Possibly it’s my OCD, or being a nerd (I do know, surprising), or being a management freak (did I point out my OCD), however I’m a large proponent of decreasing the forms of circumstances you deal with to a collection of checklists and workflows. Regardless of how advanced or various your circumstances are, or their amount, making a written, step-by-step course of for dealing with every kind of case will improve effectivity, high quality management, and outcomes.
This method – decreasing your caseload to a set of processes that function a instrument to make sure you think about all the assorted strategies and steps in your circumstances – is commonly ignored as a result of it’s time-consuming, non-billable, and requires common assessment and updates (these checklists should be reviewed and up to date periodically). Moreover, some attorneys imagine their circumstances are too advanced to be diminished to step-by-step processes. What they do is so distinctive, so mental, that it can’t presumably be diminished to checklists. And sure, we’re not automatons, and we can’t merely comply with choice bushes routinely. Nonetheless, I might argue that, no matter complexity, 50-90% of each case could be diminished to checklists. And that merely the hassle to take a look at your circumstances and write out the way you deal with them from starting to finish will make you a greater lawyer.
I deal with a wide range of litigation-based issues. All through my profession, I’ve litigated a variety of circumstances, from asbestos to zoning, and all the pieces in between. And early in my profession, I checked out my circumstances from the vantage level of – what’s each doable factor I can do within the case and what is smart below totally different units of circumstances. And I wrote out checklists. Not only for me, however for everybody on the staff, to make sure we have been all shifting in the precise route, pursuing the correct objectives, and advancing the consumer’s targets. As I dealt with extra of the identical issues, I refined my checklists to accommodate my rising expertise and data.
For those who can see your complete circumstances, from pre-suit via trial, you take these actions that advance your objectives (and refraining from people who don’t). If, conversely, you might be counting on what’s in your head about ways, steps, and approaches, you’ll probably miss a number of essential features of your case.
So, how do you cut back your issues to a collection of checklists?
First, outline the totally different issues you deal with. If all you deal with is litigation, then there shall be plenty of transferable to-do lists from one kind of matter to a different (serving discovery and third-party subpoenas, retaining consultants, deposing events, and many others.). For me, my listing would come with, amongst different gadgets, business litigation (breach of contract, non-competes, IP, and many others.), private damage (trucking, auto, premises, negligent safety), merchandise (one-off merchandise, drug & medical system, poisonous tort, and many others.), and so forth.
Second, I might then take my classes and create a workflow for every, writing out every step, side, and off-ramp of that case. I might actually kind each little and large factor I can do when dealing with that kind of matter right into a Phrase doc — the extra steps, the extra to-dos, the extra checklists, the extra element, the higher.
Third, I might share it with my staff for his or her enter, and ask them so as to add, revise, and increase these lists.
Fourth, each time I began on a brand new matter, I might share the suitable listing for the correct case and have everybody kind their notes into this doc concerning the steps being adopted, taken, or, for that matter, averted. This doc will function a single supply of data, serving to everybody hold monitor of what has been performed and what stays to be performed. This works no matter facet of the “V” you’re on.
Fifth, the way in which we deal with circumstances evolves, and these checklists shall be up to date in the course of the litigation course of to replicate that.
Is that this plenty of work? Sure. Numerous non-billable work? Sure. However these checklists will hold you and your staff targeted on what must be performed, when, and the way. With out such controls, you might be continually reminding your self and your staff what to do subsequent. This reduces pointless management and micro supervision of your issues.
Contemplate this method not simply on your issues, however for all of your agency’s issues, to enhance effectivity, keep away from errors, and improve outcomes.
Frank Ramos is a associate at Goldberg Segalla in Miami, the place he practices business litigation, merchandise, and catastrophic private damage. You’ll be able to comply with him on LinkedIn, the place he has about 80,000 followers.
