Baltimore Injury Lawyer Blog

I usually write this blog solely about topics of interest to personal injury lawyers, such as trial strategy, legal news, and "from the trenches" trial reports. This is for two reasons. First, I want my readers to get the most value from each post, and that is the content people come here for. Second, nobody really cares what I think about anything else.

Today I depart from that because the holiday season is a great time to reflect on the year that has been, and to prepare for the year that will be. Accordingly, here are some thoughts for the past and upcoming twelve months:

1. One of the things that has always struck me about being a personal injury lawyer is the way my relationships with clients begin. I have often observed that nobody calls me because everything is fine. They say that about fire and police- every day when they go to work they step into the middle of someone else's worst day ever. Now, what I do is a far cry from that kind of work, but it is helpful for me to remember that I am rarely dealing with clients or potential clients at their best.

One goal (or "resolution", if you like) for the new year is to keep that in mind by being more empathetic and patient in dealing with others, particularly those who are having hard times. What is routine for most personal injury lawyers is an extremely frustrating and upsetting event in the life of an injury victim. I resolve to do a better job in explaining how to resolve property damage, how to prove medical causation issues, and how the litigation process works. Anecdotally, I think these are three of the most confusing and frustrating issues for my clients, and a big part of my job is to act as a guide through the unfamiliar landscape of a personal injury claim.

2. I resolve to build better and stronger relationships with family, friends, clients, co-workers and colleagues. I think happier people make better lawyers, and there is a direct correlation between happiness and the quality of the relationships in one's life. My goal is to try and learn one new thing about each client I speak with. I am representing individual people, not phrases on a pleading form.

3. I resolve to be more efficient with my time. Self-explanatory. Improving my efficiency as a lawyer will help my clients by allowing me to get more done for them more quickly. The idea is this will also improve my non-work time through lower stress levels and providing more time to be a well-rounded person.

4. I resolve to avoid legal jargon in my writing. I think most readers, particularly judges with busy dockets, value brevity and clarity above all else in legal writing. I want to get my point across clearly and succinctly to make it as easy as possible to persuade my audience.

5. I resolve to look for the brighter side of life. To be more effusive in my praise and more gentle in my criticism. To be more thankful for what I have and more generous with my resources. To give more to my community, both the legal community and the community as a whole. In general, to use my knowledge, emotions, training and time to do more good.

In conclusion, I am thankful for my family and friends. I'm thankful I have the opportunity to help people. I'm thankful I work with a group of people I care about and respect. To paraphrase a Native American blessing I learned from Henry "Wild Goose" Niese, I am thankful for every day I walk on the earth and do not lie under it.

I wish everyone the best in this holiday season and for the coming New Year.