You are helping people explore, grow and understand; you are not teaching. There is a huge difference.

Entertainment

Case Studies

People want to feel something when they walk away from reading your work. You must engage them emotionally. That is what entertainment is all about. You must, at some point, tap into their emotions and stir up some kind of feeling in them.

That is the only way to truly develop a relationship with them.

Writing this way is an acquired skill. It takes practice. Start by thinking about how you tell a story and model your writing after that. Then go back and look for each of the elements of the P.O.K.E. method in your article. If you can identify them, you’ve done well. If you can’t, see what’s missing and add it in later.

It’s also very important to remember that all of these elements must be interesting to the reader. This can be done in three different ways:

Case studies are a more academic version of the third-party story. They contain actual facts, case information and often will contain citations. Many people use case studies when they want to make a logical appeal to their audience. Some people find this methodology to be more sterile and academic.

Third-Party Stories Telling a story about a third-party is an effective way to get your point across to your audience. Think of the story as an educational opportunity. Grab the audience and pull them into the story but wrap it up with an educational message.

The third-party story blends an emotional appeal with the appearance of a logical fact pattern.

Personal Experience This is the most effective form of writing. When you tell a story about yourself, it allows the audience member to paint a mental picture of the entire situation. The receiver of your message will suspend disbelief and “get into” the story. They will feel the emotions you felt. They will relate to you.

These three additional methods of emotionally engaging the audience of your message are all highly effective. The only decision you need to make is which method makes the most sense for you. Experiment with each writing style in your attorney marketing. n David V. Lorenzo is the Chairman and Founder of Rainmaker Lawyer Consulting. He and his team help attorneys “make a great living and live a great life.” If you’d like a FREE CD from Dave, titled: The Five Secrets to Making a Great Living and Living a Great Life as a Lawyer, visit: www.LawyerSecretsCD.com or call 888-692-5531

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Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

27

How to Interview Prospective Clients Focus on Their Problems and Your Credibility for Success

by Trey Ryder

If

you spend most of the interview telling prospects about your services, you’re going about it all wrong. Your prospect’s first priority is to understand his problem.

Successful lawyers spend up to 70 percent of interview time educating prospects about the magnitude of their problem and the risks of allowing it to persist. You win more new clients when you focus on their problems and follow these 17 steps:

STEP #1: Give your prospect your undivided attention.

This means no interruptions of any kind. If you can’t give your prospect your full attention, then delay the appointment until you can. You must be a good listener and make your prospect feel as if he is the most important person in the world.

STEP #2: Build rapport with your prospect.

Try to sense your prospect’s mood and respond in a helpful, caring manner. This lowers your prospect’s resistance and forms an emotional bond that brings you closer together. One of my clients begins his interviews by saying, “Tell me about yourself.”

This gets the prospect talking and takes the focus off the attorney.

STEP #3: Put yourself in your prospect’s position.

The best way to understand what your prospect feels is to imagine yourself in his shoes. Then make your presentation from your prospect’s point of view.

STEP #4: Identify the result your prospect wants.

Ask what problem he wants to solve or what goal he wants to achieve. Then ask questions to determine the specific service you can offer. Listen carefully so you know which points your prospect considers most important.

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STEP #5: Educate your prospect about the seriousness of his problem.

The more your prospect understands about the gravity of his dilemma, the more likely he is to hire you to correct it. Use supporting documents and articles as proof. At this point, however, don’t offer solutions because your prospect first needs a clear understanding of his problem.

Tell your entire story in words your prospect understands.

And don’t fall into the trap of hitting only the high points of your presentation. Remember, this information is new to your prospect so explain everything slowly and clearly. You must present information so you cannot be misunderstood, because many prospects won’t admit they don’t understand.

STEP #6: Answer common questions before your prospect asks them.

If your prospect raises a number of concerns, your discussion could seem adversarial. After you answer the questions, ask for your prospect’s agreement to make sure he understood what you said. This way, he won’t likely raise the concern again later.

STEP #7: Emphasize the reasons your prospect should hire you.

