Setting Injury Client Expectations

Lawyer having a meeting with a client

I’ve found that personal injury clients with unreasonable expectations can often be attributed to three things:

  1. Lack of communication. The lawyer doesn’t communicate with their clients sufficiently, which results in other problems.
  2. Lack of information. The client doesn’t understand the process and how it works because they lack information. This results from problem number 1: lack of communication.
  3. Lack of trust. Lack of communication + lack of information=lack of trust. If the client and the lawyer don’t have good communication, there’s no relationship there. If the lawyer hasn’t conveyed adequate information to the client, the lawyer hasn’t demonstrated their general expertise in the relevant area, or their specific knowledge of the client’s case. This results in a lack of trust.

Are there some people who are just difficult, won’t listen, and will always have unreasonable expectations? Sure. But I think that’s the exception rather than the rule.

Often the lawyer can prevent problems from arising by being proactive with their communication, ensuring the client is well educated, and building rapport and trust with the client.

What do you think? Join the conversation with me on LinkedIn.

About the Author

Darl Champion is an award-winning personal injury lawyer serving the greater Metro Atlanta area. He is passionate about ensuring his clients are fully compensated when they are harmed by someone’s negligence. Learn more about Darl here.