As much as we’d like to think we’re the most original and creative lawyers out there, so much of what we do, even what we do well or in a special way, has been done before. Indeed, if you’ve practiced for any length of time, or work with others, the chances are that when you look at your current work obligations, you know someone who has filed that kind of brief in that jurisdiction, or examined that kind of expert, or handled that kind of evidentiary issue.
Rely on that. While we need to learn our work for ourselves as any professional or artisan must, the work of those colleagues or those in our network can be crucial to helping us figure out the best way to get a job done efficiently and win for our clients.
But you can’t stop there. Don’t get simply the “cuff law” (the off-the-cuff recitation of the rule according to that lawyer). Don’t take the template brief and plug and chug the names even if the law and the issue seem identical and even if you’re in the same court.
In complex trial work — in any kind of trial work — no two cases are identical. And that’s great. Each case can be an adventure for the lawyer. If we’re willing to work this hard, we can make money other ways.
That adventure is one of the gifts of our work and makes it special. That adventure, that difference in each case, also obliges us to treat each case individually.
Hear the cuff law. Use the template. But do your cross-check. Ensure the law is up to date and really on point. Call the clerk’s office. Have someone who didn’t give you the brief template read the final brief to make sure she thinks it makes sense. Rely on the prior work as well as the thoughts of others, just not too much.
We need to rely on our colleagues and their wisdom and experience. But to win for each client, we still need to treat each client and each case as unique.
John Balestriere is an entrepreneurial trial lawyer who founded his firm after working as a prosecutor and litigator at a small firm. He is a partner at trial and investigations law firm Balestriere Fariello in New York, where he and his colleagues represent domestic and international clients in litigation, arbitration, appeals, and investigations. You can reach him by email at john.g.balestriere@balestrierefariello.com.