Explain how your knowledge, skill, judgment and experience give you special insights that you’ll use to bring your prospect the results he wants. Talk about your education and qualifications. Give examples of other people you’ve helped in similar situations. Give your prospect copies of newspaper articles in which you were the featured expert. Show your prospect testimonial letters that prove how pleased clients are with your services. (Make sure you check your bar’s ethics rules relating to testimonials because some jurisdictions do not allow lawyers to use testimonials.)

STEP #8: Check for understanding after each point in your discussion.

Watch for red flags that identify something your prospect didn’t grasp. Remember, prospects won’t buy what they don’t understand. Make sure your prospect understands what you tell him.

STEP #9: Offer specific solutions and discuss the pros and cons of each.

If you offer only one solution, your prospect’s choice is either yes or no. But when you present three positive options, he can select from three yes choices before he gets to no.

STEP #10: Provide both logical and emotional reasons to hire you.

Often, prospects retain your services for emotional reasons, such as whether they like you and whether they feel you truly want to help them. Then they use logic to defend their decision to their spouses and colleagues. When you provide both, you help your prospect justify his decision to engage your services.

STEP #11: Quote a fee for each service.

Use the contrast principle so your prospect views your fee in the proper perspective. Before quoting your fee, mention a larger number; then by contrast your fee won’t seem so high. After you quote your fee, restate one or two major benefits your prospect will gain from hiring you.

For example: “Right now, Mr. Jones, your estate tax liability is over $200,000. After I set up your asset protection plan, your tax liability will be zero. My fee to draft your plan is just $7,500. When your plan is in place, it will save your family over $200,000 in estate taxes, eliminate at least $25,000 in probate costs and prevent lengthy court proceedings.” In contrast to these other numbers, $7,500 seems like peanuts.

STEP #12: Recommend a solution from your prospect’s point of view.

Your prospect is more receptive to your direction when you speak from your prospect’s position. Instead of saying, “This is what you should do,” explain: “If I were in your place, here’s what I would do”—and then explain why.

STEP #13: Invite any remaining questions.

Acknowledge each question as a “good point” or “valid concern.”

Don’t view the question as an objection. Your prospect may

simply want you to repeat something you discussed earlier. Or he may want more information. Offer your explanation calmly and with confidence. Your prospect wants you to assure him that hiring you is the right decision.

STEP #14: Summarize the risks and benefits.

Point out to your prospect the risks of allowing the problem to continue (what he may lose)—and the benefits of solving the problem now (what he will gain).

STEP #15: Tell your prospect how much you want to help him.

Use collective words like “we” and “let’s” to show that you and your prospect are working together.

STEP #16: Allow your prospect to make his own decision without pressure from you.

If you push your prospect, he will resist. So, instead, remind your prospect that the choice is his—and that you will gladly answer his questions and provide whatever information he needs to make an informed decision.

If your prospect hires you, reassure him that he has made a wise choice. If your prospect is not ready to proceed, make sure he knows you’re ready and willing to help him whenever he thinks the time is right.

STEP #17: Follow up with a letter.

If your prospect hired your services, thank him and reassure him in writing that he made a wise decision. If your prospect is not ready to proceed, encourage prompt action, point out the risks of waiting, and offer to answer any questions, now and in the future. n Trey Ryder shares his marketing method with lawyers through a wide range of publications. His columns and articles have appeared in TRIAL (ATLA, now the American Association for Justice), Law Practice Management (ABA), The Complete Lawyer (ABA), Lawyers Weekly USA (where he was the marketing columnist for two years), Commercial Law Bulletin (CLLA), Lawyers Weekly Australia, Tort Source (ABA), The Lawyers Competitive Edge (West Group), ALA News, Law Office Administrator, The Federal Lawyer (FBA), The New York Law Journal, Business Law Today (ABA), Law Governance Review, GPSolo (ABA), Young Lawyer Archives (ABA), Legal Management (The Association of Legal Administrators), Law Practice Quarterly (ABA), Marketing For Lawyers, The American Lawyer, and dozens of state, county and local bar publications. In addition, he writes and publishes his free e-zine, The Ryder Method™ of Education-Based Marketing. And he maintains the Lawyer Marketing Advisor at treyryder.com. He can be reached at: trey@treyryder.com.

Attorney Journals San Diego | Volume 218, 2021

29

Kathy Minella, Esq., Certified Family Law Specialist

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