CBA Record March-April 2023

YOUNG LAWYERS SECTION: ADVICE FOR YOUNG LAWYERS

billing rates are lower than a partners, and the firm still produces high-quality work product. This occurs by partners revising associate-drafted work as they see fit. Overall, the structure results in lower labor costs for the work, lower fees to the client, and higher profits to the firm than if the rainmaker completed the work from start to finish. The ultimate responsibility for a proj ect rests with the partner in charge, who must answer to the client. The partner’s duty is to revise the project and position it in a manner that ensures the greatest likelihood of achieving the client’s desired outcome. Your role as an associate is to do the best you can with the informa tion provided. If pertinent information is omitted, the associate should request it, but the originating attorney is ultimately responsible for providing critical founda tional information. If a course of action is wrong, the partner has the ultimate responsibility for matters of legal strategy. That is not to say that an associate is free from all responsibility. Far from it, in fact, because the job title and role require a minimum level of competency. How ever, if the supervising attorney assigns a task that is outside of an associate’s prac tice area, is new to the associate, or is one the associate simply feels uncomfortable handling, that is a reflection on the super vising attorney. A supervising attorney must manage people like in any other field. That ability to manage is as impor tant, if not more so, than the supervising attorney’s technical legal knowledge. Timeless Tips for Associates Here are six additional tips I’d like to pass along to young attorneys: 1. Never “mail it in,” even on initial drafts. Make abundantly clear to everyone that you care about clients, colleagues, partners, the firm, and the quality of work you produce. 2. Be reliable. Rapid responses and meet ing, or beating, deadlines demonstrate that you are invested in the firm’s work. This trait can substantially close the gap between a junior associate and a partner.

3. Own your mistakes. All attorneys make them, even partners. The key is how you handle and react to your mistakes. If you show a tendency to avoid responsibility or blame others, those around you will quickly notice and remember that for future projects. No one blames people for making mis takes, but they do blame people who point the finger at others for their own errors. 4. Ask questions. If assignment instruc tions are unclear, say something. The expectation is not that you will know all aspects of the substantive law and the relevant information about the client. While an assignment may make sense to the partner, they may overlook the fact that an associate is new to the client and unfamiliar with the assign ment. Asking questions shows that you are actively engaged, whereas not asking questions can create the per ception that you are either indifferent about the work quality or not inter ested in the assignment. 5. Embrace feedback and criticism. For better or worse, humans tend to fixate on the negative. Some partners use mistakes as teachable moments. Others use them to berate or belittle you. Even

the latter may help you realize that you should look for a different opportunity at a new firm. 6. Find solutions. When you hit an unex pected roadblock, get creative and tap into your skillset. Research the matter and think outside the box. Give the partner a solution or workaround, or at least talk through the issue with the partner. Even if the solution does not work, suggesting one shows creativity, initiative, and ambition. There is invaluable freedom in doing the absolute best you can and knowing there is nothing more to do on an assign ment you submit. The pride that comes with submitting quality work is unlike any other. Likewise, letting go and embrac ing your role as an associate establishes a sustainable mental health path that will reduce stress, improve work quality, and support your ambition.

Brian M. Bentrup, a Senior Associate at Pluymert, MacDonald, Hargrove & Lee, Ltd, concentrates his practice on estate planning, guardianships, and commercial real estate. He is also the Co-Editor in Chief of the CBA’s @ theBar Blog. CBA RECORD 29