It’s hard to imagine that there are clichés about lawyers that lawyers love, but Vivia Chen, a former corporate lawyer who is now chief blogger for The Careerist, posted Top 10 Annoying Clichés Lawyers Love on April 15, 2013.  LPR’s favorites:

5. “You will get real-world experience.”

Translation: You will be doing document reviews in Trenton for the next 15 months.

6. “There is a paradigm shift in the industry.”

Translation: You have no chance in hell of becoming an equity partner—even though you’ve been billing over 3,000 hours a year in the last decade.

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8. “If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.”

Translation: If you don’t agree with me, you are (by definition) a problem.

9. “We want team players.”

Translation: You will be working with an egomaniacal partner, so if you can’t shut up and put up, you are lacking team spirit.

Part of forging a positive and productive relationship with your lawyer(s) is to understand their point of view.  Ms. Chen’s Top 10 list, while amusing, is hauntingly accurate in so many law firms.  In those firms, partners really think of themselves and their associates as Ms. Chen portrays, and associates are subject to those partners’ attitudes and treatment.  The issue for legal consumers is the trickle down effect.  How partners and associates interact in these firms affect how they treat their clients.  Legal consumers would be well advised to keep these potential perspectives in mind when dealing with partners and associates in law firms.

You’ve got options.  The Center for Legal Practice Reform can help you navigate the attorney/client relationship and level the playing field.  Call LPR today for a free consultation – (301) 351-7970.