WHAT:

A Professional Calling

A lawyer owes a fiduciary duty to the client; that of the utmost good faith and loyalty. In this modern day, we are constantly bombarded with the message of commercialism. Law, unfortunately, has also become big business. Fewer and fewer lawyers are spending their time and resources representing their clients and perfecting their craft, but instead are intensely involved in creative marketing, spending money on advertising to get more cases, create more revenue and wring out greater business profits. For the attorney, the firm's profit is the highest consideration.

A business, by its nature, must maximize profit on investment. The profit motive of the "business approach" is in direct conflict with a professional's fiduciary duty of loyalty to their client. An example:

A personal injury attorney works on a contingent fee. There is no fee paid if there is no recovery, but if there is a recovery, the attorney gets a percentage of the amount recovered. The "business approach" to this contract is to maximize the amount recovered, and to minimize the amount of time and money invested. If the law firm can settle the case in ten hours for a $15,000.00 settlement and a $5,000.00 fee, its effective hourly rate is $500.00 per hour. However, if that same case was worked up properly by a loyal attorney putting in 100 hours of work, to yield a settlement of $30,000.00 and a fee of $10,000.00 (and thus double the recovery for the client), the effective hourly rate for the attorney is lowered to $100.00 per hour.

The "business approach" firm will advertise its staff, computer system and quick settlements. There is little, if any, personal contact between the client and the attorney. In doing this the "business approach" firm seeks to minimize its investment in your case, and maximize its effective hourly rate to move more cases through its revolving door.

In addition, keep in mind that those firms that advertise are spending a great deal of money on delivering their business message and diverting resources away from paying an experienced staff and investing in the client's case.

How do they get away with this? The "business approach" firm knows that when it has dissatisfied clients, it can just spend more money on advertising to get more cases in the door. There are even national organizations made up of attorneys and marketing agents that meet for the purpose of refining the "business approach" to maximize firm profits. These types of organizations come up with the ideas for the tasteless advertising designed to get your attention, conjuring up the image of the lawyer as the greedy "ambulance chaser." Could you imagine what the professional in attorney Abraham Lincoln must think of these "business approach" attorneys?

Over the past 30 years, we have seen slow but steady erosion in the professional approach, and a rapid emergence of the "business approach." This trend allows worthy cases to be compromised, all in the name of profit. The profit motive may make the attorney a great deal of money, but it is at the expense of those whom the law is designed to protect: the wronged and injured.

One hundred years ago, being a professional meant putting the client's interests ahead of the attorney's interests. A professional took pride in the fact that a client was helped by the attorney's best effort. The attorney's loyalty and dedication was repaid with return business. That is the professional approach. That is what MYMNPRO is all about.

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