Are you a rock star to your clients?
In the world of family law, a rock-star attorney is one who comes through, who shines, who does right by their clients, who negotiates like it’s no one’s business, and who earns the respect of their peers.
Does this describe you?
And what do I have to do with this conversation?
Crank it up
To be a rock star, we’re talking about more than just “servicing the divorce.” I’m talking about having an absolutely bulletproof case for things like pensions, lump-sum spousal-maintenance buyouts, and business valuations.
Uggh. That’s all financial stuff.
Exactly.
Your clients don’t expect you to know how to do all this. But they certainly expect—and deserve—for you to have a “dream team” that comes to their rescue for arcane issues like these.
And with someone like me on your dream team, I come to your rescue, too. I liberate you from responding to endless client emails and phone queries about taxes and finances. (I should know: I’m a CPA, a Certified Financial Planner™ professional, and a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® professional.) Not only does this avalanche of busy-work prevent you from achieving rock-star status among your clients, but it also, quite simply, drains you and slows your practice. Who wants that?
With someone like me on your team, you can be effective, without being a bully or a jerk. You can show your client that you’re making progress. You can bill them for value, which they’ll accept and pay (vs. dispute and grumble). And when that client realizes, “My attorney really went to bat for me,” they’re more likely to refer you to friends and family.
Leave it to your roadies
I’ve worked on cases, as a financial expert, in which either 1) I’ve been deposed or asked to testify, or 2) not been asked to testify, because my expert judgment has gone virtually un-challenged.
That’s not always the case. I’m working on a high-profile divorce right now (you might read about it someday) in which the opposing party is bringing in their financial big guns, thinking they can poke holes in my methodology.
To which I say, “Bring it!” I can hold my own with anyone.
Last story before I wrap: I worked on a case once in which the opposing counsel simply “whipped out their calculator” to come up with a lump-sum spousal-maintenance offer. I’ll spare you the nerdy details, but I quickly calculated that the discounted cashflow would amount to an extra $100k for my client. As her attorney later told me, “Wow, Julie. If you weren’t there, I would’ve just accepted their calculation, assuming it was correct!”
