YOUR BUSINESS PROBLEMS: Whether you’re business involves manufacturing,
buying or selling goods or services, developing real estate or oil and gas prospects or
some other activity:
- A customer or business associate may turn out to be unreliable and irresponsible
- Misunderstandings may occur.
- Unanticipated events may come up.
- Your customer may be unexpectedly short of funds.
- Your supplier may not be able to deliver on schedule.
- All of a sudden you come to an impasse with someone who you thought you
understood.
HOW AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER CAN HELP YOU:
- If a customer owes you money, your lawyer can negotiate and/or file suit seeking to collect the amount due.
- If you have a disagreement over a pending business deal, your lawyer can ask a court to declare the rights of the parties.
- If someone is causing you immediate and irreparable harm, your lawyer can ask a court to order them to stop.
- In many cases your lawyer may also be able to ask the court to order payment of damages, accrued interest and/or
reasonable attorneys fees.
- Skillful communications by your lawyer to your adversary can provide a powerful incentive for your adversary to become
reasonable.
- Service of suit papers can force your adversary to decide whether to incur substantial expense to resist or try harder to
be reasonable.
AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER CAN HELP YOU LEARN ABOUT NORMAL AND CUSTOMARY LEGAL FEES: It helps if your
lawyer gives you some guidance as to what current legal fees are-any experienced lawyer ought to know this:
- You’re willing to pay a reasonable fee for his services-it doesn’t make sense not to.
- You understand he can’t possibly help you unless he is reasonably compensated.
- We believe the best information available to non lawyers on the subject of legal fees is the State Bar of Texas
Department of Research & Analysis Hourly Rates in 2005 Report (TO SEE IT, CLICK ON THIS LINE)
- We think this Report contains objective information which can be useful to a non lawyer in deciding whether the legal fees
he is asked to pay are in or out of line.
- Also, your lawyer should have prior knowledge from years of experience about the fees and expenses you will probably
encounter.
AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER CAN HELP YOU DECIDE WHAT TO DO ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS PROBLEMS AND DISPUTES:
- The State Bar of Texas has a good explanation of how to work with your lawyer entitled: "How to Work With Your Lawyer"
(TO SEE IT CLICKON THIS LINE).
- You and your lawyer must be on the same wavelength to have a chance to successfully resolve the problem.
- You tell your lawyer about your problems and expect him to have some specific suggestions about what to do to reach
solutions.
- Your lawyer will want copies of papers you have and may want you to give him a written chronological description of the
problem and how it developed.
- You may have questions to ask him.
- Both of you should fully disclose to each other everything which might relate to the problem or dispute the lawyer has
been hired for.
- You should have a written agreement specifying what you are to do and what your lawyer is to do.
- You expect your lawyer to be helpful in coming to the agreement. He will have prior knowledge from similar experience in
the past.
AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER CAN HELP YOU UPDATE YOUR BUSINESS DOCUMENTATION TO MORE EFFECTIVELY DEAL
WITH PROBLEMS AND DISPUTES: Sometimes, updating your business documentation can be helpful:
- For example, if you deal with out of state customers, it will be much less expensive and time consuming to go to court
where your business is located.
- Your documentation can be improved to increase the likelihood of maintaining your suit in courts where you reside.
- Also, if you deal with small corporations, you are going to want to have rights against the individuals as well as the
corporation to avoid a loss because of an empty corporate shell.
- Special provisions in your documentation can help you hold an individual responsible instead of only a shell corporation.
AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER CAN HELP YOU WISELY AND PRUDENTLY RESOLVE BUSINESS PROBLEMS AND DISPUTES
WITHOUT “BETTING THE FARM” ON THE OUTCOME:
- You want to approach your business problems without threatening your business with ruinous expense.
- Your lawyer wants to help you in a way that fits your business plan.
- Your lawyer’s phone call to the other party may resolve the situation.
- After receipt of a demand letter, the other party may become more reasonable.
- If that doesn’t work, your lawyer can file suit in court against the other party and have the papers served giving the other
party a deadline to hire his own lawyer and file a response in court.
- At this point, the prospect of litigation expense and uncertainty can provide a powerful incentive to the other party to settle
on reasonable terms.
- If satisfactory settlement is still elusive, a mediation can be scheduled to try to break the deadlock.
- If preparation and a trial are necessary, an experienced lawyer can help keep the expense down and apply pressures
more likely to bring about satisfactory settlement.
COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR LAWYER SHOULD BE AS EASY AS CLICKING A MOUSE OR PICKING UP THE PHONE:
- We believe that this day and time it's not necessary for a business person to spend travel time and setting appointments
to see his or her lawyer in the lawyer's office.
- A lawyer's job is to serve his client and part of this is making it as easy as possible for the client to communicate with the
lawyer.
- Modern DVD and CD burners provide low cost, reliable and easily accessed storage for client documents and case files resulting in virtually
permanent and largely paperless document and file maintenance.
- Much voluminous information is available through email and fax.
- We believe a conscientious lawyer should be prepared to spend time in his client's office as needed.
© 2006 Charles L. Black Aycock
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WORKING WITH YOUR LAWYER:
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